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This is simply not true. A therapy dog is not get a certification from a doctor, and is not protected. Are you thinking of an ESA pet?
Service dogs, Therapy Dogs, and ESA's are all different. I think many are getting them confused. for instance, one does not need a disability for an ESA. One does for a service dog. And a therapy dog has nothing to do with therapy for the owner. It's like to take into nursing homes and hospitals for patients to pet and get therapy.
A Service Dog is NOT a pet. And no pet restrictions may apply to them. An ESA *is* a pet, but gets some of the allowances (but not all!) that a Service Dog does.
You DO need to be disabled to get an ESA. Under the Federal Fair Housing Act Amendments people with disabilities are allowed to request reasonable accommodations including modification of rules. If you do not have a disability you are not covered by the law. If you are not covered by the law your dog cannot be an ESA. Try looking Emotional Support Animal up on Wikipedia (not always the best source but this article is good).
Service dogs, Therapy Dogs, and ESA's are all different. I think many are getting them confused. for instance, one does not need a disability for an ESA. One does for a service dog. And a therapy dog has nothing to do with therapy for the owner. It's like to take into nursing homes and hospitals for patients to pet and get therapy.
A Service Dog is NOT a pet. And no pet restrictions may apply to them. An ESA *is* a pet, but gets some of the allowances (but not all!) that a Service Dog does.
Yes, exactly this. She needed a service dog. Not a therapy dog. Sorry, I do get them confused.
Only service dogs were allowed in my building and they did indeed trump the HOA rules. No other kind of animal did, not for a resident or a visitor.
You DO need to be disabled to get an ESA. Under the Federal Fair Housing Act Amendments people with disabilities are allowed to request reasonable accommodations including modification of rules. If you do not have a disability you are not covered by the law. If you are not covered by the law your dog cannot be an ESA. Try looking Emotional Support Animal up on Wikipedia (not always the best source but this article is good).
Thank you. Many years ago, I was familiar these laws and the differences between all 3 types, but I see now that I remembered wrongly (or laws have changed?) regarding ESAs requiring an actual disability. I had always been more concentrated on actual service dogs, that do, and thought ESAs only required a condition that is mitigated merely by comfort, not tasks like a service dog. (Hence their name!) and the lack of needing disability is why they have less access privileges. Service dogs have almost absolute privileges anywhere, unlike ESAs.
I find this wild: if you google JUST 'emotional support dogs' and don't put in federal law or anything else there are two pages of 'registries'. Those aren't even real! So I added 'Federal Law' to find this:
I have decided to fight them if this comes about. They need their majority proxies to stay on the board. Selective enforcement is a PITA to prove on my end, but I will do it. With the extraordinary amount of over-sized dogs, they would lose their majority support if they enforced this rule for everyone. If I get a letter my first response (from my father, actually, as he is an attorney) will address the issue that there are 100 dogs here clearly way over the limit and God only knows how many are an ounce over 40 pounds. The saving grace for me in this situation is all these other ones, so many of which are owned by people whose votes they depend on. No way are they going to give up power over the dogs. And I'm not going to let them selectively remove dogs from people who didn't vote for them.
! I just remembered every dog here is not in compliance. I helped write these rules. Each one is supposed to be weighed and measured, a picture taken, and proof of vaccinations given. This would be a huge undertaking for them. Now we're talking about over 300 dogs. And the money to litigate all the people that will claim ESA or service dog, and suits for selective enforcement, etc.
I hope you do succeed in getting the HOA rules about the size and weight limits changed. Many larger dogs are more quiet and low-energy than some smaller dogs; there's no rule that proves true that about bigger dogs being more difficult - it all depends on the character of the individual dog and how his/her owners care for and control the dog.
I hope you do succeed in getting the HOA rules about the size and weight limits changed. Many larger dogs are more quiet and low-energy than some smaller dogs; there's no rule that proves true that about bigger dogs being more difficult - it all depends on the character of the individual dog and how his/her owners care for and control the dog.
That is how the board has always felt for the 12 years I've lived here.
OP, the dog doesn't belong to you and it isnt with you full time. Your plan to get the dog declared an emotional support animal for yourself is a non starter.
Your best hope is to defeat those anti-dog people in the election.
Has this been asked already? Why is this even an issue? It sounds like the HOA administration is singling you out. Was there an incident or ongoing condition with your dog, or is it a personality conflict between you and the people who are out to get your goat?
Maybe it's possible to remedy the condition and have the HOA forget about your itinerant canine companion, or decide it's not worth the upset to hound you about it.
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And I'm not going to let them selectively remove dogs from people who didn't vote for them.
you about it.
