What is an Emotional Support Dog?
An emotional support dog is a furry pal that provides therapeutic benefit(s) to their owner through support and companionship to help alleviate symptoms associated with a mental or emotional disability.
Emotional support dogs are the most common type of ESA since dogs help with reducing symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other mental and/or emotional disabilities.
Emotional Support Dog Requirements
When it comes to requirements, there aren’t many.
If your dog provides you with love and care then they could be your ESA.
With that being said, the animal must be beneficial for your health and not put you or anyone else in
harm’s way.
Overall, most dogs are recognized as appropriate emotional support animals with the exception of a
few outside breeds.
In terms of an ESA owner, the key requirement you need is an emotional support animal letter stating the dog is beneficial to your mental/emotional health. This letter can only be written by a licensed mental health professional.
How to Get an Emotional Support Dog Letter
- The process to obtain an ESA letter is simple.
- Behind every letter is a Licensed Mental Health Professional (LMHP), such as a Psychiatrist, Therapist, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, or Psychologist evaluating, working with, and testifying to their patient’s need of an emotional support animal.
- An ESA dog letter or Emotional Support Animal prescription will typically include the name of the patient plus details about the animal (name of the animal, breed type, etc).
- Free and fast, take a 5 minute pre-screening to determine your potential eligibility for an ESA dog, ESA cat, or other animal.
- Completely confidential, our brief questionnaire only takes a few minutes to finish. From there, you’ll be one step closer to getting your own furry support system.
The Truth Behind Emotional Support Dog Registration
An ESA registration has no legal value whatsoever. Sites that ask you for money but only give confirmation that your emotional support animal is now registered do not uphold in any court of law in both the U.S. and Canada.
The same goes for emotional support animal certification. You do not need to certify or get an emotional support dog certificate to become an ESA owner.
If you register or certify your dog and NOT get evaluated by an LMHP and receive an ESA letter, you may be fined. Also, depending on your state, misrepresenting a pet as an emotional support animal could be classified as a misdemeanor.
A lot of sites out there can be tricky with their small print and fancy words. We’ve all been subjected to it at some point in our lives. But the main take away is that emotional support animal registration is not a “real” thing and will not provide you with the assistance you need for your ESA.
Emotional Support Dog Vest: Necessity or Voluntary?
There are not any emotional support animal laws that say an emotional support dog vest is required, but it does help others recognize them as an ESA.
As a great indicator for flight attendants and landlords, the emotional support dog vest lets them know you’re an ESA owner and makes for less explanation. Keep in mind you still have to provide verified identification (hint: your ESA letter) in both cases if you do not want to be charged with any fees or denied your rights to housing with an emotional support animal.
Legal Protections for Emotional Support Dogs
It is important that anyone considering obtaining an ESA letter be aware of the legal protections that apply to owners and what they should expect from Emotional Support Animal Letter provider under the law.
Important: Service Dogs Have Different Laws
While an emotional support animal helps ease the pain of a mental or emotional disability through companionship and affection, a service animal (including psychiatric service dogs) is any animal that is individually specifically trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a disabled person.
ESA are NOT service dogs.
Because of this, service dogs are protected by different laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the U.S. or Service Dog Act in parts of Canada.
The 5 Best Emotional Support Dog Breeds
Any dog can be an emotional support animal. This means that pure breed dogs through to mixed breeds, designers breeds and mutts can be ESAs. All that matters is that you find the perfect furry friend you share a connection with!
However, the following pups are always viewed as some of the best emotional support dogs:
- Poodles
- Golden Retrievers
- Corgis
- German Shepherds
- Yorkshire Terriers
