Service Animal or Emotional Support Animal?

How Do These Differ?

A Quick Snapshot: SAs and ESAs

Here’s what you need to know:

  • Only a Service Animal (SAs) can go where the handler goes.
  • Faculty or staff are not allowed to request any documentation, require that the SA demonstrate its task, or inquire about the nature of the person’s disability.
  • Cards, certificates or documentation from the handler should not be accepted.
  • Service animals may be dogs or, in some cases, miniature horses.

Service Animals must be trained to take a specific action when needed to assist a person with a disability. For example, a Service Animal for a person with diabetes may be trained to alert its handler when blood sugar levels are high or low. Similarly, a Service Animal for someone with epilepsy may be trained to detect the onset of a seizure and help keep the individual safe during it. A Service Animal that has been trained to sense an impending anxiety attack and take a specific action to help avoid the attack or lessen its impact would also qualify.

Because service animals are not required to wear vests, a dog that is wearing a vest is not necessarily a service animal. The dog still needs to be trained to perform a task for a person with a disability to be a service animal. Service Animals in Training, pursuant to University Policy 704: Animals on Campus, should wear a collar and leash, harness, or cape that identifies the animal as a Service Animal in Training.

Emotional Support Animals (ESAs) are animals that provide comfort or a therapeutic benefit to its owner through companionship. An ESA is not specifically trained to perform tasks for a person with a disability. If the animal’s sole purpose and presence are to provide comfort, that would not be considered a SA under the ADA.

While ESAs are primarily dogs or cats, they could be a variety of animals.

What Can You Ask?

If the service that the animal provides is not easily observable, a person can make only two inquiries:

  • Is the animal required because of a disability?
  • What work or task has the animal been trained to perform?

For More Information

Refer to University Policy 704: Animals on Campus for detailed guidance.

If you have questions about Service Animals or ESAs, you can contact the Office of Disability Services Office to discuss further.