WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

In general, there are a few major differences between Emotional Support Animals and Service Animals:

• Emotional Support Animals – Or ESAs, are defined as companion animals that help their owners cope with the challenges associated with emotional and mental health conditions. By providing comfort with their presence, ESAs help their owners rectify the effects of conditions such as anxiety and depression. Emotional support animals can be a range of animals—from raccoons to Rottweilers—and are protected by law through the Fair Housing Act of 1968.¹ 
• Service Animals – are specifically trained to perform tasks that directly ease the challenges associated with their owner’s physical, psychiatric, sensory, and/or developmental disabilities. While any animal may classify as an ESA, service animals can ONLY be dogs. Service dogs perform a range of tasks—from guiding citizens who are blind to calming owners with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). However, the most common types of service dogs include guide, hearing, medical alert, mobility, autism service, and psychiatric service dogs.² 

Both emotional support and service animals aid in their owners’ health. However, ESA's aid patients with therapeutic, emotional support, while service animals aid their owners with medical disabilities. Emotional support animals help to improve the mental and emotional health of their owners. In many cases, service animals are the crucial, critical keys to saving their owners’ lives. Because of this vital distinction, service animals are awarded certain legal protections that Emotional Support Animals are not.  

THE FINE PRINT: UNDERSTANDING HOW THE LAW PROTECTS RENTERS WITH ESAS AND SERVICE ANIMALS 

You have several protections when it comes to housing emotional support and service animals. However, since the roles of emotional support and service animals differ, their protections also range. In United States Law, there are two Acts that define the protections offered to renters and their support/service animals: The Fair Housing Act of 1968 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.  

• The Fair Housing Act of 1986 – Protects citizens from discrimination when renting or buying a home. This act thus protects tenants with both emotional support animals and service dogs. This law stipulates that, despite the housing provider’s pet restrictions, landlords must provide reasonable accommodations to disabled tenants who request to keep an assistance animal. These reasonable accommodation requests may include³: 
• A request to live with an ESA or service animal at a property where the housing provider has a no-pets policy 
• A request to waive all pet deposits, fees, and other rules as they apply to an ESA or service animal 
• The Americans with Disabilities Act OF 1990 – Or the ADA, protects disabled citizens from discrimination in all areas of life. Thus, the ADA only protects tenants with service animals. It does not protect tenants with animals whose sole function is to provide emotional support. The ADAspecifies that, “State and local governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations that serve the public generally must allow service animals to accompany people with disabilities in all areas of the facility where the public is allowed to go.” 

The Fair Housing Act permits emotional support and service dog owners to rent properties that otherwise enforce pet restrictions. However, the ADA stipulates that service dogs are allowed entry into all areas where their owner is permitted—unless their presence would compromise a sterile environment. Thus, while emotional support and service animals have the same protections in housing, service dogs are allowed more permissions in areas concerning the general public.  

THE BOTTOM LINE

At Palm Property Management, we want to work with you and your four-legged family member. It is really important that people who need ESA's and service animals have access to these animals. To ensure that this is possible, we work with petscreening.com to screen all animals in a Palm Property home. This is a crucial part of our process, as it helps us ensure that people who need access to their animals for service and support. For more details, check out our Pet & Animal Policies!