Service Animals

 Service Animals

Service Animals are NOT the same as Emotional Support, Therapy, Comfort, or Companion Animals.

Service Animals ARE considered official under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) while Emotional Support, Therapy, Comfort, or Companion Animals are not covered by the ADA.

Disability is defined by the ADA as “a Physical or Mental Impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, including people with history of such an Impairment, and people perceived by others as having such an impairment.”

The ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of Disability in Employment, State and Local Government, Public Accommodations, Commercial Facilities, Transportation, and Telecommunications.

Service Animals are often born and raised by Non-Profit Charities and Groups that breed and train Service Dogs for the Disabled.

A Service Animal Candidate should:  Be calm, especially in unfamiliar settings, Be alert, but not reactive, Have a willingness to please, Be able to learn and retain information, Be capable of being socialized to many different situations and environments, Be reliable in performing repetitive tasks

Service Animals are trained to perform many tasks including picking up items and carrying them to their Owner, identifying danger or a health emergency, etc.

Hearing Animals help alert Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Individuals to important sounds.

Mobility Animals assist individuals who use Wheelchairs or Walking Devices or who have balance issues.

Medical Alert Animals might also signal the onset of a Medical Issue such as a Seizure or Low Blood Sugar, alert the user to the presence of allergens, and serve many other functions

Psychiatric Service Animals assist individuals with Disabilities such as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Post–Traumatic Stress Disorder, Schizophrenia, and other conditions.

Service Animals cost between $20,000-50,000 (Breeding Program, Foster Homes, Training, Feeding, Medical Care, Paying for Disabled Owners to train with and travel to them, etc.)

The ADA limits the questions you can ask a Person about their Disability and their Service Animal.

When a Person with a Service Animal enters a Public Facility or Place of Public Accommodation, the Person cannot be asked about the nature or extent of his Disability.

Only two questions may be asked:

Is the animal required because of a disability?

What work or task has the animal been trained to perform?

If the answer to question 1 is Yes and the tasks listed for question 2 are directly related to the Person’s Disability, then the Animal is a Service Animal.

Many State and Local Governments have introduced Laws that make it an Offense to Misrepresent a Service Dog.