EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS (ESA)
&
SERVICE DOGS

What are the benefits of a

 SERVICE DOG?

SERVICE DOGS are protected by ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) laws and have special rights to be allowed where other animals aren’t allowed.

All benefits of an ESA are available and additionally: Airlines, Public Transportation, and public places.

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• TRAVELING & TRANSPORTATION: You should never be discriminated against for having a service animal, which means you are permitted on buses, trains, taxis, airlines, etc. These entities must allow handlers and their service animals to board their vehicles and access services without prejudice.  (see air carrier access act)

• HOUSING (including hotels): if you have a registered service animal, you do NOT PAY FEES for pet accomodation. NO PET policies do not apply. (see fair housing act)

• EMPLOYMENT: if you have a registered service animal, your employer must allow you to bring your animal to work. Furthermore, in Texas, state employees are also allowed to take up to 10 days of PAID to attend a training program for acquiring a service dog.

• EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS: if the student is an individual with a disability, they have the right to be accompanied by the service animal and is allowed to have the service animal at school and in the classroom. 

• If you have a Service Animal, ANY ESTABLISHMENT (restaurants, services, sales, theatres, stadiums, libraries, museums, zoos, parks, gyms, bowling alley, etc) that refuses entry to you and your SA can be fined up to $300 and asked to do community service. The only exceptions are where restrictions may be in place is if the animal poses a threat or risk to others.

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What should I do to make my dog a SERVICE ANIMAL?

~There are 2 requirements~

https://gov.texas.gov/organization/disabilities/assistance_animals

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1. You must have a disability (physical or psychiatric). The term “disability” is a legally defined term under federal disabilities act and includes physical conditions (ie. visual, hearing, speech impairment, mobility issues) and mental health conditions (depression, anxiety, intellectual/developments disability, special needs or devices, mental disablity, or PTSD).

   •  To qualify for a service animal, you need written documentation from your healthcare provider that you have and are being treated for an emotional or psychiatric disorder or physical disability and require the assistance of an animal....(THIS IS THE EASY PART!)

2. Your SERVICE ANIMAL'S work/task performed must be directly related to the disability. (THIS IS THE HARD PART!)

   • A doctor 's note stating the disability (need for an animal) does not change your pet into a trained service animal 

   • Providing companionship, calming anxiety, or providing a sense of safety merely by its presence are not legal definitions of “tasks.”

   • Your Service Animal is NOT REQUIRED to be trained by a specific trainer.  However, training a service dog yourself can be difficult, and you will likely need help.​

   • ​SOME EXAMPLES of tasks ("guide dog" for blind): 

     • diabetic alert dogs, hearing dogs, opening doors, turning on lights, providing safety checks or room searches for persons wih PTSD, setting off alarms, and in some cases alerting a person to potentially-deadly blood sugar levels, detect the onset of psychiatric episodes, reminding the handler to take medicine, interrupting self-mutilation by persons with dissociative identity disorders, and keeping disoriented individuals from danger.

     • SIGNAL or SOCIAL SIGNAL is a dog trained to assist a person with autism. The dog alerts the handler to distracting repetitive movements common among those with autism, allowing the person to stop the movement (e.g., hand flapping).

     • SEIZURE RESPONSE is a dog trained to assist a person with a seizure disorder. How the dog serves the person depends on the person’s needs. The dog may stand guard over the person during a seizure. The dog may go for help. Some dogs can even predict a seizure and warn the person in advance to sit down or move to a safe place!