An elderly man is locked in a legal dogfight with his retirement village who want take his beloved german shepherd away from him — even though it is his assistance dog. John Murphy, 79, is taking on the Catholic Aged Care Sydney in the NSW Civil Administrative Tribunal after his Watsons Bay retirement village ordered he get rid of Rex because it has a no dogs policy. Mr Murphy adopted Rex 15 months ago after psychiatrists at St Vincent’s Hospital recommended he get a dog to help him deal with the stress he experienced when his wife, Gael, was moved to a high-care dementia facility. But Vaughan Village, run by Catholic Aged Care Sydney, is trying to boot out Mr Murphy’s mate from the pair’s independent unit. The tribunal ruled against Mr Murphy last month and told him to find Rex a new home, but he was granted leave to appeal and is fighting to keep his companion. Mr Murphy said Rex is an assistance animal and under the Disability Discrimination Act and Companion Animals Act it would be unlawful to remove him. In the hearing he provided a letter from psychiatrist Dr Kate Mullin who said Mr Murphy had been “suffering significant carer stress” that was “adversely affecting his mental health”. “We have noticed a marked improvement in Mr Murphy’s presentation since adopting Rex.” “We have noticed a marked improvement in Mr Murphy’s presentation since adopting Rex, such that his mental health issues have largely resolved and he is better able to continue to care for his wife,” Dr Mullin wrote. He also provided Rex’s certificate of registration from the NSW Companion Animals Register and letters from not-for-profit organisation mindDog which confirmed Rex is a trainee psychiatric assistance dog. “When we went to court I was allowed to take Rex in with me because they recognised the certificate … but then the same court have ruled against him,” Mr Murphy said. The village said four residents complained about Rex, claiming he was a “nuisance”. Trustee of Catholic Aged Care Sydney Michael Moore said he couldn’t comment on the case specifically but he took the “safety and welfare of all our residents very seriously”.
