Thanks to notable training, service animals have become indispensable for people with disabilities. For their owners, it is urgent that the animal is nearby all the time and is able to ensure the demanded abetting. That is why the law guarantees freedoms and shields service animals in numerous spheres, including housing. For example, you can legally live with your animal even in buildings with a no-pets policy.

Types of animals that can be Assistance Animals

As specified by the ADA, only dogs that have special taming to fulfill assignments and meet any deprivations of a disabled person can be called service animals. Today, dogs are the best for educating and are also able to perform tasks that require a certain amount of physical strength. For example, service dogs can learn to provide first aid to a person who needs it. In addition, such innate qualities of dogs as the acuteness of hearing, smell and vision play a big role.

People often confuse the concepts of service and assistance animals. However, it should be borne in mind that in compliance with the federal Fair Housing Act, assistance animals are a broader concept that includes both service animals and ESAs and other animals that supply physical or psychological backing to their handlers.

All animals that are usually kept as pets can become emotional support animals. This includes such creatures as rabbits, ferrets, rats, and hamsters. Depending on the nature of your emotional support animal and how often it has been used, it might be necessary that your housing provider gives you a reasonable accommodation if it is clear that the disorder necessitates it.

Assistance Animals and Reasonable Accommodation

Service animals are the most legally secured group of assistance animals. Their rights are guaranteed by several legal documents, such as the ADA, the Fair Housing Act, the Air Carrier Access Act, and others. These animals have privileges in almost all areas of human life, as they must be close to their owners in times of emergency.

In accordance with the Fair Housing Act, people with physical or mental dysfunctions who call for the help of assistance animals and emotional support animals have the right to request a reasonable accommodation to the rules or services of housing providers. The law gives service animals certain privileges in being able to live with their owners, in contrast to regular pets.

You can find more about housing rights for you and your service animal, the necessary documents, as well as the intricacies of submitting a reasonable accommodation request at the link: https://myserviceanimal.org/blog/housing-rights-for-service-animals/

What does reasonable accommodation stand for?

A reasonable accommodation generally refers to alterations and exceptions to the rules that the landlord makes for humans with afflictions and their service animals. Even if the building has a no-pets policy, the host cannot refuse a request for a service animal to live, as this way a person with a dysfunction will be able to use the dwelling place to the full extent.

The FHA gives any service animal or an emotional support animal with official status and lawful documents the opportunity to stay with its owner without the need to pay pet fees or make a deposit. In the case of living with a pet, the pet owner gives the proprietor a deposit, which, in case of damage caused by the animal, will be spent on repair work. In the case of service animals, this is not necessary.

Furthermore, the housing provider cannot evict you or your helping animal without good reason. They cannot prohibit an animal from staying in a building because of its breed or size. The only reason to reject a reasonable accommodation for you is when the animal poses a threat to other dwellers. It can be both aggressive proceeding of the animal and its improper and unkempt appearance. Thus, we also recommend having documents confirming the animal's satisfactory state of health and the availability of all necessary vaccinations.

How can I request reasonable accommodation from a landlord?

You can make the solicitation yourself, or another person can make it on your behalf if that person is your official representative. A requirement for reasonable accommodation can be made both verbally and in writing. Yet, we strongly recommend that you write the appeal to avoid misunderstandings regarding the specifics of the appeal.

In writing to the housing provider, clearly state what changes and exceptions to the rules you are requesting for you and your animal helper. If your disability-related need is not visually apparent, the landlord may ask you to provide medical records that certify your disability and the need for a service animal.

Also, by making a reasonable accommodation application, you can ask housing providers about the possibility of making equitable changes to the accommodation to make it more comfortable for you to use. Unreasonable rejection of these requests by the housing provider is considered discrimination, which is a violation of human rights and is punishable by law.

Complaints and lawsuits

Basic housing offenses against you and your service animal may involve refusing to make reasonable accommodations, forcing you to pay a pet fee and deposit, or illegally evicting you from your home. If your rights have been violated, you have a legal right to complain within 1 month from the date of the last discrimination.

To protect your rights, you can contact local authorities either in person or by calling a hotline. You may also make administrative complaints to the United States Department of Housing & Urban Development. If the authorities detect violations and manifestations of discrimination on the part of the housing provider, they will be held administratively responsible and fined.

Do not forget that service animals are not pets, and their main task is to provide you with a comfortable standard of living. Because they are a vital necessity for disabled people, service animals have far more rights and protections under the law. That is why any manifestations of discrimination against them are unacceptable and people who do it should be punished.