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sergeantsporks · 2 years ago

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Here’s several moths worth of having a service dog hyperfixation! Do keep in mind that everything I know is based on American laws and the ADA, so I don’t know how it’d go in the boiling isles cjsmckksox

Therapy animals are animals that provide some sort of support to people in specific spaces, such as schools or hospitals. There’s a huge range of animals that can be therapy animals, the most common being dogs, cats, horses, rabbits, and even birds (in the US, there’s some criteria that determines what kind of animal can become one). Organizations will usually require these animals to pass some sort of test before they can start serving. I was actually training my dog alongside a NGO so he could serve as a therapy animal in pediatric hospitals, but then the pandemic hit and we were forced to give up :P

Emotional support animals are usually prescribed by psychiatrists and are indeed owned by the people they provide emotional support to (they’re covered under the Fair Housing Act in the US), said people not necessarily being disabled. They can also range from a variety of animals and don’t have to be trained to do anything specific. “Emotional support animal” is more of a legal/medical definition, so there’s no way to know how or if anything I’ve said could be applied in the Boiling Isles. That being said, I still love the idea of an emotional support palisman for Hunter, regardless of human definitions being applicable or not lol

Unlike the other two, service dogs strictly have to be dogs (even tho mini horses are actually also valid if dogs aren’t a possibility). They have to task trained in order to aid their owners, who do have to be disabled. Any breed is a valid breed, so I like to picture Hunter with some wolf-like dog like a northern Inuit dog or a tamaskan (even tho both are high-energy dogs and might be hard to train). Service dogs can be taught tasks to aid people with a range of disabilities, be it physical or psychiatric. So like, Hunter could use one as a mobility aid or teach them things that could help with his PTSD (picture a dog telling him to lay down suddenly and just laying down on him for deep pressure therapy). They can follow their owners anywhere they go, as their access is required by law according to the ADA. Even tho the ADA wouldn’t valid in the boiling isles, witches seem to be allowed to take their palisman wherever, so I don’t think anyone would stop him if he just had a very polite dog lmao

Anyways I’m 100% drawing him with a service dog I need this in my life

Amazing, Thank You. Yep, for sure a service dog is the best fit for him, perfect!

#asks #toh #toh hunter #the owl house #pancake

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yorkiemusketeer · 3 years ago

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I have a legit ESA with me 24 /7. She has been trained since a very tender age by my psychologists and psychiatrists.

'Fake' ESA are forcing my doctor's hand: Zoe is 'upgrading' to a psychiatric service dog.

She is a three kilo Yorkie who can fly Sao Paulo-New York unnoticed.

Full gear . My disorder atested by psychiatrists here and in NYC. She has specific moves, she knows when an episode is coming or escalating.

Now, the Airlines are 200% right. A peacock, a mini HORSE! A woman with an ESA - a snake- in a Chanel store?!

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probably-guinea-pigs · 5 years ago

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I have an ESA (long post)

And she’s very different from a therapy animal or a service animal! An ESA is acquired by going to a doctor (in this case, defined as someone who can prescribe medication) and showing/explaining to them how the animal in question helps you manage a documented mental illness. This is very important: you must have a DOCUMENTED MENTAL ILLNESS and you must have a PROFESSIONAL PRESCRIPTION for your ESA. Those are the only two requirements! (keep reading for more info if you want!)

An ESA can be literally any animal, and can help in different ways! For example, I have guinea pigs (shocker, I know): caring for them helps me manage my depression and anxiety, and holding them provides calming sensory stimulation. Voidling especially because she has a really cool fur texture.

Because my guinea pigs are not trained to do anything, it is up to individual businesses/apartments to decide whether or not they are allowed on the premises. Saying they’re an ESA may persuade some businesses and apartments to allow your buddy, but again they are not required to do so. Sometimes they may ask for documentation, which is why I keep my doctor’s note in my pigs’ carrier. Generally, an ESA will be quiet and easy to maintain while in public. Barking purse dogs who crap on the floor are not ESAs, Karen.

I have also trained one of my ESAs, the late and great Queen Speckles, to be a therapy animal! This requires more patience than just being an ESA, and not all animals (even ESAs) will have the temperament to be a therapy animal. It’s also important to note that while not all ESAs are therapy animals, all therapy animals are ESAs and are therefore NOT REQUIRED to be allowed into businesses or apartments. Speckles was trained to be a distraction. She would “check” me with nudges and kisses to keep my focus on her during panic attacks, and would know whether I wanted to play or snuggle by what surface she was put on. She would also remain still if I put her on my chest as a form of deep pressure therapy. She would also be able to do this for other people! Larger therapy animals, such as dogs and cats, will usually go through certification programs to prove that they are calm and well behaved enough to manage a therapy lifestyle. These are the animals you will see making rounds at the hospital.

Finally, there are service animals. Under the ADA, the only animals that are qualified to be service animals are dogs and miniature horses. (Fun fact, the mini horses were added because of a blind Muslim woman who to this day trains them to guide Muslims who can’t have dogs for religious reasons!) These animals go through rigorous training from a very young age to become service animals, and there are many types of services to preform! Guide dogs, PTSD dogs, diabetic alert dogs, and psychiatric service dogs are a few I can list off the top of my head. These dogs, by law, are required to be allowed wherever their handler goes. They are WORKING DOGS, which means no, Karen, your kid CAN’T pet the dog and yes, the dog IS allowed to be here. It’s very important to leave these dogs to do their job, and some are even trained to take measures to keep you away from their handler.

So there ya go! A very brief explanation of the difference. Mostly for my benefit so I can link back to this post whenever someone is like ��what’s an ESA” when I mention my piggles lol

#ESA #therapy animal #service animal #long post #informational post #might do another one about the harm of fake ESAs

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esa-dog-blog · 5 years ago

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ESA Dog

Need an Emotional Support Animal Letter Fast? We help people with anxiety, depression, or chronic stress connect with a mental health professional that will provide an ESA letter quickly. An emotional support animal letter can help you bring your pet into the cabin of an airplane and/or into apartment complexes without paying any fees.

Emotional Support Animal Letter

In order to have your animal qualify as an emotional support animal you must receive a letter from a licensed mental health counselor prescribing the need for the emotional support animal.

We have helped thousands of families through the process of qualifying for an emotional support animal letter, you can register your emotional support animal here.

An emotional support animal is any pet that belongs to a person and is “prescribed” to him/her by a medical professional as a kind of psychological treatment. Animals we love have a proven effect to cure or at least minimize effects of psychological, mental or emotional disabilities. However, it is not always possible to stay inseparable because of flights and housing restrictions. Face similar problems? Emotional support animal letter is the solution you were looking for!

What is an Emotional Support Animal or (ESA)?

An emotional support animal (ESA) is a person’s pet that has been prescribed by a person’s licensed therapist, psychologist, or psychiatrist (any licensed mental health professional). The animal is part of the treatment program for this person and is designed to bring comfort and minimize the negative symptoms of the person’s emotional/psychological disability.

Unlike a service animal, an emotional support animal is not a working animal but a pet that has been prescribed by a licensed mental health counselor. The pet is prescribed to bring comfort and help minimize the patient’s emotional/psychological disability.

Whether you live in an apartment, condo, or house, you have the legal right to have a pet in your residence to treat your medical condition! Knowing how valuable a pet can be for treating many psychological and physical symptoms, our mission could not be more simple: to increase awareness about the Fair Housing Act while qualifying as many individuals as possible to own an emotional support animal in their home.

How Do I Get an

Emotional Support Animal Letter

We will connect you to a doctor via telehealth services that will review your exam and write your Emotional Support Animal prescription letter (Apartment rental and airline travel written separately). Your landlord and/or airline can verify the ESA Letter by contacting the doctor directly.

The exam was written by mental health professionals to help determine your need for an ESA letter. We are dedicated in our quality of work within the field of emotional support animal services. The ESA prescription letter requires a real licensed mental health professional or medical doctor to approve and file ESAs accordingly.

Which Animal’s Qualify as Emotional Support Animal (ESA)?

Unlike Service Animals which only allow Dog’s and Miniature Horses as service animals all domestic pets qualify under ESA guidelines, snakes, dogs, cats, mice, rabbits, birds, snakes, hedgehogs, rats, mini pigs, ferrets and more. All of these animals don’t have to perform a task like a service dog does, they simply provide comfort to the patient. The only requirement is that the animal when in public places and the home are not out of control and causing a public nuisance.

Benefits of Emotional Support Animal Certification

Fly Cheap and Easy!

The common rules on traveling by plane have no loyalty towards pets. In most cases, traveling with a pet is prohibited, and even if it is not, get ready for a most amazing pay for your flight. Leaving the pet at home is not always a good idea. If you want to travel much with your dog, you'd better pass the emotional support dog certification. In this case, your favorite pet will be placed in the cabin together with you absolutely for free! On this point alone, you save up to three hundred dollars every flight! This rule concerns not only the emotional support animal dog but any other pet that has the equal supporting qualification.

Live with Your Pet Legally!

According to Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1998, you do not get charged with any extra fees or special deposits if you live with your ESA dog, ESA cat or other pet. The only requirement is that you get responsible for the behavior of your friend and compensate any possible damage. Now, you have a chance for a comfortable residence with your pet without any discrimination ever possible.

Feel Better with your ESA Pet!

Living with your favorite pet will certainly bring the sense of comfort and overall support to you. Forget about loneliness, anxiety and depression; you`d better take your ESA dog for a walk!

#esa dog #esa #esa letter

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the-ace-of-weasels · 6 years ago

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lololol, someone complained that I was being really offensive towards disabled people...

because I emphasized that ESAs aren’t service animals and don’t come with the same access rights as one.

direct quote from what they told me: “it is extremely offensive to tell those of us who have disabilities that require emotional support animals that they are not “real service animals.”

they’ve gone on about how well they know the laws regarding service animals and ESAs, they’ve gone on about how they’re disabled and have one... and they they don’t understand the difference between a highly trained dog or mini horse trained to perform specific tasks that mitigate issues and limitations caused by a person’s disability and a prescribed pet and are perfectly willing to tell people to just take their ESAs or pets with them in public because some places may be too scared to question if it’s a legit service animal or not.

gods fucking really. I’m disabled myself. I have disabled friends. one friend has a trained psychiatric service dog who is secondarily trained to do things like pick stuff up for her due to her physical problems making some movements like bending over harder for her. where she lives people have been trying to treat ESAs as being the same as psychiatric service dogs going as far as to say ESAs are psychiatric service animals or all psychiatric service animals are actually ESAs. this has lead to her being told she can’t bring her trained psychiatric service animal with her because they’ve been told it’s the same as an ESA and someone high enough up had the piece of mind to check if that was true, found out it wasn’t, and then decided that what they were told means there aren’t any real psychiatric service animals, just people trying to take their untrained pets in public even in places that ban pets.

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gayluigi · 3 years ago

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Any breed of mini can be a service horse across the entire country! State law only overrules the ADA when the protection provided is greater, not when the protection provided is lesser. The recommendation is that service minis should be 24 inches to 34 inches in height and weigh around 70 to 100 pounds, but that’s just a guideline, not actually required as part of the law.

Fun fact: while most people use service minis for guide or mobility work, some minis, such as well-known mini Flirty from Omaha, NE, are used for psychiatric disabilities! Pretty neat, huh?

Completely a tangent but, i wonder if the mini horses that actually have horse proportions can be trained and certified as service animals or if their breed doesn’t count.

As far as I’m aware the federal guideline just says “miniature horse” and it is up to the state to decide what that means.

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ciscaminestore · 4 years ago

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How Therapy Dogs Can Improve Physical and Mental Health

Therapy dogs are pets that improve your health by giving emotional support. you'll train your dog to be a therapy dog to supply support to yourself and others.

Therapy dogs sleep in people's homes. they will also visit a spread of settings, including retirement or nursing homes, schools, hospice homes, and hospitals. they're trained to be gentle and friendly and to simply accept strangers hugging them or petting them. they're patient and unbothered by children who tug at their fur or adults who want the smaller ones to take a seat in their laps.

Therapy dogs are only one sort of therapy animal. Other pets that are often used for emotional support are cats, rabbits, birds, horses — even llamas and alpacas.

The Difference Between Therapy Dogs and repair Dogs

You may have also heard of service dogs, but they're different from therapy dogs.

Service dogs are trained to perform specific tasks on behalf of their owners. They receive rigorous, high-end, task-oriented training aimed specifically at helping their owners overcome disabilities. There are laws set forth by the Americans With Disabilities Act that permits these dogs to accompany their owners publicly places. Therapy dogs are sometimes called "comfort dogs." They support an individual's psychological state by providing attention and luxury. Their sweet demeanors and unconditional love may have a therapeutic benefit to those that face difficult health challenges. Unlike service dogs, however, anyone can enjoy a therapy dog.

Another difference between therapy dogs and repair dogs is that therapy dogs aren't covered by the ADA. As a result, they do not have equivalent privileges for appearing with their owners in restricted public places unless special permission is provided before time. The therapy pet must be invited to the premises to supply some positive comfort therapy.

How Therapy Dogs Can Boost Your Health

Some psychological state challenges and psychiatric disorders are known to reply well to therapy dogs. Patients diagnosed with a variety of issues, like depression, manic depression, autism, ADHD, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and even Alzheimer's disease enjoy their interaction with therapy pets.

Sometimes, emotional challenges are the results of physical health problems, and therapy dogs can help with those, too. Experts suggest that patients who are recovering from difficult surgery or a nasty accident who spend time with pets may heal more quickly. Studies have shown that such interactions can increase the mood-boosting hormones oxytocin and dopamine and reduce the strain hormone cortisol.

What quite Dogs are often Therapy Dogs?

Any friendly breed of dog is often considered a therapy dog with a touch of coaching. Larger breeds like golden retrievers, standard poodles, St. Bernards, and Labradors are commonly used as therapy dogs. But smaller breeds like mini poodles and Pomeranians are good choices when the dog and therefore the patient is sharing a little space.

The dog's good demeanor may partially be a function of its breed, but it's mostly hooked into how the dog is raised and the way evenly its temperament develops. before being accepted as therapy animals, dogs are tested and observed for his or her response to stimuli, like loud or confusing noises, suddenly being grabbed, or maybe equipment, like canes or wheelchairs.

Getting Your Own Therapy Dog

If you'd wish to learn more about finding a therapy dog to assist yourself or a beloved, there are a variety of directories online. Do a web look for "therapy dog" and therefore the name of your city or town to seek out individuals and organizations near you.

If you're curious about learning about training your dog to be a therapy dog or visiting nursing homes or other facilities together with your pet, do an internet look for "therapy dog training" and therefore the name of your city or town to ascertain what opportunities are available. or just phone or email the power you've got in mind to find out their acceptance procedure.

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qnddkfniokdl · 5 years ago

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Therapy puppies are pets that improve your health by giving emotional assist. You could train your canine to be a remedy canine to provide help to your self and others.

Remedy dogs stay in human beings' houses. They also can visit a selection of settings, which includes retirement or nursing houses, schools, hospice houses, and hospitals. They are skilled to be mild and pleasant and to simply accept strangers hugging them or petting them. They're affected person and unbothered by way of youngsters who tug at their fur or adults who want the smaller ones to sit in their laps.

Therapy puppies are simply one kind of remedy animal. Different pets that are regularly used for emotional support are cats, rabbits, birds, horses — even llamas and alpacas.

The difference between therapy dogs and service dogs You can have additionally heard of carrier dogs, but they are different from remedy dogs.

Carrier dogs are skilled to carry out particular tasks on behalf of their owners. They get hold of rigorous, excessive-cease, mission-oriented schooling aimed mainly at helping their proprietors conquer disabilities. There are legal guidelines set forth by way of the people With Disabilities Act that permits those dogs to accompany their owners in public places.

Remedy puppies are now and then called "comfort puppies." They support someone's mental health by offering attention and luxury. Their candy demeanors and unconditional love may also have a therapeutic gain to folks who face difficult fitness demanding situations. Not like provider puppies, however, everyone can experience a remedy dog.

Another distinction between therapy dogs and service dogs is that remedy dogs aren't protected with the aid of the ADA. As a result, they do not have equal privileges for acting with their proprietors in limited public locations unless special permission is furnished in advance of time. The remedy puppy has to be invited to the premises to offer a few wonderful consolation remedies.

What's an Emotional guide Animal?

How remedy puppies Can boost Your health A few intellectual fitness demanding situations and psychiatric disorders are recognized to respond nicely to therapy puppies. Patients recognized with more than a few troubles, such as despair, bipolar disorder, autism, ADHD, put up-stressful strain disease (PTSD), and even Alzheimer's sickness gain from their interplay with therapy pets.

Now and again, emotional demanding situations are the result of bodily fitness issues, and therapy dogs can help with those, too. Experts advocate that patients who are recovering from difficult surgical treatment or a terrible accident who spend time with pets may also heal extra fast. Studies have shown that such interactions can grow the temper-boosting hormones oxytocin and dopamine and reduce the strain hormone cortisol.

What sort of dogs can be therapy dogs? Any friendly breed of the canine may be considered a remedy dog with a bit of schooling. Large breeds like golden retrievers, well-known poodles, St. Bernards, and Labradors are commonly used as therapy puppies. But smaller breeds like mini poodles and Pomeranians are correct choices when the dog and the affected person are sharing a small space.

The dog's good demeanor may partly be a feature of its breed, but it's ordinarily dependent on how the dog is raised and the way lightly its temperament develops. Previous to being prevalent as therapy animals, puppies are examined and found for his or her response to stimuli, including loud or difficult noises, unexpectedly being grabbed, or maybe system, which includes canes or wheelchairs.

Getting Your therapy canine If you would like to research greater approximately finding a remedy dog to help yourself or a loved one, there are several directories on-line. Do an online search for "therapy canine" and the call of your city or metropolis to find people and corporations near you.

In case you're interested in mastering about training your canine to be a therapy dog or journeying nursing homes or other facilities with your pet, do a web look for "remedy canine training" and the name of your city or city to see what opportunities are to be had. Or sincerely cellphone or electronic mail the facility you've got in thoughts to analyze their attractiveness process.

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mercsandmonsters-archived · 1 year ago

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Hey, friends! I know this fundraiser I'm doing isn't entirely Elvis or roleplaying-related, but this is something near and dear to my heart. My name is Jem (My legal name is Journey. It's on the fundraiser) and I'm trying to raise money so I can adopt a miniature horse to be my service animal. The miniature horse will be trained to be a psychiatric service animal. I am neurodivergent, which means I have some learning disabilities, I'm Autistic, and I have some mental health issues.

The miniature horse will remind me to take my meds, take me away from large crowds if I get disoriented, and alert me when I'm anxious. I am also going to train this animal with help from a service animal/pet training service. The money I raise will go into my savings instead of my checking account. I'm on Disability, which goes into my checking account, and I don't want to mix that up. Even though I'm on Disability, it's not enough to pay the adoption fee, feed, supplies, and paying my rent.

The specific miniature horse I found is a gelding named Presley. I plan to change his name Samuel Elvis Dean, but I'm gonna call him Sammy or Sam. His name is based on my two favorite things, Supernatural and Elvis Presley. If you can donate, please do. DO NOT donate if it isn't possible.

If you can't donate, please reblog. I will NOT hesitate to block anyone who tries to swindle me or is a spam blog.

#the signal in the sky: (out of character}#wolf howls in the distance: {trigger warning}#service animal fundraiser #psychiatric service animal fundraiser #fundraiser #fundraising #psychiatric service mini horse #service mini horse #service animal #mutual aid

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kaoticspoonie · 5 years ago

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I always arrive to the airport over an hour early - you know what I do with that hour? It isn't sit by the gate with my dog in a perfect settle for an hour before a flight that's hours long where she will have to be in a perfect settle.

I find a secluded area of the airport and play with her so she isn't bored and hyper on the flight. I take her to the relief station fifteen minutes before every flight.

Also who is going to decide if my dog is well behaved enough for a flight? A flight attendant? Every single person with a service dog has stories about people limiting access because of their preconceived notions.

If my dog alerts and climbs in my lap to perform deep pressure therapy is the airline going to say she is untrained and misbehaving?

If she is momentum pulling me towards something are they going to say she is untrained?

Who is trained enough to decide that? Because I work and train service dogs. I have tons of friends who have service dogs. I still wouldn't feet comfortable making a snap decision unless the dog is a danger to others (which btw is covered in the ADA and idk why they aren't just using that as a guideline??)

Btw this doesn't even touch on the fact that this opens an even wider door to discriminate against large SDs (and not allow mini horses at all).

There r good parts of the proposal - most notably classifying psychiatric service dogs as service dogs and not ESAs. And also not allowing airlines to discriminate against pit bulls and other bully breeds.

As a disabled person aircraft carriers have:

-Thrown out my boarding pass while saying to my mother, “it’s okay she’s in a wheelchair of course someone will just give up their seat for her”

-had staff kneel down to me and talk to me in a baby voice and say, “oh sweetie you didn’t understand me I asked you if you could walk

-been through every thorough pat down known to man

-had my wheelchair banged up to the point I had to by new wheelchair tires

-had staff talk over me and about me as if I wasn’t there

- had staff complain about me while I was being moved in a transfer chair

-was brought to a flight of stairs up to a plane and staff was shocked that I couldn’t board that way

-was sent a bus to pick me up and bring me to the wheelchair accessible boarding spot. They had to send a second bus because the first one they called for was not wheelchair accessible

And NOW, the Department of Transportation is proposing laws for aircraft that would:

- FORCE me (and other SD teams) to get paperwork proven that my highly trained service dog is well behaved and isn’t gonna poo everywhere

-FORCE me (and others) to arrive and HOUR earlier than anyone else on the flight so my service dog can be WATCHED FOR AN HOUR before deciding if we’ll be allowed to board

This is being disguised as a way to control people taking advantage of ESAs and what it is trying to do and what it will do is IMPEDE disabled people. They want to refuse legitimately trained miniature service horses. They want to make ESAs not allowed in aircraft at all. And they want to discriminate against disabled folk even more than they already do. This is not okay.

There is about a month or two left for the public to comment on the DOTs proposal. Please comment and help out our disabled community especially those with animal helpers

https://www.rollcall.com/news/emotional-support-animals-banned-planes-dot

PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR FEEDBACK AT THIS SITE: https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-transportation-seeks-comment-proposed-amendments-regulation-service

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wizardofpawswildlife · 7 years ago

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Service animals, ESA’s, & Therapy animals

Many of you who follow me or pop in from time to time know that I’ve been an animal trainer for over 20 years. I lost my Service animal a few years ago because she was attacked and killed by someone with a fake service animal. I miss her dearly and wanted to make sure that people everywhere have the right information.

I know I normally post photos of my animals but today I want to touch on a bit of a grey area with service animals. A few weeks ago a man on Facebook was trying to claim his f0x was a service animal when she cannot legally be a service animal; service animals can only be dogs, mini horses, & cats (depending on state laws). He also proceeded to post photos of his fake certificate saying she was a ‘certified’ service animal. It takes 2 years or longer to go through training a service animal and his f0x was only 5 months old at this time.

BUT any animal including a domesticated f0x CAN be an emotional support animal.

Here are a few things you should consider before you go claiming your animal is a service animal.

Do I qualify for a service animal?

The answer to this question may be more complicated than you expect. First, there are different definitions of disability in different federal laws. The definition for Social Security Disability Income is not the same as that in the Americans with Disabilities Act (which determines whether you qualify to use a service animal in public places where animals are not generally permitted). It is possible for an individual to qualify for SSDI and not qualify for a service animal and vice versa. You must evaluate your situation separately for each context.

The definition of disability under the ADA is a legal, not medical, definition. Since a lawyer generally can't diagnose medical conditions and a doctor generally can't interpret the law, you may get stuck somewhere in the middle trying to figure it all out.

You may want to review the legal definition as written by Congress for yourself, or review the entire Americans with Disabilities Act which includes some additional fine points you may need to know.

Ultimately, what we recommend is that you take a flow chart or the written definition with you and discuss it with any doctor who is treating you or has treated you for your disability to get his opinion and to have his opinion entered into your permanent medical records.

What's the difference between "work" and "tasks" in the ADA definition of "service animal"?

There is overlap between the two terms. Legally it is not relevant which the service animal does, so long as he does one or the other or some of both. A service animal’s legitimacy is not determined based on whether he does one or the other or both. It's a little puzzling why I get so many requests for an explanation of the differences between the two when the differences aren't what matters.

First, what they have in common:

1. Must be individually trained (not natural behaviors of animals such as needing to be walked or turning their head when they hear a sound, emotional support, or companionship)

2. Must mitigate the person's disability (ie be something the person's disability prevents or substantially limits them from being able to do for themselves)

A task is an individual, discrete (a complete stand alone unit), specific thing that needs doing. It has one cue and one result. It might be a simple behavior or a complex one with multiple steps, but there is always a single objective. Examples of tasks include: opening doors, picking up dropped items, and notifying the handler of the sound of the doorbell.

Work is a broader term that may include any of the following:

1. A group of related tasks (such as hearing work consisting of signalling for several different individual sounds with a different response for each sound)

2. A trained behavior that has a decision ladder/tree where the outcome is not always the same but requires the animal to evaluate different options and choose the correct one (such as guiding around obstacles)

Here are some examples to demonstrate the differences:

Housekeeping tasks include: doing the dishes, taking out the trash, washing the windows, doing the laundry, doing the dusting, cleaning the toilet. When you take all of these tasks together or some random assortment from the list, you call them "housework." The term "housework" is more broad than "house keeping tasks," but they're both still about the same thing which is cleaning the house.

Secretarial tasks include: filing, answering the phone, typing, making appointments for clients, sending out billing statements. Secretarial work is some combination of the above. It describes generally what a secretary does during the day without listing off what that secretary did on that one specific day in detail.

Notice the item "making appointments for clients?" Depending how that is executed and viewed by the person making the appointments, you could make a case that it is a task with a single result (an appointment is made) or that it is work because it involves a decision ladder/tree (when the appointment is made is going to depend on several different factors unique to each appointment that is made). That's because there is no concrete, black and white, hard line between the two terms. They are similar and they overlap. And that's why it makes very little sense to try to determine whether an individual service animal does work or does tasks. The vast majority probably do some of each along a spectrum that has guide animals doing work nearer one end and wheelchair animals doing tasks nearer the other.

What's the difference between a therapy animal, psychiatric service animal and an emotional support animal?

A psychiatric service animal is individually trained to perform tasks that the owner cannot perform because of a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Psychiatric service animals, like all other service animals, assist their disabled handlers by performing these tasks for psych illnesses. These animals have access rights.

However, while the owner of an emotional support animal must also be disabled by something like anxiety for example, the emotional support animal is not trained to perform tasks to mitigate the owner's disability. These animals do NOT have access right but DO have housing rights.

Therapy animals are sometimes confused with psychiatric service animals or emotional support animals. However, therapy animals are something entirely different.

A therapy animal is one that is trained, tested, registered, and insured to visit people in hospitals and nursing homes. A person with a therapy animal has no particular right under the ADA to take their animal anywhere pets are not permitted. If the owner wishes to visit a facility like a hospital or nursing home, they must first seek out and receive the permission of administrators at the facility they wish to visit.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, which regulates and enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA):

"The Department is proposing new regulatory text in § 36.104 to formalize its position on emotional support or comfort animals, which is that ''[a]nimals whose sole function is to provide emotional support, comfort, therapy, companionship, therapeutic benefits, or promote emotional wellbeing are not service animals.'' The Department wishes to underscore that the exclusion of emotional support animals from ADA coverage does not mean that persons with psychiatric, cognitive, or mental disabilities cannot use service animals. The Department proposes specific regulatory text in § 35.104 to make this clear: ''[t]he term service animal includes individually trained animals that do work or perform tasks for the benefit of individuals with disabilities, including psychiatric, cognitive, and mental disabilities.'' This language simply clarifies the Department's longstanding position."

The ADA gives the disabled owner of a service animal the right to be accompanied by his or her service animal to most places where the public are permitted, even if dogs are not generally allowed.

However, the owner of an emotional support animal has no particular right to public access and must ask permission of the management to enter with an emotional support animal.

Under the Fair Housing Amendments Act, a qualified person with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation in the form of a modification of rules against the keeping of pets in order to keep EITHER a service animal or an emotional support animal.

Under the Air Carrier Access Act, a qualified person with a disability may be accompanied in the cabin of an air craft by either a psychiatric service animal or an emotional support animal if they have the proper documentation from their doctor.

I often get asked; How do you certify, license or register a service animal?

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Certification means that the animal has been tested and shown to meet certain minimum standards.

Most countries only recognize service animals from approved programs. In those countries the programs certify their own animals.

There are ABSOLUTELY NO standards or procedures for certifying a service animal under U.S. federal law.

Certification is NOT required as a condition of using an animal as a service animal.

Disabled people CAN go through training their own service animals.

However, the person using the animal must meet the legal (not medical) definition of "disability" and their animal must be individually trained to perform tasks that mitigate the owner's disability.

They must also have sufficient training to behave appropriately in public (no barking, making unwanted contact with other members of the public, or disrupting business by misbehaving). Service animals who pose a direct threat to others by growling, lunging, or otherwise menacing people CAN AND SHOULD be barred from public access.

Fake certification is for sale over the Internet. You can check whether a certificate is from a legitimate service animal program or a scam business selling fake certification by doing a Google search on the name of the certifying agency. If it's a scam, it will be apparent from a quick review of their website because they will sell their certification to anyone for a fee without ever actually training or evaluating the animal themselves. These organizations prey on the disabled, selling them something they don't need for $40-$250 that they could produce at a copy center for under $5 (if they did need it, which they don't).

They are a haven for pet owners wanting an easy way get a pet into motels, on planes, or to take Fifi shopping on a lark.

These businesses do a great disservice to real service animal teams by bluffing business owners into accepting ill-behaved pets as trained service animals and by taking money out of the pockets of the disabled themselves. These fakers in turn diminish the reputation of real teams by behaving inappropriately.

Real service animals don't need certification. A business may verify an animal is a service animal by asking whether it is required because of the person's disability and what the animal is trained to do to mitigate that disability. They may ask this regardless of whether a animal is "certified," and an owner who refuses to answer can be barred from the facility.

A pet license is something that most all animals are required to have. Individual states, counties or cities may provide licenses in accordance with their own laws or ordinances. Service animals are not exempt from any licensing requirements of local authorities. If dogs residing inside the city limits are required to wear a city license tag, then this also applies to service animals. In some states, counties, or cities, special service animal licenses are available in lieu of a regular animal tag, but they cannot be required as a condition of access. Some localities also waive the licensing fees for service animals, but this varies.

Service animal registration is a scam. It is a for profit business. It's purpose is to make a profit at the expense of gullible people with disabilities and those who just want it easier to break laws. Registration means nothing because the animal is never evaluated, never even seen by the agency issuing the registration. It's just a piece of paper that any idiot can buy for between $40 and $250 dollars and that could just as easily be printed on a home computer for a few cents. Registration scams exist primarily to help pet owners pass off their pets as service animals so they can get them on airplanes, into motels, and into stores with them. Real service animals don't need this kind of registration.

FOR THE RECORD I APOLOGIZE FOR TUMBLR AUTOMATICALLY CHANGING SOME OF MY WORDS TO EMOJI’s. It doesn’t give me the option to turn it off and I didn’t even notice it changing them until after I hit post. When I edit the post they become words again.

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