We’ve all heard the stories about people claiming that seemingly ridiculous pets were actually support animals, like the woman who tried to bring her emotional support peacock on a plane. Unfortunately, sensationalized stories like this tend to cause people to view emotional support animals as a joke, when the truth is that they can be extremely beneficial for people with emotional or psychological disorders. People with substance use disorders might find them helpful in dealing with underlying problems that led them to start using drugs, like anxiety and depression. They can also be useful for long-term recovery as a kind of support.
According to the National Service Animal Registry, any domesticated animal can be an emotional support animal, including cats, dog, mice, rabbits, birds, snakes, hedgehogs, rats, mini pigs, ferrets. (For the record, the problem with the peacock, according to the airline, was its size.) Unlike a working service dog, like a blind person or someone with PTSD might have, there is no specific training needed for these animals.
The increasing popularity of emotional support animals is causing confusion among the public, businesses, and even legislators. What do restaurants that are governed by strict health codes do when someone wants to enter with a rat? What about landlords who have no pet policies, but a renter wants to move in with their emotional support cat? Service animals are covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). State and local government agencies, businesses, and non-profit organizations that provide goods or services to the public are required to make “reasonable modifications” in their policies and procedures when necessary to accommodate people with disabilities. These means that places that generally have pet-free policies must allow service animals in. Emotional support animals, however, have no similar protection.
There is some precedence, however, when it comes to emotional support animals and housing. In the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) pets that serve as “assistance animals,” which includes both service animals and emotional assistance animals, must be given reasonable accommodation, even if the lease says no pets are allowed. If the landlord normally charges fees for renters with pets, these are waived for assistance animals. Unfortunately, the Fair Housing Amendments Act is fairly vague and does not specify what kinds of animals can be considered emotional support animals. The ADA, on the other hand, explicitly lists permitted breeds of service animals. Generally, you’ll have to provide a letter from your doctor or therapist explaining your particular disorder and describing how the animal helps you deal with it.
When it comes to airplane travel, the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) also doesn’t specify types of animals but makes determinations based on their size and whether they pose any danger to other passengers.
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