Service Animals in NYC (apartment, co-op, landlords)

[kkeplinger]

Hi everyone!

So I was wondering if anyone else on this forum has a service animal and could share their experience living with one in NYC?

I'm getting a guide dog this year. I"m THRILLED, of course. I'm a member of a few different guide dog groups, but I was looking for some NYC-specific experiences. For instance, has anyone had landlord trouble? Or trouble with cabbies/businesses? How did you deal with those things?

I live in a no-pets apartment, so I'm going to have to talk with my landlord before the dog comes. I know my rights and I have a good relationship with my landlord, but I'm still nervous. I'd love to hear your personal experiences, if any of you have any.

Thanks,
Kody

[Harlem resident]

MoMA has a terrific program called Art inSight - guide dogs welcome.

For your landlord to refuse a service animal would be against the disabilities act - there were lawsuits. I would think this applies to taxis and businesses as well.

[kkeplinger]

Oh, I'll have to check out Art inSight once I get my dog.

Actually, it's not illegal for the landlord to refuse. They aren't covered by the ADA (taxis and businesses are, though). The landlord is covered by the Fair Housing Act, and they have to make "reasonable accommodations." But it is possible for them to legally say no. I doubt that'll happen, but I was hoping to see if others on this board had any experience with NYC landlords, businesses, taxis, etc and how they've handled situations with service animals. Just so maybe I'd be have a sense of what I'm getting into in this particular city and how the reception (no matter the law) tends to be.

[Harlem resident]

Originally Posted by kkeplinger

Oh, I'll have to check out Art inSight once I get my dog.

Actually, it's not illegal for the landlord to refuse. They aren't covered by the ADA (taxis and businesses are, though). The landlord is covered by the Fair Housing Act, and they have to make "reasonable accommodations." But it is possible for them to legally say no. I doubt that'll happen, but I was hoping to see if others on this board had any experience with NYC landlords, businesses, taxis, etc and how they've handled situations with service animals. Just so maybe I'd be have a sense of what I'm getting into in this particular city and how the reception (no matter the law) tends to be.

There were a couple of lawsuits with people who had companion animals due to depression. I had the sense that the landlords just wanted to get rid of the people ... in any case, I believe they won, thought it was something to do with disability laws.

[Harlem resident]

I have a friend who is legally blind, and while she lives in a co-op where pets are never a problem, she did tell me that guide dogs are considered required under "reasonable accommodations" - in other words, that a landlord must allow a guide dog even in a "no pets" building.

She sent me this in response to my quesion:
http://www.nycbar.org/images/stories...11%20final.pdf

[kkeplinger]

Thanks for the link!

[spencgr]

Please note that the federal definition for a service animal was tightened and revised in the past couple of years. It appears many people were getting their pet "certified" (can be done similar to a mail-order college degree) and being called service dogs, when they weren't really performing a task.

The official definition of a service animal that is protected is now:

Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. Examples of such work or tasks include guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, or performing other duties. Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability. Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.

Revised ADA Requirements: Service Animals