The Use And Misuse Of Emotional Support Animals

Source: Photo Crjs452/Creative Commons

More and more Americans have emotional support animals and therapy dogs to help them cope with mental health issues. But confusion over the legal status of these various companion animals can create problems. Let's take an example of an incident I saw at Bear Lake, not far from my home.

The two-mile trail around the lake, owned by the Bear Lake Commission, is popular with joggers and walkers. Although the lake is private, the commission allows the public to jog or walk along the shore. However, those who want their dog to accompany them on walks will have to pay $100 for an annual walking stamp. Dog license fees are collected by the lake manager, a friendly guy called Jimmy Wilkins.

Recently, my husband and I were chatting with Jimmy on the dock when a young woman walked by with her untagged dog. Jimmy calmly approached the woman and told her that her only registered dogs were on the trail. He added that you can buy a license that is valid for one year of dog walking. The woman looked at Jimmy with disdain and said angrily, "That rule doesn't apply to him. He's a registered emotional support animal.

However, Jimmy is well versed in the laws regarding the legal status of service animals. She politely explained that while federal law allows trained service dogs free access to public places, including parks like Bear Lake, emotional support animals are not covered by the law. A few minutes later, the woman sniffs and mutters something like "an official complaint" as she walks her dog back to her car.

Different laws regarding service dogs and emotional support animals

The woman with the dog made two mistakes. She said her former dog is a "registered" emotional support animal (ESA). It's not true. There is no legally recognized registry for emotional support animals in the United States. These websites that allow you to "register" your cat or hamster as an ESA are scams.

The second drawback was that pet owners could take their four-legged friends into restricted public areas for emotional support. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, service dogs have access to bars, museums and grocery stores and are free to walk the Bear Lake Trail with their owners. However, ESAs are subject to the Fair Housing Act. These rules do not apply to public places. ESAs are only allowed to live in pet-free accommodations, such as apartments, apartment buildings, and college dormitories. For example, an ESA dog living in a college dormitory is not allowed to play Frisbee in the classroom, library, cafeteria, or on main campus.

Research shows that emotional support animals are widely used

A new study has appeared in the journal However, animal shelters often flout these federal regulations—deliberately passing off their emotional support dogs as "service dogs" and illegally smuggling their animals into their favorite restaurants and grocery stores.

The study was conducted by Jillian Ferrell and Susan Crowley from the Department of Psychology at the University of Utah. With ESA, they looked at various issues of employment and life. The researchers recruited 77 ESA employees in the United States. Participants completed an anonymous online questionnaire about their life in ESA. Here are some of their key findings.

Who gets ESA? ESA holders were predominantly female (69%) and their average age was 51 years. Their most common psychiatric diagnoses were post-traumatic stress disorder (29%), major depression (25%) and generalized anxiety disorder (25%).

Who submitted their ESA letter? To qualify for an ESA, the law requires you to get a letter from a "medical professional" stating that an emotional support animal is necessary to alleviate the symptoms of a known mental disorder. 44 percent of participants received a letter from the ASA from a psychologist, psychiatrist, or clinical social worker. General practitioners submitted 29% of the letters. But nearly a quarter of ESA owners get their email from a company website. This garment is known to be counterfeit.

And according to a 2020 document from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, email from corporate websites is considered insufficient to enable ESAs to live in homes without pets. Additionally, half of the study participants were not under the care of the person who wrote the ESA letter.

False claim AES are working dogs . Perhaps the study's most surprising finding involved dog owners like the Bear Lake woman Jimmy got into trouble with. Ferrell and Crowley found that 60% of their ESA dogs were at least once as service animals in public spaces that were not considered pets, and 20% said they often or always gave their dog the wrong dog. Furthermore, only 25% say they never bring AES to the store, while almost 40% say they often or almost always do. Participants also take their ASE home to restaurants, churches, concerts, pet-free parks and government buildings. Interestingly, people who have more exposure to veterinarians and health care professionals when receiving an ESA are more likely to have their dogs spayed and released into public places.

Problems with emotional support animal laws

There are several reasons to consider using emotional support animals to address mental health issues. First, there is little or no empirical evidence that it reduces symptoms of mental illness. (See Are Emotional Support Animals Really Helpful?) In fact, the American Psychiatric Association prohibits psychiatrists from writing ESS letters to their patients because of the lack of research showing the effectiveness of ESS. And because of the problem of online mail fraud and reports of ESA pigs, ducks and dogs torturing planes, US airlines no longer allow ESAs on flights.

Ferrell and Crowley's findings raise other concerns. It is particularly unfortunate that the majority of ESA owners in their study sometimes pose as service dogs to take their four-legged friends to pet-friendly areas. Additionally, one in four participants obtained their ESA letter from a dubious website and half admitted they are not currently being cared for by a healthcare professional.

Is there a future for emotional support animals?

After the woman angrily left with her dog in Bear Lake, I asked Jimmy how often people try to charge ESAs as service animals. He rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes," he said. "It happens all the time."

In an email, UC Davis anthropozoologist Lynette Hart told me that ESA is a uniquely American phenomenon. But she added: "It looks like they may be spreading to other countries - or will soon."