Wikipedia

Service animal

Service animalsareworking animalsthat have been trained to perform tasks that assistdisabled people.Service animals may also be referred to asassistance animalsorhelper animalsdepending on the country and the animal's function.Dogsare the most common service animals, having assisted people since at least 1927.[1]

This service dog has been trained to press a button to open an electric door for his wheelchair-using owner.

Various definitions exist for a service animal. Various laws and policies may defineservice animalmore expansively, but they often do not include or specially accommodateemotional support animals,comfort animals,ortherapy dogs.[2]

Regulations regarding service animals vary by region. For example, inJapan,regulations outline standards of training and certification for service animals. In theUnited States,service animals are generally allowed in areas of public accommodation, even where pets are generally forbidden.

Definitions

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A service animal is an animal that has been trained to assist a disabled person. The animal needs to be individually trained to do tasks that directly relate to the handler's disability, which goes beyond the ordinary training that a pet receives[3][4]and the non-individualized training that a therapy dog receives.[5]

The international assistance animal community has categorized three types of assistance animals:[6]

  • Guide animals,which guide the blind;
  • Hearing animals,which signal the hearing impaired; and
  • Service animals, which do work for persons with disabilities other than blindness or deafness.

In the United States, the termservice animalencompasses all three of the above types (guide dog, hearing animal, service dog).[7]TheAmericans with Disabilities Actdefines the term as "dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities".[7]Additionally, the Air Carrier Access Act breaks down the termservice animalintoemotional support animalsand other service animals.[8]Airlines are permitted to require different and more extensive documentation for ESAs than for other service animals.

Role of a service animal

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The people that can qualify for a service animal can have a range of physical and/or mental disabilities.

Aguide animalis an animal specifically trained to assist a visually impaired person to navigate in public. These animals may be trained to open doors, recognize traffic signals, guide their owners safely across public streets, and navigate through crowds of people. Amobility animalmay perform similar services for a person with physical disabilities, as well as assisting with balance or falling issues, or fetching dropped or needed items.[5]Some of them are trained to pull wheelchairs.[5]Hearing animalsare trained to assist hearing-impaired or deaf persons. These animals may be trained to respond to doorbells or a ringing phone or to tug their owners toward a person who is speaking to them.[5]Psychiatric animalscan be trained to provide deep-pressure therapy by lying on top of a person who may be experiencingPTSDflashbacks,overstimulation, oracute anxiety.They may be trained to interrupt harmful behaviors (e.g.,skin picking).[5]Similarly,autism animalshave been recently introduced to recognize and respond to the needs of people withautism spectrumdisorder; some persons with ASD state that they are more comfortable interacting with animals than with human caregivers due to issues regarding eye contact, touch, and socialization.[citation needed]Medical emergency animalscan assist in medical emergency and perform such services as clearing an area in the event of aseizure,[5]fetching medication or other necessary items, or alerting others in the event of a medical episode; some may even be trained to call emergency services through use of a telephone with specially designed oversized buttons. Service animals may also be trained to alert persons to the presence of an allergen.[5]

Difference from emotional support animals and pets

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Service animals also provide companionship and emotional support for owners who might otherwise be isolated due to disability; however, providing companionship and emotional support is not a trained task that qualifies an animal as a service animal.[5]

In the US, it is illegal to bring an animal to non-pet friendly places simply because it provides companionship or emotional support. Additionally, claiming that an emotional support animal or a pet is a service animal is illegal.[9]

Limitations

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Service animals should not be taken into every place, especially if there arebona fidesafety issues. Some activities may be unsafe for the dog (e.g., aroller coaster,which will not have appropriate safety belts for the dog), and, in other situations, the dog's presence may cause a safety problem (e.g., by introducing contaminants into a sterile room in a hospital, or if the combined weight of the dog and its handler exceeds the weight limits for a piece of equipment).[10]

Even if service animals in general are accepted, an individual service animal could be excluded because of its own behavior or situation. For example, in the US, individual service dogs have legally been excluded from some places for not being properly controlled by its handler (e.g., forgrowlingat staff or interfering with other patrons),[10]because the handler was unable to care for it (e.g., while the handler was unable to take the dog out to urinate for an extended period of time),[10]for having a contagious disease,[10]and forurinatingordefecatingin inappropriate places.[10]

In some places, service animals in training have the same rights to enter a place as a fully trained and working service animal, and in other places, they do not.[11]

Acquisition

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Service animals may be acquired from an organization that trains them, or may be purchased as a puppy (e.g., from a dog breeder) and then trained later.[12]Assistance Dogs Internationaland Animal Assisted Intervention International[13]organize international networks of service dog non-profits.

Trained service animals tend to be expensive, with costs running into the tens of thousands of dollars.[12]In some cases, even though money is paid, the service animal is not being bought by the user, but merely leased.[12]

Training

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Training a service dog may take two years.[12]The training is intensive; 120 hours of training over six months (about five hours per week) is considered a minimal level of training.[5]

The training for a service dog is more individualized than the training for atherapy dog,because the service dog supports only a single individual, and therapy dogs work with a variety of people.[14]

The training may be done by a non-profit organization, by an individual or small business, or by the owner.[12]For legal recognition, some countries require licensed trainers. For example, service animals in Japan are only legally recognized if they are certified by designated agencies.[15]

Access by region

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In many countries,guide dogs,other types of assistance dogs, and in some cases miniature horses,[7]are protected by law, and therefore may accompany their handlers in most places that are open to the public, even if local regulations or rules would deny access to non-service animals. Laws and regulations vary by jurisdiction.

Japan

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InJapan,the Act on Assistance Dogs for Physically Disabled Persons was issued in 2002.[15]The stated goal of this act was to improve the quality of "assistance dogs for physically disabled persons" and expand the use of public facilities by physically disabled people.[16]

Assistance dogs are classified as eitherguide dogs,hearing dogs,orservice dogs.Public transportation, public facilities, offices of public organisation, and private businesses of 50 or more people are required to accept certified assistance dogs.[15]Only certified assistance dogs are required to be accommodated.[15]They must display a sign with their certification number, and the dog's health records and proof of certification must be provided upon demand.[15]Private housing and private businesses with less than 50 people are encouraged but not required to accept assistance dogs.[17]

Visitors whose assistance animals were self-trained or trained by an organization not approved by the Japanese government are legally considered ordinary pets while in Japan.[15]

United States

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In the United States, theAmericans with Disabilities Act of 1990prohibits any business, government agency, or other organization that provides access to the general public from barring service dogs. However, religious organizations are not required to provide such access. Current federal regulations defineservice animalfor ADA purposes to exclude all species of animals other than domestic dogs andminiature horses.[7]

Other laws also apply. The USAir Carrier Access Actpermits trained service animals to travel with disabled people on commercial airplanes.[7][18][19]TheFair Housing Actrequires housing providers to permit service animals as well as comfort animals and emotional support animals, without species restrictions, in housing.[20]

The revised Americans with Disabilities Act requirements are as follows: "Beginning on March 15, 2011, only dogs are recognized as service animals under titles II and III of the ADA. A service animal is a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability. Generally, title II and title III entities must permit service animals to accompany people with disabilities in all areas where members of the public are allowed to go. In addition to the provisions about service dogs, the Department's revised ADA regulations have a new, separate provision about miniature horses that have been individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. (Miniature horses generally range in height from 24 inches to 34 inches measured to the shoulders and generally weigh between 70 and 100 pounds.) Entities covered by the ADA must modify their policies to permit miniature horses where reasonable. The regulations set out four assessment factors to assist entities in determining whether miniature horses can be accommodated in their facility. The assessment factors are whether:

  • the miniature horse ishousebroken;
  • the miniature horse is under the owner's control;
  • the facility can accommodate the miniature horse's type, size, and weight; and
  • the miniature horse's presence will not compromise legitimate safety requirements necessary for safe operation of the facility. "[21]

The ADA states that a service animal may be removed from the premises if the dog is out of control of the handler or the dog is not housebroken.[7]Service animals are to be kept under control by wearing a leash, harness, or tether unless it would interfere with the animal's ability to perform its tasks.Housebrokenmeans the service animal to be adequately trained to urinate and defecate in appropriate places (e.g., outdoors or being paper trained).[22]

However, businesses may exclude service animals when the animals' presence or behavior "fundamentally alters" the nature of the goods, services, programs, or activities provided to the public.[23]This could include exclusion from certain areas of zoos where a dog's presence could disrupt the animals' behavior or where there is open access to the animals, or if a service dog's alert behavior is barking, its behavior could be considered fundamentally altering the service provided by a movie theater.[24]In a medical setting, service animals are normally permitted in patient exam rooms but excluded fromoperating roomsand other sterile environments.[7]

Staff are legally allowed to ask the following questions about service animals: (1) "Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability?" and (2) "What work or task has this animal been trained to perform?" Staff cannot request documentation, ask about the handler's disability, or require the animal to perform its tasks.

Other rules relating to service dogs outlined by the ADA:[7]

  • Staff can neither deny service for reasons such as allergies or fear of dogs nor deny service for people with allergies or psychiatric conditions for reasons of a service dog being present; instead, all disabled people need to be accommodated (for example, by having the allergic person use a different room from the person with a service dog).
  • Staff cannot charge handlers extra fees because of a service animal
  • Hotels must provide handlers the ability to reserve any room, not just rooms deemed "pet-friendly"
  • Staff are not responsible for supervising a service animal
  • Dog may be of any breed,[7]though certain breeds, such asGerman Shepherds,Labrador Retrievers,andGolden Retrieversare more popular.[25]

Americans with Disability Act

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The ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990) in the United States defines a service animal as "a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for an individual with a disability." Emotional support animals do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.[7]

From the year it became active, that is, 1990, ADA inhibits any kind of discrimination against disabled Individuals. Although even before this, the Fair Housing section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also protects disabled individuals, the ADA solely focuses on discrimination based ondisability.The scope of the American Disabilities Act is vast as it not only inhibits discrimination by the housing authorities but also covers the areas related to employment, transportation, education, etc.

There are different authorities that keep checking that ADA is wholly followed in the United States. For example, theU.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission(EEOC) ensures that there is no discrimination against disabled employees in the country. Whereas the Department of Transportation, with its full potential, makes sure that public vehicles and related services are comfortable for disabled individuals.

Federal Fair Housing Act

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In 1988, theFederal Fair Housing Amendment Actbanned discrimination against individuals based on their disability.Landlordsare obliged to approve reasonable accommodation requests for disabled tenants so that disabled tenants can enjoy the dwelling as much as non-disabled tenants.[citation needed]Reasonable accommodations can include living with an assistance animal. The assistance animal can be a trained service animal or emotional support animal.[citation needed]

No matter the breed, type, size, or weight of these assistance animals,[citation needed]the landlord has to allow them in the housing even if they follow a no-pet policy. In accordance with this Fair Housing Act, the landlords cannot ask for any extra charges for allowing either trained service animal or emotional support animals in the rental housing.[26]

Other regions

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  • In mostSouth Americancountries andMexico,guide dog access depends solely upon the goodwill of the owner or manager. In more tourist-heavy areas, guide dogs are generally welcomed without problems. InBrazil,however, a 2006 federal decree[27]requires allowance of guide dogs in all public and open to public places. TheFederal District Metrohas developed a program which trains guide dogs to ride it.
  • InEurope,the situation varies by location. Some countries have laws that govern the entire country and sometimes the decision is left up to the respective regions.
  • InAustralia,theDisability Discrimination Act 1992protects all assistance dog handlers. Current laws may not ensure that assistance dog users can always have their service animals present in all situations. Each state and territory has its own laws, which mainly pertain to guide dogs. Queensland has introduced theGuide Hearing and Assistance Dog Act 2009[28]that covers all certified assistance dogs.
  • InCanada,guide dogs along with other service animals are allowed anywhere that the general public is allowed, as long as the owner is in control of them. Fines for denying a service animal access can be up to $3000 in Alberta, Canada.[29]There are separate laws for service dogs in Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Ontario.[30]
  • InSouth Korea,it is illegal to deny access to guide dogs in any areas that are open to the public. Violators are fined for no more than 2 millionwon.[31]

Animals for individual assistance

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Many service animals may be trained to perform tasks to help their disabled partners live independent lives.

Service dogs

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Main article:Service dog

Service dogs are the most common type of service animal. Dogs can support a litany of both physical and mental disabilities. Amobility assistance doghelps with movement; this may be a large dog that can provide physical support or to help propel a wheelchair, or a dog that has been trained to do specific small tasks, such as pushing a door open. Aguide doghelps blind people walk safely. Ahearing dogalerts deaf people to important sounds, such as a ringing alarm. Some dogs aremedical response dogsthat sense a medical issue and alert the handler.Seizure sensing dogscan be trained to sense epileptic seizures in their partner. Adiabetes alert dogsenses when a person'sblood sugar levelis dangerously low or high. Apsychiatric assistance dogmay be trained to calm someone who is upset, help the handler leave an overwhelming situation, or signal specific events (e.g., to interrupt a habitual behavior, such as picking at the skin when anxious).Autism assistance dogshelp individuals withautism.

Miniature horse

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A miniature horse working as a guide animal at the Cincinnati airport.

Aminiature horsecan be trained toas a guide horse for a blind person,[32]to pull wheelchairs, or as support for persons withParkinson's disease.

A full-grown miniature horse can vary from 26 "to 38". There are two main registering organisations. The American Miniature Horse Association limits height to 34 "whereas the American Miniature Horse Registry has a division for horses 34" to 38 ".[33]

There are a number of advantages of miniature horses as service animals. Miniature horses may be chosen by people whosereligion considers dogs to be unclean[5]or who have seriousallergies to dogs,[5]as well as phobias. Miniature horses have average lifespans of 30–35 years (longer than those of bothservice dogsandmonkeys) and take at least 6 months to a year of training, done only by professional trainers.[5][34]The training period is usually longer for a miniature horse than for a dog, partly because horses are easily spooked by loud noises.[5]

Guide horse users report they typically are immediately recognised as a working service animal, whereas a dog may be mistaken for apet.[citation needed]Miniature horses have been praised for their excellentrange of vision(350 degrees), good memories, calm nature, focused demeanor, and good cost-effectiveness.[34]They are cost-effective primarily because their long working life, of about 20 years, is so much longer than for other animals, so the longer training period is balanced by the longer service time.[5]They are particularly well suited to guiding people with no or low vision.[5]

Helper monkey

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Ahelper monkeywas a type of assistance animal trained to help people withquadriplegia,severespinal cordinjuries, or other mobility impairments, similar to amobility assistance dog.Starting in the 1970s and up through 2020, the Boston-based organization Helping Hands trainedCapuchin monkeysto perform manual tasks such as grasping items, operating knobs and switches, and turning the pages of a book.[35][2]

In 2010, theU.S. federal governmentrevised its definition of service animal under theAmericans with Disabilities Act(ADA). Non-human primates are no longer recognised as service animals under the ADA.[36]TheAmerican Veterinary Medical Associationdoes not support the use of non-human primates as assistance animals because ofanimal welfareconcerns, the potential for serious injury to people, and risks that primates may transfer dangerous diseases to humans.[37]The organization that trained monkey helpers, Helping Hands, rebranded in 2023, becoming Envisioning Access and turning its focus to assistive technologies.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^Harrison Eustis, Dorothy(November 5, 1927). "The Seeing Eye".Saturday Evening Post:43.
  2. ^abcWeber, David; Talbot, Tom (2020-10-27).Mayhall's Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Prevention.Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.ISBN978-1-9751-2459-5.Emotional support animals, comfort animals, and therapy animals do not qualify as service animals...
  3. ^Schaffner, Joan (2009).Litigating Animal Law Disputes: A Complete Guide for Lawyers.American Bar Association. pp.270–271.ISBN978-1-60442-001-2.
  4. ^Access Now, Inc. v. Town of Jasper,Tennessee, 268 F. Supp. 2d 973 (E.D. Tenn. 2003).
  5. ^abcdefghijklmnoPapalia, Anne O.; Ewoldt, Kathy B.; Bateman, David F. (2022-07-27).Service Animals in Schools: Legal, Educational, Administrative, and Strategic Handling Aspects.Rowman & Littlefield. pp.13–19.ISBN978-1-5381-5822-7.
  6. ^"The World of Assistance Dogs".International Association of Assistance Dog Partners. Archived fromthe originalon September 10, 2007.RetrievedOctober 17,2007.
  7. ^abcdefghij"ADA Requirements: Service Animals".US Department of Justice. February 28, 2020.
  8. ^"Service Animal Definition Matrix—Air Carrier Access Act vs. Americans with Disabilities Act"(PDF).2016-07-01. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2017-02-07.
  9. ^Wisch, Rebecca."Table of State Service Animal Laws".Animal Legal and Historical Center.Michigan State University College of Law.Retrieved19 June2021.
  10. ^abcdeWeber, David; Talbot, Tom (2020-10-27)."Service Animals in Healthcare Facilities".Mayhall's Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Prevention.Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.ISBN978-1-9751-2459-5.
  11. ^Schaffner, Joan (2009).Litigating Animal Law Disputes: A Complete Guide for Lawyers.American Bar Association. p. 272.ISBN978-1-60442-001-2.
  12. ^abcdeFerguson, Nicola (2023-09-07).Your Service Dog and You: A Practical Guide.McFarland. pp.75–81.ISBN978-1-4766-4912-2.
  13. ^Winkle, Melissa Y., and Deborah E. Linder. "Animal-assisted interventions: Taxonomy and best practices." Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin 2018 (2018).
  14. ^Penkowa, Milena (2015-06-08).Dogs & Human Health: The New Science of Dog Therapy & Therapy Dogs.Balboa Press. p. 116.ISBN978-1-4525-2903-5.
  15. ^abcdefThe Act on Assistance Dogs for Physically Disabled Persons (English Version)(PDF),Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare/Department of Health and Welfare for Persons with Disabilities Relief Division
  16. ^Takayanagi, Tomoko; Yamamoto, Mariko (2019-06-21)."The Use of Service Dogs for People With Physical Disabilities in Japan in Accordance With the Act on Assistance Dogs for Physically Disabled Persons".Frontiers in Veterinary Science.6:198.doi:10.3389/fvets.2019.00198.ISSN2297-1769.PMC6598092.PMID31294038.
  17. ^"The Act on Assistance Dogs for Physically Disabled Persons"(PDF).Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare/Department of Health and Welfare for Persons with Disabilities Relief Division Policy Planning Division Independence Promotion Office.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  18. ^"Service Animals".US Department of Transportation.Retrieved2022-05-14.
  19. ^Foster, Amanda (2020-08-08)."Inclusion of Emotional Support Animals as Service Animals Under the ADA: Creating the Right to Use Dogs to Assist People Living with Mental Health Issues".Western New England Law Review.43.Rochester, NY.doi:10.2139/ssrn.3669792.S2CID234660726.SSRN3669792.
  20. ^"Fair Housing Information Sheet # 6: Right to Emotional Support Animals in 'No Pet' Housing"(PDF).Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law.Retrieved24 October2013.
  21. ^Brennan, Jacquie S. (2014).Service Animal Book(PDF).Southwest ADA Center.[permanent dead link‍]
  22. ^"Text of the Revised Title III Regulation".ada.gov.Retrieved2021-10-03.
  23. ^"Frequently Asked Questions about Service Animals and the ADA".19 December 2024.
  24. ^"Commonly Asked Questions About Service Animals in Places of Business".US Department of Justice.July 1996.
  25. ^Shea, Erin (5 June 2023)."Guide Dogs: 7 Things You Didn't Know About These Canine Workers".American Kennel Club.Retrieved2023-12-22.
  26. ^jorgensen, Darren (2020-06-16)."Emotional Support Animal".Fast ESA Letter.Retrieved2022-09-22.
  27. ^"Decreto nº 5904".Planalto.gov.br. 2006-09-22.Retrieved2012-06-27.
  28. ^"Acts as passed - Queensland Legislation - Queensland Government"(PDF).
  29. ^"Canada – Alberta – Service Dogs Act".Animallaw.info. 2009-01-01.Retrieved2012-06-27.
  30. ^"Public Access Laws Canada".Assistance Dogs International.Retrieved2021-10-01.
  31. ^"Service Dogs: Many Asian Countries Setting a Good Example".Fun Paw Care.2015-01-06.Retrieved2021-10-01.
  32. ^"Guide Horse".GuideHorse.org. Archived fromthe originalon October 17, 2007.
  33. ^"Service Animals".Hidden Hollow Miniatures.Archived fromthe originalon August 3, 2018.Retrieved2017-05-18.
  34. ^abBurleson, Janet (2017).Helping Hooves: Training Miniature Horses as Guide Animals for the Blind (Equine In-Focus).Rampant TechPress.ISBN978-0974448602.
  35. ^"Why Monkeys".MonkeyHelpers.org. Archived fromthe originalon January 24, 2018.RetrievedJanuary 23,2018.
  36. ^"Highlights of the Final Rule to Amend the Department of Justice's Regulation Implementing Title II of the ADA".United States Department of Justice,Civil Rights Division.RetrievedOctober 2,2013.
  37. ^"AVMA Animal Welfare Division Director's Testimony on the Captive Primate Safety Act".American Veterinary Medical Association.Archived fromthe originalon October 7, 2013.RetrievedOctober 2,2013.

Further reading

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