[Flagdu] frequently asked questions about service animals and the ADA

[Sherrill O'Brien]

Hello to all,

I have pasted and attached a new Department of Justice publication entitled
Frequently Asked Questions About Service Animals and the ADA. There are lots
of specific questions here which the public, and even those using service
animals, often ask or at least aren't sure about. I hope you'll take a look
at it, and if there's something you'd like to discuss, by all means send an
email to the list so we can talk about  it.

In case you missed it, I will send a separate email with the new Florida
access law which went into effect on July 1.

Warm regards
Sherrill

Americans with Disabilities Act Questions and Answers: Service Animals

 U.S. Department of Justice
 Civil Rights Division
  Disability Rights Section 

Department of Justice seal

 
 Link to PDF Version 

Frequently Asked Questions about Service Animals and the ADA

Many people with disabilities use a service animal in order to fully
participate in everyday life.  Dogs can be trained to perform many important
tasks
to assist people with disabilities, such as providing stability for a person
who has difficulty walking, picking up items for a person who uses a
wheelchair,
preventing a child with autism from wandering away, or alerting a person who
has hearing loss when someone is approaching from behind. 

The Department of Justice continues to receive many questions about how the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to service animals.  The ADA
requires State and local government agencies, businesses, and non-profit
organizations (covered entities) that provide goods or services to the
public
to make "reasonable modifications" in their policies, practices, or
procedures when necessary to accommodate people with disabilities.  The
service animal
rules fall under this general principle.  Accordingly, entities that have a
"no pets" policy generally must modify the policy to allow service animals
into their facilities.  This publication provides guidance on the ADA's
service animal provisions and should be read in conjunction with the
publication

ADA Revised Requirements:  Service Animals.

Definition
 | 
General Rules 
 | 
Certification and Registration 
 
Breeds
 | 
Exclusion of Service Animals
 | 
Miscellaneous
 | 
Resources

DEFINITION OF A SERVICE ANIMAL
Q1. What is a service animal? 

A. Under  the ADA, a service animal is defined as a dog that has been
individually  trained to do work or perform tasks for an individual with a
disability. 
The task(s) performed by the dog must be  directly related to the person's
disability. 

Q2. What does "do work or perform tasks" mean? 

A.  The dog must be trained to take a specific action when needed to assist
the person with a disability.  For example, a person with diabetes may have
a dog that is trained to alert him when his blood sugar reaches high or low
levels.  A person with depression may have a dog that is trained to remind
her to take her medication.  Or, a person who has epilepsy may have a dog
that is trained to detect the onset of a seizure and then help the person
remain
safe during the seizure. 

Q3. Are emotional support, therapy, comfort, or companion animals considered
service animals under the ADA?

A.  No.  These terms are used to describe animals that provide  comfort just
by being with a person.  Because  they have not been trained to perform a
specific job or task, they do not qualify as service animals under the ADA. 
However, some State or local governments have laws that allow people to 
take emotional support animals into public places.  You may check with your
State and local  government agencies to find out about these laws. 

Q4. If someone's dog calms them when having an anxiety attack, does this
qualify it as a service animal? 

A. It depends.  The ADA makes a distinction between psychiatric service
animals and emotional support animals.  If the dog has been trained to sense
that
an anxiety attack is about to happen and take a specific action to help
avoid the attack or lessen its impact, that would qualify as a service
animal.
 However, if the dog's mere presence provides comfort, that would not be
considered a service animal under the ADA. 

Q5. Does the ADA require service animals to be professionally trained? 

A.  No.  People with disabilities have the right to train the dog themselves
and are not required to use a professional service dog training program. 

Q6. Are service-animals-in-training considered service animals under the
ADA?

A.  No.  Under the ADA, the dog must already be trained before it can be
taken into public places.  However, some State or local laws cover animals
that
are still in training. 

GENERAL RULES
Q7. What questions can a covered entity's employees ask to determine if a
dog is a service animal? 

A. In situations where it is not obvious that the dog is a service animal,
staff may ask only two specific questions:  (1) is the dog a service animal
required because of a disability? and (2) what work or task has the dog been
trained to perform?  Staff are not allowed to request any documentation for
the dog, require that the dog demonstrate its task, or inquire about the
nature of the person's disability. 

Q8. Do service animals have to wear a vest or patch or special harness
identifying them as service animals? 

A.  No.  The ADA does not require service animals to wear a vest, ID tag, or
specific harness. 

Q9. Who is responsible for the care and supervision of a service animal?

A.  The handler is responsible for caring for and supervising the service
animal, which includes toileting, feeding, and grooming and veterinary care.
 Covered entities are not obligated to supervise or otherwise care for a
service animal. 

Q10. Can a person bring a service animal with them as they go through a
salad bar or other self-service food lines? 

A. Yes.  Service animals must be allowed to accompany their handlers to and
through self-service food lines.  Similarly, service animals may not be
prohibited
from communal food preparation areas, such as are commonly found in shelters
or dormitories.  

Q11.  Can hotels assign designated rooms for guests with service animals,
out of consideration for other guests?  

A.  No.  A guest with a disability who uses a service animal must be
provided the same opportunity to reserve any available room at the hotel as
other
guests without disabilities.  They may not be restricted to "pet-friendly"
rooms. 

Q12. Can hotels charge a cleaning fee for guests who have service animals?

No.  Hotels are not permitted to charge guests for cleaning the hair or
dander shed by a service animal.  However, if a guest's service animal
causes damages
to a guest room, a hotel is permitted to charge the same fee for damages as
charged to other guests. 

Q13. Can people bring more than one service animal into a public place? 

A. Generally, yes.  Some people with disabilities may use more than one
service animal to perform different tasks.  For example, a person who has a
visual
disability and a seizure disorder may use one service animal to assist with
way-finding and another that is trained as a seizure alert dog.  Other
people
may need two service animals for the same task, such as a person who needs
two dogs to assist him or her with stability when walking.  Staff may ask
the
two permissible questions (See Question 7) about each of the dogs.  If both
dogs can be accommodated, both should be allowed in.  In some circumstances,
however, it may not be possible to accommodate more than one service animal.
For example, in a crowded small restaurant, only one dog may be able to fit
under the table.  The only other place for the second dog would be in the
aisle, which would block the space between tables.  In this case, staff may
request
that one of the dogs be left outside. 

Q14. Does a hospital have to allow an in-patient with a disability to keep a
service animal in his or her room?

A.  Generally, yes.  Service animals must be allowed in patient rooms and
anywhere else in the hospital the public and patients are allowed to go.
They
cannot be excluded on the grounds that staff can provide the same services. 

Q15. What happens if a patient who uses a service animal is admitted to the
hospital and is unable to care for or supervise their animal?

A.  If the patient is not able to care for the service animal, the patient
can make arrangements for a family member or friend to come to the hospital
to provide these services, as it is always preferable that the service
animal and its handler not be separated, or to keep the dog during the
hospitalization.
 If the patient is unable to care for the dog and is unable to arrange for
someone else to care for the dog, the hospital may place the dog in a
boarding
facility until the patient is released, or make other appropriate
arrangements.  However, the hospital must give the patient the opportunity
to make arrangements
for the dog's care before taking such steps. 

Q16. Must  a service animal be allowed to ride in an ambulance with its
handler? 

A. Generally, yes.   However, if the space in the ambulance is crowded and
the dog's presence would interfere with the emergency medical staff's
ability
to  treat the patient, staff should make other arrangements to have the dog
transported to the hospital. 

CERTIFICATION AND REGISTRATION
Q17. Does  the ADA require that service animals be certified as service
animals? 

A.  No.  Covered entities may  not require documentation, such as proof that
the animal has been certified,  trained, or licensed as a service animal,
as a condition for entry.  

There are individuals and organizations that sell service animal
certification or registration documents online.  These documents do not
convey any rights
under the ADA and the Department of Justice does not recognize them as proof
that the dog is a service animal.  

Q18. My  city requires all dogs to be vaccinated.   Does this apply to my
service animal?

A.  Yes.  Individuals  who have service animals are not exempt from local
animal control or public  health requirements. 

Q19. My  city requires all dogs to be registered and licensed.  Does this
apply to my service animal? 

A. Yes.  Service  animals are subject to local dog licensing and
registration requirements. 

Q20. My city requires me to register my dog as a service animal.  Is this
legal under the ADA?  

A.  No.  Mandatory  registration of service animals is not permissible under
the ADA.  However, as stated above, service animals are  subject to the same
licensing and vaccination rules that are applied to all  dogs. 

Q21. My city  / college offers a voluntary registry program for people with
disabilities who  use service animals and provides a special tag identifying
the dogs as service  animals. Is this legal under the ADA? 

A.  Yes.  Colleges  and other entities, such as local governments, may offer
voluntary registries.  Many communities maintain a voluntary registry  that
serves a public purpose, for example, to ensure that emergency staff know
to look for service animals during an emergency evacuation process.  Some
offer
a benefit, such as a reduced dog  license fee, for individuals who register
their service animals.  Registries for purposes like this are  permitted
under
the ADA.  An entity may  not, however, require that a dog be registered as a
service animal as a  condition of being permitted in public places.   This
would be a violation of the ADA. 

BREEDS
Q22. Can  service animals be any breed of dog? 

A. Yes.   The ADA does not restrict the type of dog  breeds that can be
service animals. 

Q23. Can  individuals with disabilities be refused access to a facility
based solely on  the breed of their service animal? 

A.  No.  A service animal may not be excluded based on  assumptions or
stereotypes about the animal's breed or how the animal might  behave. 
However,
if a particular service  animal behaves in a way that poses a direct threat
to the health or safety of  others, has a history of such behavior, or is
not
under the control of the  handler, that animal may be excluded.  If  an
animal is excluded for such reasons, staff must still offer their goods or
services
to the person without the animal present. 

Q24. If  a municipality has an ordinance that bans certain dog breeds, does
the ban  apply to service animals?

A.  No.  Municipalities  that prohibit specific breeds of dogs must make an
exception for a service  animal of a prohibited breed, unless the dog poses
a direct threat to the  health or safety of others.  Under the  “direct
threat” provisions of the ADA, local jurisdictions need to determine,  on a
case-by-case
basis, whether a particular service animal can be excluded  based on that
particular animal’s actual behavior or history, but they may not  exclude a
service
animal because of fears or generalizations about how an  animal or breed
might behave.  It is  important to note that breed restrictions differ
significantly
from jurisdiction to  jurisdiction.  In fact, some jurisdictions  have no
breed restrictions. 

EXCLUSION OF SERVICE ANIMALS
Q25. When  can service animals be excluded? 

A. The  ADA does not require covered entities to modify policies, practices,
or  procedures if it would “fundamentally alter” the nature of the goods,
services,  programs, or activities provided to the public.   Nor does it
overrule legitimate safety requirements.  If admitting service animals would
fundamentally
 alter the nature of a service or program, service animals may be
prohibited.  In addition, if a particular service animal  is out of control
and the handler
does not take effective action to control it,  or if it is not housebroken,
that animal may be excluded. 

Q26. When  might a service dog's presence fundamentally alter the nature of
a service or  program provided to the public?

A.  In most  settings, the presence of a service animal will not result in a
fundamental  alteration.  However, there are some exceptions.  For example,
at a boarding  school, service animals could be restricted from a specific
area of a dormitory  reserved specifically for students with allergies to
dog
dander.  At a zoo, service animals can be  restricted from areas where the
animals on display are the natural prey or  natural predators of dogs, where
the presence of a dog would be disruptive, causing  the displayed animals to
behave aggressively or become agitated.  They cannot be restricted from
other
areas of  the zoo.  

Q27. What  does under control mean?  Do service  animals have to be on a
leash?  Do they have  to be quiet and not bark?

A.  The ADA requires that service animals be under the control of the
handler at all times. In most instances, the handler will be the individual
with
a disability or a third party who accompanies the individual with a
disability.  In the school (K-12) context and in similar settings, the
school or similar
entity may need to provide some assistance to enable a particular student to
handle his or her service animal.  The service animal must be harnessed,
leashed,
or tethered while in public places unless these devices interfere with the
service animal's work or the person's disability prevents use of these
devices.
 In that case, the person must use voice, signal, or other effective means
to maintain control of the animal.  For example, a person who uses a
wheelchair
may use a long, retractable leash to allow her service animal to pick up or
retrieve items.  She may not allow the dog to wander away from her and must
maintain control of the dog, even if it is retrieving an item at a distance
from her.  Or, a returning veteran who has PTSD and has great difficulty
entering
unfamiliar spaces may have a dog that is trained to enter a space, check to
see that no threats are there, and come back and signal that it is safe to
enter.  The dog must be off leash to do its job, but may be leashed at other
times.  Under control also means that a service animal should not be allowed
to bark repeatedly in a lecture hall, theater, library, or other quiet
place.  However, if a dog barks just once, or barks because someone has
provoked
it, this would not mean that the dog is out of control. 

Q28. What can my staff do when a service animal is being disruptive? 

A. If a service animal is out of control and the handler does not take
effective action to control it, staff may request that the animal be removed
from
the premises. 

Q29. Are  hotel guests allowed to leave their service animals in their hotel
room when  they leave the hotel?

A.  No, the dog must be under the handler's control  at all times. 

Q30. What  happens if a person thinks a covered entity's staff has
discriminated against  him or her?

A.  Individuals who believe that they have been illegally denied access or
service because they use  service animals may file a complaint with the U.S.
Department of Justice.  Individuals also have the right to file a  private
lawsuit in Federal court charging the entity with discrimination under  the
ADA. 

MISCELLANEOUS
Q31. Are  stores required to allow service animals to be placed in a
shopping cart? 

A. Generally,  the dog must stay on the floor, or the person must carry the
dog.  For example, if a person with diabetes has a  glucose alert dog, he
may
carry the dog in a chest pack so it can be close to  his face to allow the
dog to smell his breath to alert him of a change in  glucose levels. 

Q32.  Are restaurants, bars, and other places that serve food or drink
required to allow service animals to be seated on chairs or allow the animal
to
be fed at the table? 

A.  No.  Seating, food, and  drink are provided for customer use only.   The
ADA gives a person with a disability the right to be accompanied by  his or
her service animal, but covered entities are not required to allow an
animal to sit or be fed at the table. 

Q33. Are gyms, fitness centers,  hotels, or municipalities that have
swimming pools required to allow a service  animal in the pool with its
handler? 

A.  No.  The ADA does not override public health rules  that prohibit dogs
in swimming pools.  However,  service animals must be allowed on the pool
deck
and in other areas where the  public is allowed to go. 

Q34. Are churches, temples,  synagogues, mosques, and other places of
worship required to allow individuals  to bring their service animals into
the facility?


A. No.  Religious institutions and organizations are  specifically exempt
from the ADA.   However, there may be State laws that apply to religious
organizations.


Q35. Do  apartments, mobile home parks, and other residential properties
have to comply  with the ADA? 

A.  The ADA applies to housing programs administered  by state and local
governments, such as public housing authorities, and by  places of public
accommodation,
such as public and private universities.   In addition, the Fair Housing Act
applies to virtually all types of housing,  both public and privately-owned,
including housing covered by the ADA.   Under the Fair Housing Act, housing
providers are obligated to permit, as a  reasonable accommodation, the use
of animals that work, provide assistance, or  perform tasks that benefit
persons with a disabilities, or provide emotional support  to alleviate a
symptom
or effect of a disability.  For information about  these Fair Housing Act
requirements see HUD’s 
Notice  on Service Animals and Assistance Animals for People with
Disabilities in  Housing and HUD-funded Programs. 

Q36. Do  Federal agencies, such as the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs,
have to comply with the  ADA?

A.  No.  Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973  is the Federal law
that protects the rights of people with disabilities to  participate in
Federal
programs and services.  For information or to file a complaint, contact the
agency's equal opportunity office. 

Q37. Do  commercial airlines have to comply with the ADA?

A. No.  The Air Carrier  Access Act is the Federal law that protects the
rights of people with disabilities  in air travel.  For information or to
file
a complaint, contact the U.S. Department of Transportation, Aviation
Consumer Protection Division, at 202-366-2220.

RESOURCES

For more information about the ADA, please visit our website or call our
toll-free number. 

ADA WEBSITE

www.ADA.gov

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