Dogs and cats ran loose along the sidewalks of Gustavus. Students jumped for joy, running toward animals, and scooped them up by the handfuls like candy. All the worries of finals melted away. All of the anxiety of the night’s homework left. All of the stress from the daily struggles, time management, and lack of sleep ceased to matter. It was a good day for all.
We may never see this day come to Gustavus, but for some people, especially those who are frequent airplane flyers, events like this happen all too often.
An emotional support animal is a pet that is permitted to remain with its owner under all circumstances, and in all public places. According to the New York Times, one place that is quickly seeing the increase of emotional support animals is on airplanes.
Emotional support animals often escape the extra fees that usual pet-carrying travelers can incur when flying, such as the cost of transporting animals, whether they are too big to reside in the cabin, or small enough to be an extra carry on. These animals do not need to be documented by the airlines, so they often “fly under the radar.”
In addition, emotional support animals do not need to be carried in cages, but are intended to sit in their owner’s lap, on the floor, or the seat closest to them.
Emotional support animals can only be brought onto a plane with a certificate or note from a psychiatrist. However, these can be easily faked, and are currently in high demand on the Internet.
There is a backlash towards emotional support animals, as well as other animals used to aid people with disabilities. Many of the people complaing are other passengers on planes, those who generally don’t like animals, or those with allergies. Another group that holds a lot of resentment toward these pets is the flight attendants on board these flights. Because there are no rules or regulations provided by the airlines regarding how emotional support animals and other animal guides should be handled, I imagine that flight attendants must endlessly be getting scolded for trying to do their jobs.
So the question stands: are emotional support animals a genuine method of coping with anxiety, or an easy excuse for those pet owners who don’t want to pay for extra pet fees, or who don’t want to stow their pets in the cargo hold?
Emotional support animals are considered an alternative to anxiety or anti-depression medication by many psychologists and doctors. They are not only used for those who have anxiety or severe depression disorders, but also for those who have bipolar disorder, autism, post traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and schizophrenia. They aid their owners with everything from daily tasks like getting up in the morning and taking medication to preventing emotional breakdowns and episodes resulting from mental disability.
If you ask me, emotional support animals are definitely a good thing, especially for those who have mental disabilities that can be triggered by the stress of flying.
However, the number of people who are abusing the laws regarding emotional support dogs is increasing, and those people should be ashamed. Just because a pet owner is cheap and doesn’t want to board their animals, all aid animals are being brought under close scrutiny by airlines and lawmakers.
Those who actually have a need for emotional support dogs should not only be allowed to bring them on planes, but should also be encouraged. To those who cheat airline regulations out of selfishness: I can’t kick your butt, but karma sure will.
As for Gustavus, there is a large demographic of students who have called for the presence of animals on campus to alleviate stress. The stray black cat that roams the sidewalks is not enough. Although this may not be practical for residential purposes, it would definitely bring many students some peace of mind and stress relief. Who doesn’t want that?
So don’t fret, finals dogs are on their way. In the meantime, remember that even though many people need these animals for their wellbeing, we all can use some nice animal attention every once and awhile.
Nice try but…. there is a definite difference between
ADA rules and FHA rules. The ADA rules apply only to public places and in addition the ADA recognizes only dogs and miniature horses specifically trained to perform some function(s) for the individual as a legitmite service animal. Anything else is not recognized bt the ADA. On the other hand the FHA rules apply to housing and not public places. Those animals which fall under the FHA rules do not need to be trained to assist in any function whatsoever and striclty under the law are not covered by the ADA requirements and therefore may not, as you put it, go with their owners anywhere at any time. The problem is with cheating pet owners and the fear of confronting them.
Ashley, please actually research before throwing out misinformation like this. An emotional support animal canNOT remain with its owner under all circumstances – it’s access is limited to housing and flights. a service dog trained to mitigate a person’s disability also does not have any rights – it is the handler’s access right.
What are the differences between a service dog, an emotional support animal and a therapy dog?
A service dog is individually trained to perform tasks that mitigate the disability of his owner. Training typically takes 18-24 months. Because of his advanced training, a service dog is considered medical equipment and is permitted to accompany his disabled owner to many places where pets are not permitted.
An emotional support animal belongs to a person who is disabled. The person’s doctor has determined that the presence of the animal is necessary for the disabled person’s mental health and written a prescription stating the pet is necessary in the person’s home, despite any “no pets” regulation of the landlord, for the person’s health. Little or no training is required. The owner of an emotional support animal has no more right than any other pet owner to take their emotional support animal with them other to keep one in a home where pets are not permitted or to fly with one in a cabin when pets are not permitted.
A therapy dog is a pet that has been trained, tested, registered, and insured to accompany his owner to visit patients and residents of facilities like hospitals and nursing homes to cheer up the people living there. A well-behaved pet can typically complete training in about 8 weeks. A therapy dog is legally a pet. It is not permitted to go anywhere that pets aren’t without permission from the facility owner. The objective of registration is to show facility managers that this dog is well behaved, safe around people, and insured against liability. It is not a license to walk into a hospital or nursing home without permission.
In short: service dog works to help the owner perform tasks he cannot perform on his own because of his disability, an emotional support animal works to improve the health of his owner who is disabled, and the therapy animal works with his owner to improve the health of others.
ADA regulations, which govern service animals in public places other than aircraft specifically exclude ESAs.
“Service animal means any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability….[T]he provision of emotional support, well-being, comfort, or companionship do not constitute work or tasks for the purposes of this definition.” 28 C.F.R. 36.104
ESAs are permitted on most commercial aircraft and in most housing, with appropriate documentation from a treating mental health professional, and provided the individual is actually disabled by their mental illness (3/4 of people with a diagnosed mental illness are not disabled by that illness).
ESAs are no different from pets anywhere else, so if pets aren’t permitted, then neither are ESAs.
Verify this by calling the toll-free ADA information line operated by the United States Department of Justice at: 800-514-0301
People can purchase fake credentials just like they can purchase fake ID for themselves, but there are consequences. Businesses are rapidly becoming wise to the practice and consequences can range from getting kicked out to fines, jail time, or confiscation of the animal.
This is also not a victimless crime. People who genuinely need ESAs in order to fly experience much greater difficulty doing so, especially on short notice, specifically because of the frequent problems with fakers. Now if a war veteran needs to travel on short notice to visit a dying relative, he’s got to give the airline at least 48 hours advanced notice thanks to these fakers. That wasn’t always the case.
Although some of your information can be more accurate I can still understand your concern for this privilege being abused by dishonest persons.
Animals are definitely a good way to deal with emotional stress and fatigue, anxiety, depression and symptoms of PTSD. “everydayptsd.com” has articles on effective methods on different ways to cope with stress and anxiety and other modern alternatives to fighting symptoms of PTSD.