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How to Qualify for An Emotional Support Animal
Overview
If you have an emotional disability, you can legally qualify for an ESA, short for an emotional support animal. You must have documentation of an emotional or mental disability from a psychologist, therapist, psychiatrist, or other duly licensed and/or certified mental health professional. This certification should be a formal and appropriately formatted letter, known as an ESA Letter.
To qualify for an Emotional Support Animal, your ESA letter must be written on the mental health professional’s letterhead, including their license type, date of the license, license number, the state of the license, and the date the letter was written.
What the Letter Must Contain
Your ESA letter must contain some details which will inform your landlord that:
- You are a current patient of the signing mental health professional
- You have a mental disability that is covered by the Fair Housing Act
- Your disability substantially limits you in performing or participating in at least one major life activity
- An Emotional Support Animal is an integral part of relieving symptoms of your current condition
It is recommended that the ESA letter be no older than a year.
What Disorders Qualify You as An Emotional Support Animal Owner
Some conditions that qualify for an ESA letter include:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- PTSD
- Panic Disorders
- Learning disorders
- Attention Deficit Disorder
- Tourette’s syndrome and tic disorders
- Motor skill disorders
- Bipolar disorder
- Dysphorias and dysmorphias
Emotional Support Animal Training
Unlike service animals, ESAs are not required to be trained to perform a service for their handlers. Your current pet may already be serving as your emotional support animal. To achieve official recognition, however, you must have an ESA letter from a licensed mental health professional.
See if you qualify for an Emotional Support Animal letter by clicking the link below.
About the Author: The writing team at Service Dog Certifications is made up of folks who really know their stuff when it comes to disability laws and assistance animals. Many of our writers and editors have service dogs themselves and share insights from their own experiences. All of us have a passion for disability rights and animals.
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My daughter has a dog that we would like to get her classified as an emotional support animal.
How do we go about this
You would need to talk to her doctor or therapist. They will evaluate your daughter’s situation and may issue an ESA Letter if they agree that the dog can help with the treatment of her disorder. You may find this article on how to get an ESA letter interesting: https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/how-to-get-an-emotional-support-dog-letter/
What does ptsd fall under?
PTSD can potentially qualify for an ESA. Talk to your doctor or therapist. They can evaluate if an ESA would help in treating your PTSD. If you’re currently not seeing a doctor or your doctor doesn’t understand the benefits of an ESA, you can get a second opinion or even seek out help online. You may find this article on the requirements of an ESA interesting: https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/emotional-support-dog-requirements/
Would I qualify for an esa
I have severe anxiety and depression . Also always had a learning disability all my life hard for me.to concentrate also I have health problems chronic pain. Serve migraines. I’m borderline almost diabetic . With some sugar issues sometimes . Have emotional problems due to being in abusive relationships .
Anxiety is a disability that qualifies you for an Emotional Support Animal. You will need to work with a licensed mental health professional directly to know for sure. For more information, you may find this article helpful – https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/emotional-support-dog-certification-registration/
I have a letter from my therapist noting that my dog has benefited me as a support animal for my PTSD. Is that the only thing I would need to show to a landlord to have my dog move with me or do I also need an identification card for her or registration?
Yes, an ESA Letter from a licensed medical health practitioner is your legal documentation that your dog is your ESA. By law, you do not need to register your dog any further. However, some ESA owners purchase a registration, ID, and vest to make it more apparent to the public that their animal is an emotional support animal. You may find this article on the requirements of emotional support animals interesting – https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/emotional-support-dog-requirements/
Hi so i have an eating disorder. Could i qualify for an ESA?
Talk to your therapist to see if an ESA could be beneficial to the treatment of your disorder. Just make sure your therapist is licensed in the state of your residence so they can issue a valid ESA letter. If you currently are not seeing a therapist in your state, ESA letters can also be issued online thru telemedicine. You may find this article on how to get an ESA letter interesting https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/how-to-get-an-emotional-support-dog-letter/ .
If I am chronically depressed can I register for a ESA?
Talk to a licensed medical health professional who is licensed in your state of residence. They will assess if you can benefit from an ESA and will issue an ESA letter for you. If you can’t visit an lmhp in person, there are services that can connect you with one online. You may find this article on how to get an emotional support animal letter interesting: https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/how-to-get-an-emotional-support-dog-letter/
I have suffered long-term from depression/ocd/anxiety and have a diagnosis from a medical doctor. In the past 5 years I have had 2 major car accidents not caused by me but because of them I suffer now from PTSD. I have severe anxiety while driving, especially when it rains. Do I still need a certification from a psychiatrist to have my dog certified? And would I qualify?
I have separation anxiety do I qualify for a ESA dog?
Anxiety is a disability that qualifies you for an Emotional Support Animal. You will need to work with a licensed mental health professional directly to know for sure. For more information, you may find this article helpful – https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/emotional-support-dog-certification-registration/
my primary doctor wrote me a letter saying my dog would benefit me as an emotional support animal as i have mental health issues or something like that. his title is do and something else. he prescribes my mental health meds, so will his letter be official?
If your doctor is a licensed medical health professional with a valid license in your state of residence, then the letter would indeed be valid. You may find this article on how to get an ESA letter interesting https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/how-to-get-an-emotional-support-dog-letter/