Emotional Support Animal Requirements

Getting your pet to become an emotional support animal is easier than you might think! Unlike service dogs that need lots of special training, emotional support animals just need to help you feel better when you’re sad, scared, or worried. 

Here’s a simple list of what makes an animal qualify as an emotional support animal:

• Your animal helps you feel better when you experience symptoms
• You have an ESA letter
• Your animal isn’t a danger to others
• Your animal is a typical household pet 
• Your animal is legal to own where you live

Detailed Requirements for Emotional Support Animals

For an animal to qualify as an ESA, it needs to meet certain requirements that focus both on how the animal helps you and how it behaves around others:

• Helps with emotional symptoms
  Your animal needs to help you feel better when you’re dealing with feelings like sadness, worry, or fear. This could mean making you feel calmer, helping you stick to daily routines, or giving you a reason to get out of bed on hard days.
  
• Doesn’t scare or hurt other people
  Your emotional support animal can’t be aggressive or dangerous to others. If your animal growls, bites, or acts in ways that make other residents in your building feel unsafe, it won’t qualify as an ESA.
  
• Doesn’t break things or make big messes
  While all animals might have accidents sometimes, your ESA shouldn’t chew through walls or cause expensive damage to where you live.
  
• Behaves well enough that others aren’t bothered too much
  Your animal doesn’t need perfect behavior, but it shouldn’t bark all night, run wild in public spaces, or create problems that would make it very hard for others to live near you.
  
• Is a legal pet where you live
  You can’t have an animal that’s against the law in your city, county, or state. For example, in some places, it’s illegal to keep certain types of snakes or birds. Those animals can’t be ESAs in those areas.
  

Where These ESA Requirements Come From

The rules about what animals qualify as emotional support animals come from HUD’s housing rules. These guidelines lay out the following: 

• What documentation is needed (a letter from a mental health professional)
• What types of animals can qualify (common domestic animals vs. unusual species)
• When a landlord might be allowed to deny an ESA request because of the animal’s behavior

HUD’s rules try to find a fair balance between protecting people who truly need animals for mental health support, considering the needs of housing providers and other residents, and ensuring safety and reasonable accommodations for everyone

Common Animals That Make Great ESAs

While almost any domesticated animal can qualify as an emotional support animal, some types are more common than others. Here’s a look at popular ESA choices and why they work well for many people:

Dogs

Dogs are the most common emotional support animals for many good reasons:

• They form strong bonds with their owners
• They can sense mood changes and often respond to distress
• Walking them provides exercise and gets you outdoors
• Many breeds are naturally affectionate and attentive

Example: Brian has depression that sometimes makes it hard for him to get out of bed. His golden retriever, Max, needs morning walks and feeding, which gives Brian a reason to get up even on difficult days. Max also seems to sense when Brian is feeling down and will often come to sit beside him, providing comfort without Brian having to ask.

Check out our guide on some of the best dog breeds for emotional support animals. 

Cats

Cats make excellent ESAs, especially for people who:

• Live in smaller spaces
• Have less energy for active play
• Enjoy quiet companionship
• Need an animal that’s more independent

Example: Sophia has social anxiety and finds large gatherings overwhelming. Her cat, Luna, comforts her when she returns home stressed from social situations. Petting Luna’s soft fur and listening to her purr help Sophia’s racing heart slow down. Since cats don’t need walks, Sophia doesn’t have to go outside when she’s feeling particularly anxious.

Small Animals

Many small animals make wonderful ESAs, including:

• Rabbits: quiet, soft, and can be litter-trained
• Guinea pigs: social, rarely bite, and make gentle sounds
• Rats: highly intelligent, can learn their names, and bond closely with owners
• Hamsters: low-maintenance and suitable for very small living spaces

Example: Marcus lives in a small apartment and works from home. His anxiety makes it hard to concentrate, but watching his two guinea pigs interact and holding them during breaks helps calm his mind. Their gentle squeaks and soft fur provide sensory comfort that allows him to refocus when work feels overwhelming.

Birds

Birds can be excellent ESAs for those who:

• Enjoy verbal interaction (with talking species)
• Find rhythmic sounds soothing
• Have limited space
• Need an animal that’s active during daytime hours

Example: Elena has PTSD and sometimes experiences flashbacks during the day. Her cockatiel, Sunny, provides distraction with his cheerful chirping and interaction. Teaching Sunny new whistles gives Elena something positive to focus on, and his consistent daytime activity helps her maintain a regular schedule.

Fish

While they might seem unusual as ESAs, fish can provide significant comfort:

• Watching fish swim can lower blood pressure and reduce anxiety
• Aquarium maintenance provides routine and purpose
• The bubbling sounds of a tank can be soothing
• They require no physical handling (good for those who can’t manage other pets)

Example: Aiden has trouble falling asleep due to racing thoughts from anxiety. The gentle bubbling of his aquarium and the rhythmic movements of his colorful betta fish help him relax at bedtime. Maintaining the tank gives him a calming ritual to perform each week, and watching the fish swim helps him practice mindfulness when his thoughts become overwhelming.

Other Animals

Less common but still effective ESAs include:

• Small reptiles: low-maintenance and calming to observe
• Pot-bellied pigs: intelligent and can form strong bonds

The best ESA is one that matches your specific needs, living situation, and the type of emotional support that helps your particular condition.

Examples of Animals That Can’t Be ESAs

Not every animal can qualify as an emotional support animal, even if it makes you feel better. Here are some types of animals that typically don’t qualify, with examples of why:

Wild Animals

You can’t have a deer, raccoon, or other wild animal as an ESA because they aren’t meant to live with people.

Example: Jamie loved feeding the squirrels in her backyard and wanted an ESA because watching them made her happy. However, wild squirrels aren’t allowed as ESAs because they might bite people, carry diseases, or destroy homes. They’re also not used to living indoors with humans, which would be stressful for them.

Wild animals often carry diseases that can spread to humans, and they typically don’t adapt well to living in homes. This is both a safety issue and an animal welfare concern.

Dangerous Animals

Animals that might hurt people can’t be ESAs, even if they help with your emotions.

Example: Max’s snake is venomous and could hurt someone if it escaped its tank. Even though Max feels calm watching his snake, it doesn’t qualify as an ESA because of the danger it could pose to neighbors, maintenance workers, or emergency personnel who might need to enter his apartment.

The law tries to balance the needs of the person with the mental health condition against reasonable safety concerns for others. An animal that poses a genuine threat to others goes beyond what’s considered a “reasonable accommodation.”

Super Disruptive Animals

Pets that make too much noise or cause big problems for neighbors might not qualify as ESAs in certain living situations.

Example: Sarah’s parrot can scream loudly for hours at a time. Even though the parrot helps Sarah feel less anxious by giving her company during the day, it might not qualify as an ESA in an apartment building with thin walls because the screaming bothers everyone else and makes it hard for them to sleep or work from home.

While landlords need to make accommodations for ESAs, they don’t have to accept situations that would cause a major disruption to other tenants’ ability to enjoy their homes. There needs to be a balance between your needs and the needs of others in shared living spaces.

Illegal Animals

If it’s against the law to own a certain type of animal where you live, it can’t be your ESA.

Example: Carlos lives in a city where it’s illegal to keep chickens within city limits due to local ordinances. Even though spending time with chickens helps Carlos with his depression, he can’t have one as an ESA in his current location because it would be breaking city law.

ESA laws don’t override local animal ordinances that exist for public health and safety reasons. These laws often exist because of concerns about noise, smell, disease, or other community impacts.

Questions You Might Have About ESA Requirements:

“Does my pet need to be trained like a service dog?”

No! This is the biggest difference between service animals and emotional support animals. Service animals need special training to help with specific tasks, but ESAs help by being themselves.

For example, service dogs like seeing-eye dogs need special training to help blind people cross streets safely or alert people with diabetes when their blood sugar is low. This training can take months or years and cost thousands of dollars. But Sam’s emotional support dog, Chowder, doesn’t need any special training. Chowder helps Sam just by being friendly and cuddly when Sam feels sad. Sam did teach Chowder basic commands like “sit” and “stay” to make him easier to live with, but this isn’t required for Chowder to be an ESA.

“Does my animal need to be a certain age to qualify as an ESA?”

No, there’s no age requirement for an emotional support animal. Both young and older animals can qualify.

“Are certain dog breeds disqualified from being ESAs?”

No, emotional support animals aren’t restricted by breed. Any dog breed can qualify as an ESA as long as the individual animal is well-behaved and doesn’t pose a threat to others.

For example, even though Jamie’s apartment building normally has breed restrictions against pit bulls, they had to make an exception for his emotional support dog because breed restrictions don’t apply to legitimate ESAs under fair housing laws.

“Does my animal need a special certification test to be an ESA?”

No, emotional support animals don’t need to pass any certification tests or courses. Unlike service animals, ESAs don’t need special training or certification.

“Does my animal need to wear a special vest or ID tag to be identified as an ESA?”

No, emotional support animals are not required to wear special identification. Vests, harnesses, ID tags, or badges are not legally required, though some owners choose to use them.

“Does my animal need to be spayed or neutered to qualify as an ESA?”

No, emotional support animals are not required to be spayed or neutered, though this is often recommended for health and behavioral reasons.

“Can my animal be disqualified from being an ESA if it barks or makes noise?”

An ESA can potentially be disqualified if it causes substantial disruption that cannot be mitigated, but occasional normal animal noises are generally acceptable. Check out our guide for what to do when your ESA barks. 

“Does my ESA need to have regular veterinary check-ups to maintain its status?”

While not legally required for ESA status, regular veterinary care is strongly recommended for your animal’s well-being and may be expected as part of responsible pet ownership.

“If my animal has a minor behavior issue, can it still be an ESA?”

Yes, minor behavior issues don’t disqualify an animal from being an ESA as long as the behavior doesn’t pose a threat to others or cause significant property damage.

For example, Emma’s cat occasionally scratched furniture, which is normal cat behavior. This didn’t prevent the cat from being her ESA. Emma provided scratching posts and regularly trimmed her cat’s claws to minimize damage.

“Can I have more than one ESA, or is there a limit?”

You can have more than one ESA if each animal provides different support for your condition and your mental health professional documents this need in their letter.

For example, Taylor’s therapist documented that both his dog and bird serve as ESAs for his depression in different ways. For example, the dog encourages physical activity while the bird provides comfort during anxiety attacks. His housing provider had to accommodate both animals as a reasonable accommodation.

“Is my animal disqualified if it hasn’t lived with me for a long time?”

No, there’s no requirement for how long you need to have owned your ESA. A newly adopted animal can immediately become an ESA with proper documentation.

How Can I Get an ESA Letter from ESA Doctors?

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