Recent HUD Memo re Service and Support Animals

Under the ADA, only Dogs and Miniature Horses can be Service Animals.

They must be trained to do a SERVICE. Under the ADA, an emotional support animal, hypertension relief, stress/calming animal, etc. is a pet.

Under the ADA, a business or group can ask TWO questions of an individual with a claimed service animal:

Is that a Service Animal?
What is it trained to do?

Service animals are trained to DO something, something active.
"It alerts me when I have a seizure" "It barks when the phone rings" "It guides me places" "It acts as my ears, and warns me of traffic" are all services.

If they can't tell you what it does (and no, "it calms my nerves when I fly" is not a valid answer), then it's not a service animal.

Also, if the animal is a nuisance, misbehaves, is out of control, is running wild, etc., you can deny services/access, it's completely legal, even if it is a service animal. Because, it's not a trained service animal if it's running amok. It's a pet, that someone self centered thinks is their right to have with them.

There is NO certification, license, organization, etc. that guarantees an animal is a service animal. Most of them will have vests/bibs and special attire, but not all. But, self centered A-holes can also buy bibs/vests and special harnesses too, so just because he has a vest, doesn't mean it truly is.

Bottom line to me, Ask your two questions, and if the answers are well reasoned, insightful, logical, then accept it. If the animal is calm, trained, well behaved, and causes no problems, then there is no issue, honestly, even if it's a "fraud". If the animal is NOT well behaved, and it causes issues, then deal with the issue, service animal or not.

Now, the FHA is a totally different story, and I don't even try to get into that. What the FHA allows with homes/rentals/housing is a mess.

Actually, Valerie, you do have options.

As a business owner, much like everything else in life, you can (if you wish) use the rule "what would I feel comfortable testifying to in court?".

If the answer I got to the question "What is your dog trained to do?" was:

"well, uh, he uh kind of services me by protecting kind of providing like a service where I need him and he calms me kinda, I need him with me, you know, I gotta have him or else..." or "I need him. You can't stop me, I have rights."

I would have no problem finding that answer unacceptable. I would take that answer to a court, and defend myself with it any day. Of course, you might not. You may not wish to take that risk. Every person has a different threshold for risk.

On the other hand, if the answer was:

"this animal is trained to alert when I begin to exhibit signs of a seizure, and his warnings can provide me time to take my meds", I would never try to argue in court that wasn't a reasonable answer. I am not THAT big a risk taker. That is (IMO), a well reasoned and logical answer.

The bottom line, the ADA rule is not carte blanche for any jerk with a pet to run roughshod over your business/shop/store. Business owners DO have rights, they can ask questions, and in fact, the law gives them the right to make decisions based on the answers to those questions. How far "inside the safety zone" you wish to remain as a business owner is your call, but you do not have to accept all behaviors and all answers just because someone trots out the "ADA" clause as an excuse.

I have a difficult time believing that a ruling that says you are entitled to ask also requires you to accept any answer.

I do not believe the risk is that great in denying a request. Upon doing so you would document the request and the response. If the requester wants to lawyer up wait for the letter, then decide if you want to back down. There would be several points at which the HOA could back down with small or zero cost.

I have seen elsewhere suggestions that no-pet policies could be easily circumvented by claiming anything is a service animal. I see no reason to immediately cave on this.