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Can Landlords Deny a Service Dog?
Under the Fair Housing Act, housing providers such as landlords, HOAs, co-ops, and condos must reasonably accommodate service dogs. Housing providers can only deny a tenant’s request to live with their service dog in limited circumstances. In this article, we’ll explore what these exceptions are and what rights you have as a service dog owner in residential housing.
Laws that Protect Assistance Animals in No Pet Housing
There are two types of assistance animals with special housing rights: service dogs and emotional support animals. If you have a mental or physical disability that requires you to have either a service dog or an emotional support animal, you are protected from discrimination under the federal Fair Housing Act. Service dog owners have the following rights:
- Access to “no pets” policy housing
- Exemption from monthly pet fees
- Exemption from pet deposits
- Exemption from breed or weight restrictions
Housing providers must accommodate assistance animals unless they have a valid exemption, even if their building has a policy that bans all pets. Under federal Fair Housing rules, service dogs and emotional support animals are not considered pets and are thus not subject to rules that apply to normal pets.
A major difference between an emotional support animal and a service dog is that service dogs must be individually trained to perform a task or job relating to the handler’s disability. Emotional support animals, on the other hand, do not undergo any specialized training and assist with mental health disabilities just by being present in their owner’s life.
When can a landlord reject a service dog?
The right to live with your service dog is not absolute. Landlords can reject a tenant’s request to live with their service dog if they have a valid exemption. For example, if the landlord has determined that the tenant’s service dog poses a health or safety risk to others, they may properly deny accommodation if the risks can’t be mitigated.
Some smaller landlords are also exempt from Fair Housing requirements. The Fair Housing Act exempts owner-occupied buildings with no more than four units and single-family houses sold or rented by the owner without an agent.
Landlords cannot reject a service dog solely because they merely perceive it as dangerous or a health risk to others without evidence. Landlords cannot deny a service dog, for example, solely because it is a certain breed.
Fair Housing rules also override any building policies that ban pets. A housing provider cannot deny a service dog accommodation because their building has a strict ban on all animals. A housing provider also can’t deny a service dog for being too big just because their building has a size/weight restriction on pets.
How can a landlord verify a service dog?
Under HUD guidelines, housing providers are permitted to verify a service dog by asking two questions:
- “Is the animal required because of a disability?” and
- “What work or task has the animal been trained to perform?”
Housing providers are never permitted to ask about the nature or extent of a tenant’s disability or demand documentation as proof of service dog status. However, under HUD guidelines, housing providers are allowed to make the truth and accuracy of information provided during the service dog request part of the representations made by the tenant. This applies under a lease or housing agreement to the extent that the lease or agreement requires the truth and accuracy of other material information.
What that essentially means is that if you lie about the status of your service dog, your landlord may have the right to take actions against you under the terms of your lease. It’s also common sense that faking the need for a service dog is unethical, but it is also outlawed in many jurisdictions.
Overview on Service Dog Access Rights
Service dog owners have rights when it comes to housing and public access rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act. When you have a legitimate service dog, you have the right to access areas where the general public is allowed. This can include retail locations, restaurants, hotels, and beaches. Service dogs can also accompany their handlers in the cabin of airplanes free of charge.
Certifications and Vests for Service Dogs
Certificates, ID cards, and vests are not mandatory for service dogs, but many service dog owners choose to use them. You can obtain these items after your service dog has been fully trained to perform the task or job related to your disability.
Registering a service dog and obtaining items like certificates, ID cards, and vests help signal to other tenants in your building and members of the public that your dog is a working animal. It can help dispel any confusion about why your service dog is present, especially if your building has a ban on pets.
You can register your service dog here: Service Dog Certification.
You can also purchase a service dog vest at this link: Service Dog Vest.
Having a certificate, vest, or ID card for your service dog is an easy way to let others know that your canine companion is a working animal and, therefore, should be treated as such.
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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so we rent from a private landlord and his limit is 2 pets max…we have 2 cats that weve raised since babies and are about a year old, my son is autistic and needs a service animal and the landlord says that we can get one if we get rid of one of the cats…but were to attached to the animals and it would hurt us emotionally to let it go.
Is this allowed or no?
No this is not allowed. You are paying for them to be there and a service animal can not be denied. A service animal is not a pet it is a medical equipment.
What I read is that a cat can’t be a service animal. Landlord can do as he pleases. Emotional support animals are not as protected as Service Animals under ADA.
Sarah, I am having the same issue…. do you know wher in the law it says that a service animal is not counted as a pet… Thank you, I appreciate any info that you may have… Kerri
Hello, I am homeless and living in temporary housing..2-3 people per room..I am being told I will be put back on the street if I do not accept a service animal living in our tiny room. Surely I have a rights too! Or our my rights denigned not to have to live with a dog in cramped quarters..Please, your advice is appreciated. Thank you Hank
I have a tenant that lives in a studio cabin on my property that is about 20’x10’’. She currently already has 2 small dogs and a cat. She doesn’t clean up the poop around our property when she walks them. She needs a service dog for her disability, and she says it has to be a big dog. I told her that her small space cannot accommodate 4 animals. Can I say no due to the number of pets she has currently…im not against pets/animals..but there is a sanitation concern and how she keeps her cabin currently, and the small quarters for another animal.
this is great information, but unfortunately, part of it is false, there is a link to pay for identification. In the USA there is no identification recognized under the ada, and a service dog doesn’t even need a vest. Please fix this, its incorrect information and could cause someone to believe its real and its harmful to real handlers like myself considering under the ada you do not need to provide proof to anyone that a service dog is legit, and when people show fake identification, people expect all handlers to have it, and most dont.
Im trying to move to this RV park type thing. They have informed us that their insurance is asking for both service dog(s) and medical records pertaining to the service dog(s) as a condition of being accepted onto the property… what are my options?…
“Josh from Malvern Ohio”
my sister is renting a house under section 8 and im not in living arrangements or whatever thats called and my sister’s landlord is threatening her for to get rid of my pittbull an emotional support animal is that legal?