Hello Everyone
I get calls all the time with people enquiring about getting a service dog, however sometimes it is easy to tell the people who just want to find a legal way of bringing their dog into public or keep a pet in a "no dogs allowed" apartment.
My calls always start out the same, the person is in need of a service dog and are looking for guidance on how to get one. The first question I ask is if they have a prescription from a Medical Physician or a Psychiatrist, you need this in order for the dog to be purchased and if you need to complete a certification test, if you train your own. This is really the first hurdle that people start to realize that things are going to be more challenging than they thought. The second hurdle is cost, if you can not physically or psychologically train your dog on your own, there is going to be a cost. The next best thing is to find a sponsor. Many organizations work with sponsors because the sponsors have pre-qualifications that will weed out people and identify people who really need the assistance. It is because of these hurdles that many people start looking at Emotional Support Animals.
There is a BIG difference between a Service Dog and an Emotional Support Animal. Service Dogs are just Dogs, I do not like the term Service Animal because it opens the door in peoples minds that links it more with an ESA. Service Animals are trained to do a minimum of three tasks, either on command or by reading a persons body language and anticipating needs prior to the persons awareness of it. Contrary to this, an ESA is not trained at all, the only requirement is that the animal provides a sense of comfort to the person it is with.
Being from Canada, there is really a huge difference in the laws around ESA's and Service Dogs, where the USA (depending on the state) is a bit fuzzier. To reiterate what the law is in Canada, ESA's are not given any rights. They can not fly with you, they are not exempt from tenant rules, they can not go into public and there is no registration for them. I know people like to search for the answer that they are looking for, in order to have what they want, but anything telling you otherwise is lying. The only animals that have any exemptions to the rules are Service Dogs, implying that you have medical documentation saying you need one, and Therapy Dogs, which are trained and only allowed in because they have the approval of the owners of the place they are entering, to assist their clients, NOT to assist the person handling the dog.
PSI Team
