What's the Difference Between Service Dogs, Therapy Dogs, and Emotional Support Animals?
There is controversy surrounding the roles of animals in the lives of people with disabilities or chronic illnesses. Most of us have observed the posts online about registering your animal as an emotional support animal with a little fee, and to be able to keep your animal in a no pets allowed setting. This has led visitors to question the legitimacy of all service animals and their roles. A sense of distrust among people who don't realize the difference between these animals, and the rights that accompany them, has been emerging as more people utilize these services.
Service Dogs are the most protected and trained of the 3 types of dogs. Even though many people make reference to all 3 types as "service animals", the official names for this type is Service Dog. These dogs are legally considered medical equipment and have a price tag to match, which range from $10,000- $50,000. They're intensively trained for 1.5-2.5 years, needing to pass a range of tests to be serviceable including, but not limited by, opening cupboards, retrieving dropped objects, staying calm in public areas, etc.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Service Dogs are allowed anywhere their handler is, and cannot be turned from an establishment or refused to go to use their handler. DOT's Air Carrier Access Act, and DOJ/HUD Fair Housing Act and Federal Rehabilitation Act cover other circumstances that the ADA doesn't. While there is a difference between Service Dogs and Emotional Support Animals, you will find a gray area for dogs that are used to calm anxiety attacks under ADA rules. Psychiatric Service Dogs are covered beneath the ADA only if they perform a specific action in order to avoid or lessen an attack. If they are just there for comfort then they are believed an Emotional Support Animal.
Therapy dogs are kind of the opposite side of exactly the same coin as Service Dogs. Instead of offering physical aid to their handlers, they offer psychological or physiological therapy to others and are along with a handler who doesn't usually need their service. The very best exemplory case of a therapy dog will be dogs that go to children's hospitals to bring comfort, or dogs that work in school systems.
These animals, just like the Service Dogs, require extensive training. Therapy dogs may also be encouraged to be very social and connect to a number of people, unlike Service Dogs who have to focus on their handler. Therapy dogs may be trained by anyone, however they have to meet standards to be certified. Therapy dogs do not have exactly the same rights as service dogs, though many places will allow a therapy dog to accompany their owners, they are not required to for legal reasons.
The last type we have been discussing are Emotional Support Animals. That one is the most vague and open-ended. Discover more doesn't have to possess any special training and most of the time is registered by its owner because it brings comfort. Also, an Emotional Support Animal doesn't have to be a dog. These animals are not protected beneath the ADA and cannot accompany their owners in establishments where you can find no animals allowed. Owners with a registered support animals will keep them in housing that otherwise does not allow pets based on the Fair Housing Act.