“The question that arises is whether the impact of this animal for this person goes above and beyond those of generally having a pet,” said Warner-Cohen.īelieve it or not, ESAs have had legal precedence since the late 1980s.Īccording to the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) considers “assistance animals,” which includes both ESAs and service animals a “reasonable accommodation” for an individual seeking housing. Matt will often do counting or breathing exercises when he’s feeling stressed and says that petting Maximus, “helps slow me down.” “He’s really worked wonders,” said Matt of his white Shi-Poo, which he’s owned since he was a puppy. Matt has been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, but also lives with depression and social anxiety. Healthline spoke with Matt Z., 31, of Long Beach, California who has been living with his dog and ESA Maximus for four years. Nevertheless, anecdotal evidence supporting ESAs is powerful.
It is used more on a case-to-case basis depending on the specific circumstances of an individual,” said Warner-Cohen. “It should be of note, though, that the use of animals as part of the therapeutic process is not considered an evidence-based practice and has little support in the scientific literature. However, the benefits and potential of ESAs still requires more research and is only beginning to be understood. Research indicates that animals can help in alleviating the symptoms of certain psychological issues, including PTSD and overall stress. “For a person with anxiety, the act of petting an animal can also be of benefit.”
“For someone with depression, having a support animal can give the person hope and a sense of purpose,” Jessy Warner-Cohen, PhD, MPH, a health psychologist at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, told Healthline. In cases of certain severe psychiatric disorder, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), service animals can also be trained to help calm down their owners.ĮSAs on the other hand require no training whatsoever and their therapeutic value is derived simply from being with their owner. However, they’re uniquely different from service animals, which are defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as dogs (and in some cases, miniature horses) that “are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities.”Įxamples of these tasks include guiding someone who is blind, pulling a wheelchair, or alerting someone with diabetes that their blood sugar levels have dropped. They provide therapeutic benefits to people with a disability. Here’s everything you need to know about the role of emotional support animals.Įmotional support animal or service animal?Įmotional support animals are not pets. However, as the need appears to be increasing, the general public, businesses, and even legislators can find the topic confusing.Īre emotional support pets really necessary? What do they do? Where are they allowed to be, and which species can qualify as an ESA?
Housing and colleges across the country are also struggling to deal with an unforeseen boom in demands for accommodations related to emotional support animals. In recent years, animals on planes have gone from the stuff of quirky social media gawking to full-blown policy debacle. While Daniel may have been the cutest little duck in red shoes to ever ride an airplane, stories like this and the growing popularity of emotional support animals has become a major point of contention with airlines. Photos of Daniel in the airplane cabin went viral shortly after a fellow passenger posted them on Twitter. The duck’s name was Daniel Turducken Stinkerbutt and he was flying courtesy of another passenger, Carla Fitzgerald, as her emotional support animal (ESA). In October 2016, a duck wearing red shoes and a Captain America diaper boarded a plane from Charlotte to Asheville, North Carolina.