Emotional support animals (ESA) help individuals who suffer from emotional or mental health disorders by giving them support and comfort to deal with their symptoms. This post will cover where you can and canāt take your emotional support animal and some other important facts you will want to know.
- What exactly is an Emotional Support Animal?
- Can my emotional support animal live with me in a no-pets building?
- Can my emotional support animal be in the common areas?
- Can my emotional support animal live in my university dorm?
- Can my emotional support animal come to class with me?
- Can my emotional support animal board airplanes?
- Can my emotional support animal stay in a hotel or AirBNB?
- Can my emotional support animal come inside a restaurant or store?
- Can my emotional support animal come to work?
- ESAs Are Welcome
What exactly is an Emotional Support Animal?
An ESA is a domesticated animal, such as a dog, cat, rodent, bird, fish, or turtle, that brings comfort and/or emotional stability to an individual who suffers from a diagnosed mental health disability. ESA owners commonly have conditions like severe anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, phobias, and learning disorders.
To qualify for an emotional support animal, you must be assessed by a licensed professional. A licensed healthcare professional can issue an ESA letter establishing your need for an emotional support animal to assist with your health condition. Your ESA can be an existing pet or can be adopted at a later stage.
An ESA does not require any specialized training to assist with your condition. They serve by being present in your life and being there for you during difficult times. This is different from psychiatric service dogs (PSDs), which require extensive training to perform tasks relating to a personās mental health disability. As we will see, PSDs have a higher hurdle in terms of training, but are also afforded greater access rights than emotional support animals.
How Can I Get an ESA Letter from ESA Doctors?
Can my emotional support animal live with me in a no-pets building?
You have a right to live with your emotional support animal in your home. Federal ESA housing lawsāand various state lawsāprotect people suffering from emotional and/or mental disabilities and their ESAs.
Housing providers must reasonably accommodate ESA owners even if their building has a strict policy prohibiting any type of pet on the premises. Under the Fair Housing Actās guidelines, providers of housing such as condos, landlords, co-ops, and HOAs cannot charge any extra fees or deposits due to your need for an emotional support animal. ESAs are also exempt from other building restrictions relating to pets, such as those regarding size, weight, breed, or species of the animal.
Note that some landlords are exempt from Fair Housing Act (FHA) requirements in these four situations: (1) in owner-occupied buildings with no more than four units, (2) in single-family houses sold or rented by the owner without using an agent, (3) when the housing is operated by a religious organization, and (4) in private clubs that limit occupancy to members. In any of these circumstances, the owner does not need to comply with ESA rules.
Can my emotional support animal be in the common areas?
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development HUDās guidelines for emotional support animals, a reasonable accommodation by a landlord is a āchange, exception, or adjustment to a rule, policy, practice, or service that may be necessary for a person with a disability to have equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling, including public and common use spaces.ā
Note that āpublic and common use spacesā are specifically called out. That means an ESA owner has the right to take their emotional support animal through the lobby, elevator, stairways, and other common areas where other residents are allowed to go.
Can my emotional support animal live in my university dorm?
College dorms and campus housing must also accommodate student residents who want to live with their emotional support animals. There have been instances where colleges have been penalized for not following FHA guidelines. Students should be aware, however, that universities often have specific requirements when it comes to ESA requests. For more information, you should check with your school for specific policies regarding emotional support animals in dorms and campus housing.
Can my emotional support animal come to class with me?
Generally speaking, ESAs do not have a legal right to be in classrooms. However, you should check with your school to see if they have any policies regarding emotional support animals on campus. For the most part, schools will not allow ESAs in a classroom and other school settings, except for housing.
Can my emotional support animal board airplanes?
Until January 2021, ESAs were allowed to board the cabin of planes free of charge. That all changed due to regulatory changes by the U.S. Department of Transportation. As a result of these legal developments, U.S. airlines no longer recognize emotional support animals.
To fly with your ESA in the cabin, your ESA will have to meet the airlineās restrictions for pets. That usually means your ESA must be able to fit in a small carrier bag. You will also have to pay pet fees, which can cost up to $125 each way.
Psychiatric service dogs, on the other hand, can still fly in the cabin free of charge. The passenger will need to submit the Department of Transportationās (DOT) Service Animal Air Transportation Form, which requires self-certification regarding the dogās service animal status. The passenger must represent that they have a fully trained service dog that assists them with a psychiatric disability.
If youāre interested in beginning the process towards owning a psychiatric service dog, the licensed healthcare professionals who work with ESA Doctors can help. A licensed professional can determine whether you qualify for a PSD letter. A PSD letter is a signed document from a healthcare professional that states whether you have a qualifying disability for purposes of owning a psychiatric service dog under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Air Carrier Access Act.Ā
Get your Psychiatric Service Dog Letter Now
Your ESA may qualify as a PSD
Can my emotional support animal stay in a hotel or AirBNB?
Hotels are not required to allow emotional support animals as they are not covered by ESA Fair Housing rules. Airbnb stays are also not required to allow emotional support animals, but you can always contact them and ask politely. Some hosts allow you to bring an emotional support animal, but you should always check before booking a reservation.
While hotels do not have to accommodate ESAs, they are required to allow psychiatric service dogs.
Can my emotional support animal come inside a restaurant or store?
Contrary to popular belief, emotional support animals are NOT allowed in stores, restaurants, or other businesses. Emotional support animals do not have the same level of public access as psychiatric service dogs, and each business has the right to accept or deny an ESA. Some businesses allow ESAs and other animals as a courtesy, but it is within their right to refuse to accommodate you.
Can my emotional support animal come to work?
There is no federal law that mandates employers to accommodate emotional support animals. Generally, employers do not allow emotional support animals to accompany their owners in the workplace. Your employer, however, may have a different policy that accepts ESAs if certain conditions are met. It may be worthwhile to discuss what options you have with your manager or supervisor. Fair warning: most employers do not have a policy allowing ESAs during working hours.
ESAs are Welcome
You should feel confident bringing your emotional support animal into your home if you have submitted an ESA letter to your landlord. The law protects ESA owners from discrimination and recognizes that emotional support animals play a crucial role in the treatment of mental health disabilities.
If you need an ESA letter or a PSD letter, there is no better route than ESA Doctors. We will put you in touch with a licensed professional who can assess your mental and emotional health and issue an ESA letter or PSD letter if you qualify. The entire process is done without office visits and confidentially.
I think that esa should have basic training so that they are well behaved. I understand that people need emotional support animals and thatās good that they have an animal to comfort them. It would benefit all though if the animal had to have basic training.
We also encourage all ESA owners to make sure their dogs have basic training skills mastered. An ESA does not require any specialized training, but they should be well-behaved and model citizens in the building.
I suffer from severe social anxiety and others and thatās not even enough to bring my ESA with me into places?
Unfortunately ESAs only have housing rights. They do not have public service rights like psychiatric service dogs.
I have an ESA and Iām sorry I take him to the store with me. I have severe depression due to not being able to have children. My dog is smaller so I carry him around in the store. I donāt put him in the cart, I understand people have allergies but that can come with anything. They have wipes for your cart. My FurBaby gets me through the day. You have take your child to the store and all of that. I will never have the chance to do that. So I do it with my dog. He doesnāt bark or make any fuss. So if I go to the store with my ESA and you donāt like it. Just look away because you have no idea how much taking him to the āstoreā with me honestly saves my life.
We’re so happy to hear how much your ESA helps you. We have to point out however that ESAs do not have public access rights to places like stores that ban pets – they only have rights when it comes to housing.
I am getting emotional support dog from my therapist who also understands that need to bring it to places because I had a very bad experiences in my life and I can get upset really fast because I am emotional person who can’t control myself
Will be taking it to lot of places to help me through my daily life that is very stressful for me
It’s wonderful you are getting an emotional support dog and ESA recommendation from your therapist. However, we want to make clear that ESAs do not have public access rights. The only place they have rights are in no-pets residences. You cannot however take them into stores, restaurants and other public venues that prohibit pets.
I have a small dog required by my psychiatrist due to severe depression and PTSD. I have been allowed to take him to McDonalds for several months and suddenly I can’t take him to McDonalds be cause he is a “fire” hazard due to a complaint from a Wal Mart worker. That was cleared up but was informed to day that I can’t do that any more. I bought a puppy stroller, have to keep him spipped up even to feed him or give him water. I do not know this woman. Had to have her pointed out to me and now that I spoke to her supervisor this has come up. I just want to know what to do. I need this puppy. I had a terrible childhood from rape to beatings at terrorist threatenings far into my adult life.
Sorry to hear about the treatment you experienced. If your dog is an emotional support dog however, it does not have a legal right unfortunately to be in public spaces like restaurants that prohibit pets. Only trained service dogs have broad public access rights.
Good. Enough already! Shouldnāt be allowed to take an animal in a restaurant. Period. If itās not a service dog. Lady next to me yesterday had an āemotional support animalā at the table licking the table, eating the food, barking at people and itās ridiculous.
I bring my dog into many stores I ask the owners of the store before I bring my esa in I usually carry him or push him in a doggy stroller. Most of the time they accept him in and in the few times they arenāt sure I usually stay in the car while someone Iām with goes into the store. I do believe you should check on the owner but sometimes the chain doesnāt want a dog in but Iām not sure if I should go in with him if the chain doesnāt like it but the owner doesnāt mind. Heās a good dog and doesnāt play with other dogs until I allow him to so heās not a big deal around service animals. If there is a service animal in the aisle I need to go in I usually wait until they do to the next aisle so my dog wound distract him but since you own a support animal I just wanted to get you thought about it.
ESAs do not have legal rights to be in places like stores, but as you point out some businesses will accommodate them as a courtesy or if you ask nicely!
I am so tired of our Walmart not enforcing the no ESA or pets allowed inside the store. ADA yes. The store is turning into a PetSmart. Someone told me they were told as long as there is a blanket in the cart for them to sit on then it’s okay. Wait what??? Tired of seeing them in the grocery department. I don’t fathom the idea of using a cart that a shedding dog was just sitting in. What about people with pet allergies? I called the corporate office and I am sure that I was wasting my breath. I hope not. I did confront the clerk at the courtesy desk and a few other employees about the situation and they told me that that’s news to them. Is there anyone else that I can contact about this matter ? Dept of Health? Other complaints besides mine too.
ESAs do not have legal rights in places like stores. Only ADA service dogs have public access rights in such places that prohibit animals.
Except now you can go on Amazon and order a service dog vest and slap it on your dog and places legally canāt ask you why
Merely having a service dog vest does not qualify an animal as a service dog. Third parties do not have to rely on vests or other service dog accessories. Under the ADA they can verify a service dog if the disability related need is not readily apparent by asking two questions: 1. Is the dog a service dog required for a disability? and 2. What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?
I have an ESA. Unless you suffer with mental health such as anxiety panic attacks PTSD depression. Phobias you don’t understand the comfort and love they bring to you. I take her everywhere with me. I place her bed in the shopping cart and away we go. She is well received by all. Even the biggest of men that may look scary smile. To the person that commented on not wanting to use a cart a shedding dog was in. You do realize humans shed too. We carry more germs
Think about everything you touch and take those germs with you. ESAs provide comfort Love companionship sometimes more than a human does. Keep this in mind as one day you or someone you know and love may have a life altering experience and find great comfort and a beautiful relationship with an ESA. Please keep in mind ESAs fall under your civil rights
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So Pam. I person can join the military, serve in a war zone to protect your freedom, come home with PTSD, get an ESA or service dog, but they shouldn’t be able to shop at your Walmart? Just trying to see exactly what kind of human being you are.
šš» THANK YOU šš»!!! My Dad, a WWII veteran and medic had horrible PTSD. It pretty much destroyed the majority of his life. I was his fulltime caregiver the last six years. Even at 97 years of age i still personality witnessed some of the effects. Still scared of the dark very badly, still having nightmares, still jumps at loud noises, still scared of fireworks. So very sad. I lost my Dad May 18th of this year. I miss him terribly and cannot seem to move past the loss. Lost my daughter four years ago. I have a dog that i just donāt donāt know what i would do without her and not too sure without her and my Dad that i would have survived my daughterās death and now my Dadās.
Iām so glad you spoke up for our military people. And PLEASE, allow me to THANK YOU personally for your service!
ā¤ļøš¤š Sincerely, Marsha DeVaughn
Agreed! I have an emotional support animal but I donāt take her in stores but if someone has a true service animal they should be able too. Sometimes people just look for reasons to complain.
Some woman had a cat in the treatment room at my dentist. I was very disturbed by that. I have 2 cats and love them and I understand disabilities and the help of ESAs. However, because I’ve had cats all my life I also understand shedding and that cat hair floats around a lot unseen until it lands somewhere… and someone opening and closing doors and walking in and out will keep it stirred up.
There are some places no animal, service or support, should be allowed and that should include treatment and procedure rooms.
I’m ok with them in restaurants when they lay quietly under the table, this doesn’t stir up a bunch of dog hair. If they don’t lay still and quiet then they need to be removed. Trained service dogs will lay quietly every time.
Emotional support cats do not have public access rights. Your dentist had the right to refuse entry for the cat. Service animals have broader public access rights, but they can only be dogs.
My cat is my registered ESA… My boyfriend lives and works some distance from my home, and he works at a bar that serves food. My ESA acts more like a dog than a cat – he loves people and has separation anxiety when I’m away, as I do with him. So it is extremely unfortunate that I cannot take my ESA with me when I go to visit my boyfriend at work, even for a brief time. The law allowing service animals but not support animals is unjust in my opinion. My cat and I would be much better off if he could go more places with me; it makes my anxiety and depression far worse because I have to chose between a person close to me and my ESA.
Amen
If I didn’t have my ESA Dog Memphis I would not leave my home. I have sever complex PTSD the kind that never goes away. I’m bipolar and have other mental health issues. Because of My ESA Dog Memphis I have the courage to do things like shopping and going to Dr office and many things I couldn’t do with out him. Their are no cures for mental health just a life time of treatment these animals are a part of therapy for some of us with mental health services.
If you have PTSD that bad, then get a service dog. They are allowed to go anywhere you can go with very few exceptions. ESA pets have limited access and rightly so. They are not trained and usually not as well behaved as a certified service dog. Even a service dog can be asked to leave an establishment if it is misbehaving, certified or not. Again, rightly so. But service dogs, because they do go through such extensive training, rarely if ever misbehave.
I’m tied of seeing all these “emotional support pets” in places like Walmart, restaurants, etc. because they just muck things up for REAL and trained service dogs. I have seen them pee and poop in the middle of stores and the owners just walk away from the mess. Service dogs DO NOT do that! Also, service dogs don’t ride in carts, are not carried in bags, and don’t sit on the seats eating off the table in restaurants. They walk calmly next to the owner and lay down under the table in restaurants. They certainly do NOT eat off tables! Nor do their owners feed them scraps under the table because that’s a big no-no with a service dog. Also, most service dog owners don’t allow their dog to be petted while it is doing its job. So, don’t ask. However, ESA owners ooh and aah over their little darlings and want everyone to pet their little babies.
If you “have” to have an ESA to function in life, have it at home, just not in public. Then get a therapist.
Although I understand 98% of humans have completely ruined it for the rest of us, most of us that truly suffer from severe social anxiety and panic disorder cannot afford a $40,000 service dog, therefore we have to rely on ESA dogs to get us through the day. There are good people left that obey laws and really count on these dogs to get us through the store in one piece. I have to go out sometimes. People are mean, rude, and scary. Emma keeps me focused so I can get what I need and get out without folding on the floor like a heap. Not all of us are using the system. I totally get where you are coming from, but my dog up in my cart where I can see her, and pet her is exactly where she needs to be. She has a working best, and no one is allowed to touch her. Just knowing she won’t leave me, and is there to calm me from cruel people right in front of me is why she is a registered ESA from my doctor. I didn’t do it to annoy you, or anyone else. It’s the people that use it wrong that are ruining it for the rest of us. Don’t judge everyone else. I also have a therapist I see every week. Emma is still needed.
i have sever anxiety and since you clearly know nothing of it, pam. you have no right to bitch because my dog helps me through panick attacks and ive mainly had them when he wasint around….. so since you dont want our esa’s around us, you are really just wanting us to break down in the middleof the store and i can see you telling me to “just get over it, and be happy”
You are so ignorant. I have both psych disorders and physical disorders. I have had horrible PTSD since I was 17(I’m 38 now) after finding my dad dead in the living room from cancer as well as from being in a car crash in which I drunk driver hit me head on at over 70mph and the jaws of life were requires to get me out of the car and I was life-flighted to a level one trauma center and I barely survived. I also have severe anxiety, social anxiety and panic disorder. I also live with a traumatic brain injury that makes me laugh and smile at inappropriate moments and I live with excruciating headaches. I’m not saying this for sympathy I’m saying this because I have two cats that are my lifeline, they give me a reason to get up and go live my life as best as I can. But I know darn well be it a cat or dog I will not bring the animal wherever I go because it’s not a service animal. It has absolutely no physical job to perform like remind me to take my medication or sense if Im going to have a headache come on(and even that would be weak a headache from a previous injury that has been ruled out as having been caused by something that could be lethal is not a disability). So unless your dog does something than just provide comfort accept the fact that it’s not a service dog and most places aren’t going to allow it…and it’s not a disservice. If your panic attacks are that bad pop a Xanax before you go shopping and get into cognitive-behavioral therapy.
Listen Iām a therapy dog trainer and if the dog is really trained I mean trained it should be allowed!! They can act perfectly!! I see it many many times!! I been in nice restaurants and Walmart people drink accestively when they are eating and are very annoying!! And Walmart screaming kids running up and down the aisles like crazy!! Also in restaurants screaming and excessively crying!! I know I have 12 grandkids! I love them very much but some kids if not trained can act badly!! Maybe this might change your mind a little bit!
So I am getting a dog she is a Australian schepard boarder collie mix and Iām wondering what it takes to get her qualified as a psychiatric service animal?
In order to qualify for a PSD, you need a mental health disability that is assisted by a job or task performed by a trained dog. Please see this article for the difference between PSDs and ESAs: https://esadoctors.com/make-esa-psychiatric-service-dog/
My Dr filled out papers for my dog as I suffer from anxiety depression and it states that I need my dog with me .what category does my dog come under.
If your dog provides support for mental health issues just by being present it may be an emotional support animal. If it is a dog that is trained to perform tasks or jobs relating to a disability, it may be a psychiatric service dog.
My cousin has a pet he’s now calling a service dog so he can take it everywhere. He has NO disabilities. Now he says he can bring it to all family functions in private homes because it’s his right. Is this true?
You cannot have a service dog unless you have a disability that qualifies under the ADA.