Service animals, emotional support animals, and therapy animals can play important roles in the lives of people with disabilities and others who benefit from animal-assisted support. However, these terms are often confused, and the laws that apply can change depending on whether the animal is in a store, restaurant, apartment, airplane, workplace, or other setting. The following 20 questions address some of the most common issues concerning service and support animals in the United States. They explain the basic federal rules governing public access, housing, air travel, training, fees, behavior, and employment and identify reliable sources for additional information. State and local laws may provide additional protections, so those laws should also be checked when a specific situation arises.
NOTE: Rules and regulations can change at any time. Check with the regulatory agencies or legal advisors for the latest information before making major decisions. If you notice any item out of date or have any additional questions, leave a comment or contact us directly.
At a Glance: Service Dogs, Emotional Support Animals, and Therapy Animals
| Service Dog | Emotional Support Animal (ESA) | Therapy Animal | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | Assists its handler with a disability | Provides disability-related emotional support to its owner or handler | Provides comfort or therapeutic interaction to other people |
| Special training required? | Yes. Individually trained to perform work or specific tasks directly related to the handler’s disability | No specific task training required | Usually trained for appropriate behavior and therapeutic visits, but requirements depend on the organization or facility |
| Who benefits from the animal? | Primarily the individual handler with a disability | Primarily the individual owner or handler with a disability | Usually patients, residents, students, or others whom the animal visits |
| ADA public-access rights? | Yes. Generally permitted in public places where the handler may go, subject to limited exceptions | No. The ADA does not give ESAs general public-access rights | No. Access generally depends on permission from the facility |
| Protected in housing? | Generally yes. May qualify as an assistance animal under the Fair Housing Act | Generally yes. May qualify as an assistance animal when there is a disability-related need | Not simply because it is a therapy animal. Protection would depend on whether the animal also qualifies as an assistance animal for a person with a disability |
| Special federal air-travel access? | Yes, for qualifying service dogs. Airlines may require DOT service-animal forms | No. Airlines generally may treat ESAs as pets | No. Generally subject to the airline’s pet policies |
| Certificate or federal registration required? | No | No federal ESA registry. Supporting disability-related information may sometimes be requested for a housing accommodation | No federal certification system. Therapy organizations or facilities may have their own requirements |
| Must wear a vest or special identification? | No | No | Not required by federal law, although a therapy-animal program may use identifying equipment |
| What animals qualify? | Under the ADA, primarily dogs; trained miniature horses receive separate consideration under specific ADA rules | Potentially different species, depending on the housing circumstances and applicable law | Many species may serve as therapy animals, depending on the program or facility |
| Example | A dog trained to guide a person who is blind, retrieve medication, or take action during a psychiatric episode | A cat whose presence helps lessen symptoms associated with its owner’s disability | A dog that visits nursing-home residents with its handler |
Important: These categories describe different roles and legal protections. An animal’s title, vest, identification card, registration, or certificate does not by itself determine its legal status. The applicable rules also depend on the setting. Public accommodations, housing, air travel, and employment are governed by different provisions of federal law. In addition, state and local laws may provide protections beyond federal requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions About Service and Support Animals
1. What is the difference between a service animal, an emotional support animal (ESA), and a therapy animal?
Although these terms are sometimes used interchangeably, they describe different types of animals.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a service animal is a dog that has been individually trained to perform work or specific tasks for a person with a disability. The task must be directly related to that person’s disability. The dog’s presence alone is not enough; it must be trained to take some action that assists the person. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a, 2020b)
An emotional support animal (ESA) provides comfort or emotional support that helps lessen the effects of a person’s disability. Unlike an ADA service dog, an ESA does not have to be trained to perform a particular disability-related task. ESAs can qualify as assistance animals in housing under the Fair Housing Act, but they do not have the general right to enter stores, restaurants, and other public places that ADA service dogs have. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, n.d.)
A therapy animal usually works with its handler to provide comfort or interaction to other people—for example, patients in a hospital, residents of a nursing home, or students in a school. Therapy animals may receive considerable training, but they are not service animals simply because they provide a therapeutic benefit. Their access to facilities generally depends on the permission and policies of the facility they are visiting.
State laws sometimes use these terms differently or provide broader protections.
2. What qualifies as a service animal under the ADA?
Under Titles II and III of the ADA, a service animal is a dog individually trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability. The disability may be physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or another disability covered by the ADA.
The important issue is what the dog has been trained to do. For example, a dog might guide a person who is blind, alert a person who is deaf, retrieve needed objects, help a person maintain balance, alert someone to a medical problem, or take a specific action during a psychiatric episode.
Providing companionship, reassurance, or comfort simply by being present does not make an animal an ADA service animal. However, a dog that has been trained to take a particular action in response to a person’s psychiatric disability may qualify as a psychiatric service dog. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a, 2020b)
The ADA also contains a separate provision for miniature horses that are individually trained to perform disability-related work or tasks. Covered organizations must consider allowing a trained miniature horse when doing so is reasonable. Factors include the horse’s size and weight, whether it is housebroken and under control, whether the facility can accommodate it, and whether its presence would interfere with legitimate safety requirements. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a)
3. What kinds of tasks can service dogs perform?
Service dogs can be trained to perform many different tasks, depending on the needs of the person they assist. Examples include:
- guiding a person who is blind or has low vision;
- alerting a person who is deaf or hard of hearing to sounds;
- retrieving medication, a telephone, or other objects;
- opening doors or assisting with other physical tasks;
- helping a person with balance or mobility;
- alerting a person to the onset of a seizure and helping keep the person safe;
- alerting someone to changes associated with a medical condition, such as blood-glucose changes;
- reminding a person to take medication;
- interrupting harmful or repetitive behavior;
- recognizing an approaching psychiatric episode and taking a trained action to lessen its effects; or
- helping a person with post-traumatic stress disorder or another psychiatric disability by performing specifically trained tasks.
There is no official list of permitted tasks. The key requirement is that the work or task must be directly related to the person’s disability. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a, 2020b)
4. Do service animals need to be certified, registered, professionally trained, or wear a vest?
No. The ADA does not require a service dog to be registered or certified by a government agency or private organization. It also does not require a special identification card, vest, patch, harness, or other visible marking.
A person with a disability may train a service dog personally. The ADA does not require the dog to graduate from a professional service-dog training program.
Many websites sell certificates, identification cards, registrations, or service-dog vests. Purchasing one of these products does not, by itself, make a dog a service animal or create rights under the ADA. The U.S. Department of Justice specifically states that documents sold by service-animal registration or certification companies do not establish that a dog qualifies as a service animal under the ADA. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020b)
Service dogs are still subject to generally applicable local requirements such as dog licensing and vaccination laws.
5. What questions can a business or staff member legally ask about a service animal?
When it is not obvious that a dog is a service animal, staff members at a business or other ADA-covered facility may ask only two questions:
- Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability?
- What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?
Staff members may not ask the person to disclose or explain the disability. They may not demand medical records, a doctor’s letter, certification, registration papers, or proof of professional training. They also may not require the dog to demonstrate its task. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020b)
When the dog’s function is obvious (for example, when a dog is clearly guiding a person who is blind) the ADA does not permit these questions simply to verify the person’s need for the animal.
6. Where are service animals allowed to go?
Under the ADA, service dogs generally must be allowed to accompany their handlers into the areas of businesses, nonprofit organizations, and state or local government facilities where members of the public are normally permitted.
This includes many restaurants, stores, hotels, medical offices, theaters, government buildings, and other public accommodations, even if the organization normally has a “no pets” policy. A service dog is not considered a pet under these rules. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a)
There are exceptions. For example, a hospital generally must allow a service animal in patient rooms, examination rooms, clinics, and cafeterias, but the animal may sometimes be excluded from places such as operating rooms or burn units when its presence would interfere with necessary sterile conditions.
Different federal laws may apply in particular settings. The Fair Housing Act is especially important in housing, while the Air Carrier Access Act governs service animals traveling by commercial airline. Employment also involves different provisions of disability law. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2026)
7. What are the rules for emotional support animals in housing?
Housing law uses the broader term assistance animal. Under the federal Fair Housing Act, an assistance animal may be an animal that performs work or tasks for a person with a disability or an animal that provides emotional support that alleviates one or more effects of a disability. An assistance animal is not considered a pet for purposes of a reasonable-accommodation request. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, n.d.)
A person with a disability may therefore ask a housing provider to make a reasonable accommodation to a pet restriction . . . for example, allowing an assistance animal in an apartment complex that otherwise prohibits pets.
When both the disability and the disability-related need for the animal are apparent, additional documentation generally should not be necessary. When either is not apparent, a housing provider may request reliable disability-related information supporting the need for the accommodation.
A housing provider generally may not charge a pet fee, pet deposit, or pet surcharge for an assistance animal. However, a tenant can still be held responsible for damage caused by the animal if tenants are ordinarily charged for damage they cause. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2020)
Housing rules can be complicated, and additional federal, state, or local laws may apply to a particular property.
8. Can emotional support animals fly in the cabin of airplanes?
Emotional support animals no longer have the same special federal air-travel status that they once had.
Under current U.S. Department of Transportation rules, a service animal for air travel is a dog individually trained to perform work or tasks for a qualified person with a disability. Airlines are not required to recognize emotional support animals as service animals and generally may treat them as pets. An ESA therefore may be subject to the airline’s normal pet rules, including carrier requirements, size restrictions, fees, and limits on the number or type of pets accepted. (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2020a, 2020b)
A psychiatric service dog, however, is treated like other service dogs if it has been individually trained to perform disability-related work or tasks.
Airlines may require passengers traveling with service dogs to submit the U.S. Department of Transportation’s service-animal form concerning the dog’s health, behavior, and training. For some longer flights, an additional form concerning the dog’s ability to avoid relieving itself (or to do so in a sanitary way) may also be required. (U.S. Department of Transportation, n.d.)
Because airline procedures may differ, travelers should check the carrier’s current service-animal and pet policies before traveling.
9. What responsibilities does a handler have for a service or support animal?
Having a right to use a service or assistance animal also carries responsibilities.
Under the ADA, a service dog must remain under the handler’s control. It normally must be harnessed, leashed, or tethered. An exception applies if the person’s disability prevents the use of such equipment or if the equipment would interfere with the dog’s safe and effective performance of its trained task. In that situation, the handler must control the dog by voice, signals, or another effective method. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a)
The handler – not the business – is responsible for feeding, toileting, grooming, veterinary care, and general supervision of the service animal.
In housing, people with assistance animals likewise remain responsible for caring for and controlling their animals and may be responsible for damage the animals cause. Housing providers may establish reasonable requirements concerning sanitation and control, although ordinary pet fees and pet restrictions cannot simply be imposed on assistance animals as though they were pets. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2020)
10. Can a business or landlord refuse a service animal or emotional support animal?
Sometimes; but only under limited circumstances.
Under the ADA, a business may require a service dog to leave if the dog is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it, or if the dog is not housebroken. If the animal is removed, the person with the disability should still be given an opportunity to obtain the business’s goods or services without the animal present. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a)
Fear of dogs or an allergy to dogs is not, by itself, a valid reason for excluding an ADA service dog. When possible, the needs of both people should be accommodated (for example, by placing them in different areas of a room or facility).
In housing, an assistance-animal accommodation may sometimes be denied if the housing provider can demonstrate that it would create an undue financial and administrative burden, fundamentally alter the provider’s operations, or if the specific animal poses a direct threat to health or safety or is likely to cause significant property damage that cannot be reduced through another reasonable accommodation. These decisions should be based on evidence about the individual animal rather than assumptions about animals in general. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, n.d.)
11. Are there breed or size restrictions for service or assistance animals?
The ADA does not permit a service dog to be excluded simply because of its breed. A business or government agency cannot rely on stereotypes that a particular breed is dangerous. Instead, any decision to exclude a dog because of safety concerns must be based on the behavior or history of the individual animal. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020c)
Similarly, a blanket size restriction generally cannot be used simply to exclude an otherwise qualified service dog. Practical considerations can sometimes matter, however. For example, an animal cannot be permitted to create an actual safety hazard or block an area that must remain clear.
Federal fair-housing guidance likewise states that ordinary pet restrictions based only on breed, size, or weight should not automatically be applied to assistance animals. Concerns about danger or damage must generally involve an individualized assessment of the particular animal rather than assumptions about its breed or size. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2020)
12. How does someone obtain or train a service dog versus an emotional support animal?
A service dog must receive individualized training to perform work or tasks related to its handler’s disability. The training may be provided by a professional organization, an independent trainer, or the person with the disability. Federal ADA rules do not require attendance at an accredited training school or professional certification. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020b)
The ADA does not grant full public-access rights to a dog merely because it is “in training,” although some state laws provide rights to service animals in training.
An emotional support animal does not need specialized task training. What matters for federal fair-housing protection is that a person has a disability and has a disability-related need for the assistance or emotional support the animal provides.
When the disability or the need for the animal is not apparent, a housing provider may request reliable supporting information. HUD guidance discusses documentation from a health-care professional who has personal knowledge related to the individual’s disability and need for the animal. Simply purchasing a certificate or registration from a website does not automatically establish a disability-related need for an assistance animal. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2020)
13. What documentation is required or useful?
The answer depends on the setting.
For ADA public access: No certificate, registration, doctor’s letter, identification card, or training record is required. When the dog’s function is not obvious, staff generally are limited to the two ADA questions described above. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020b)
For housing: A housing provider may sometimes ask for reliable information supporting a person’s disability-related need for an assistance animal when the disability or need is not readily apparent. A particular certificate or government registration is not required. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, n.d.; 2020)
For air travel: Airlines may require the official U.S. Department of Transportation service-animal form or forms permitted under federal aviation rules. This is different from ADA public-access rules. (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2020a)
Commercial websites that sell “official” service-animal registrations, certificates, identification cards, or database listings should not be confused with government certification. There is no federal ADA service-dog registry whose registration creates public-access rights.
14. What is the difference between a psychiatric service dog and an emotional support animal?
The difference is trained action.
A psychiatric service dog is individually trained to perform one or more specific tasks related to a person’s psychiatric disability. For example, a dog might be trained to recognize signs of an approaching anxiety attack and take a particular action, interrupt harmful behavior, remind a person to take medication, or perform another disability-related task.
An emotional support animal may reduce anxiety, fear, depression, loneliness, or other symptoms through its presence and companionship but is not required to be trained to take a specific disability-related action.
That distinction has important legal consequences. A psychiatric service dog that meets the ADA definition generally has the same ADA public-access rights as other service dogs. An emotional support animal does not have those general ADA public-access rights, although it may qualify as an assistance animal for housing purposes. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020b; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, n.d.)
Psychiatric service dogs are also recognized as service animals under current federal air-travel rules. (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2020b)
15. Where can people find reliable information or report problems?
Because service- and assistance-animal rules depend on the setting, it is best to consult the government agency responsible for that area.
For questions about ADA public access, consult ADA.gov and the U.S. Department of Justice. The Department of Justice also operates the ADA Information Line.
For housing and assistance animals, consult the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO). HUD accepts complaints concerning disability discrimination and reasonable accommodations in housing. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, n.d.)
For air travel, consult the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Aviation Consumer Protection resources. DOT provides information on service animals, disability rights in air travel, required forms, and the process for making a complaint.
State and local disability-rights agencies and nonprofit disability-rights organizations may also provide useful information, particularly when state law provides protections beyond federal law.
Be cautious about commercial websites that sell service-animal or emotional-support-animal certificates, registrations, identification cards, or vests while suggesting that these products automatically create legal rights. Official government sources are a more reliable starting point.
16. Are service animals in training covered by the ADA?
Not yet, at least not under the federal ADA rules governing access to public places.
For a dog to qualify as a service animal under the ADA, it must already be individually trained to perform work or tasks related to a person’s disability. A dog that is still learning those tasks is not yet considered a service animal under the ADA and therefore does not receive federal ADA public-access rights simply because it is being trained for future service.
However, state or local laws may provide broader protections. Some jurisdictions allow service dogs in training to enter public places with their trainers or future handlers. Therefore, a person training a service animal should also check the laws of the state and locality where the training is taking place.
Wearing a vest or identification that says “Service Dog in Training” does not itself create federal public-access rights. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020b)
17. Can a business, hotel, landlord, or airline charge extra because someone has a service or assistance animal?
The answer depends on the setting, but federal law generally prevents ordinary pet fees from being charged for animals that qualify for disability-related protections.
Under the ADA, a business cannot charge an extra admission fee, cleaning fee, deposit, or surcharge simply because a person is accompanied by a service dog. For example, a hotel that normally charges a pet fee must waive that fee for a service dog. However, if the dog actually damages the room and the hotel normally charges other guests for comparable damage, the hotel may charge the service-dog handler for that damage. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a, 2020b)
In housing covered by the Fair Housing Act, an assistance animal is not considered a pet. A housing provider therefore generally cannot require pet rent, a pet deposit, or another pet fee as a condition of allowing a qualifying assistance animal. The resident may still be responsible for actual damage caused by the animal under the housing provider’s ordinary rules concerning tenant-caused damage. (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2020; n.d.)
Airlines likewise do not treat qualifying service dogs as ordinary pets for purposes of transportation under the Air Carrier Access Act. Emotional support animals, however, are no longer classified as service animals under current DOT rules. An airline may therefore treat an ESA as a pet and apply its regular pet policies and fees. (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2020; 2025)
18. What happens if another person is allergic to or afraid of the service animal?
Allergies and fear of dogs generally are not valid reasons, by themselves, for denying access to a person using a service dog under the ADA.
Instead, an ADA-covered organization should try to accommodate both people when possible. For example, if one person uses a service dog and another has a serious allergy to dog dander, the two people might be placed in different parts of a room or, when practical, in different rooms.
The same principle applies to fear of dogs. Another person’s fear or discomfort does not ordinarily eliminate the service-dog handler’s right of access.
The goal is not to decide that one person’s needs automatically matter more than the other’s. Rather, reasonable steps should be taken, when possible, so that both people can participate without unnecessary exclusion. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a)
19. Does a service dog have to behave perfectly, and can barking or other behavior cause it to be removed?
Service dogs must be under their handlers’ control, but this does not mean that a dog must remain completely silent and motionless at all times.
An occasional bark does not automatically mean that a service dog is out of control. The Department of Justice specifically notes that a single bark (or barking after someone provokes the dog) does not necessarily justify excluding the animal.
Repeated uncontrolled barking in a quiet setting, wandering away from the handler, aggressive behavior, or other continuing disruptive conduct can be different. Under the ADA, a business or government facility may require a service dog to leave if the dog is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it, or if the dog is not housebroken.
If a service dog is properly excluded, the person with the disability must still be given the opportunity to obtain the facility’s goods or services without the dog present. (U.S. Department of Justice, 2020a, 2020b)
Different rules govern air travel. An airline may deny transportation to a service dog that poses a direct threat, violates safety requirements, or causes a significant disruption in the cabin or gate area. DOT states that such decisions should be based on the behavior and circumstances of the individual animal rather than assumptions about service dogs in general. (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2025)
20. Do the same service-animal rules apply at work?
Not exactly.
Most of the public-access rules discussed in this FAQ concern Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which address state and local government services and businesses and organizations open to the public. Employment is governed primarily by Title I of the ADA, and workplace accommodations follow a somewhat different process.
An employee with a disability may request permission to use an animal at work as a reasonable accommodation. The employer and employee may then need to discuss the employee’s disability-related need for the animal, how the animal would assist the employee in performing the job or accessing the workplace, and whether the accommodation would create an undue hardship for the employer.
This means that the familiar public-access rule (only two questions may be asked: “Is this a service dog,” and “what task has it been trained to perform?”) should not simply be transferred to an employment situation. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), rather than the Department of Justice, administers the employment provisions of the ADA.
For example, EEOC guidance describes allowing a guide dog or other assistance animal in the workplace as a possible modification of an employer’s no-animals policy when it is needed as a reasonable accommodation and would not create an undue hardship. (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2023)
Because workplace situations depend heavily on the employee’s job, the work environment, and the requested accommodation, employees and employers should consult current EEOC guidance when a specific workplace question arises.
References
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. (2020). Assessing a person’s request to have an animal as a reasonable accommodation under the Fair Housing Act (FHEO Notice 2020-01). U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. (n.d.). Assistance animals. Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
U.S. Department of Justice. (2020a). ADA requirements: Service animals. Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section.
U.S. Department of Justice. (2020b). Frequently asked questions about service animals and the ADA. Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section.
U.S. Department of Justice. (2026). Service animals. ADA.gov.
U.S. Department of Transportation. (2020). Final rule: Traveling by air with service animals. Office of Aviation Consumer Protection.
U.S. Department of Transportation. (2025). Service animals. Office of Aviation Consumer Protection.
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2023). Visual disabilities in the workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act. U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.