Mr Michael Hingson, a spokesman for Guide Dogs for the Blind, had to travel to Ireland from the US without his guide dog.
The dog, Roselle, was not permitted to accompany Mr Hingson in the cabin of any aircraft flying between the US and the UK.
Ireland and Great Britain do not distinguish between guide dogs and other domestic animals, so Roselle would have had to travel as cargo. Restriction and quarantine laws mean that Roselle would also have had to undergo a period of quarantine on arrival in Ireland.
Mr Hingson said both Governments have regarded blind people as second class citizens and refers to the laws as "backward".
A guide dog is used to being with its handler and it is cruel to keep the animal in cargo conditions for a long period of time, he added.
Mr Hingson began work with Guide Dogs for the Blind following the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Centre, from where he and Roselle escaped from the 78th floor.
He said he had to trust Roselle, and support her, knowing that he was responsible for ensuring that they worked together as a team.
Mr Hingson has a master's degree in physics from the University of Irvine in California, where he grew up, and worked as a district sales manager for Quantum data protection in the World Trade Centre until September 11th.
He now lives in Novato, California, with his wife Karen.
Michael has been travelling with guide dogs for the last 38 years. He said he does not miss his job in New York, though he does miss the World Trade Centre. He enjoys the Internet and is an amateur radio operator.
He travelled to Ireland to speak at tonight's Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind Gala evening.
He said he is looking forward to his future with Guide Dogs for the Blind but "he can not, should not and will not depend on other people".
"Governments don't have any right to treat people differently," he said.