Emotional Support Dog Help

Our Association in AZ allows one dog under 20 pounds. We love dogs; however for the last couple years we have an enormous amount of Emotional Support Dogs that are constantly barking. Yes, we give them a fine and when they register their dog as emotional support we ask for a letter from the doctor. What I don't like is even though our documents state one dog, we are required to take emotional support dogs and there could be more than one and we could not say anything. We had someone the other day register 3 emotional supports dogs for one very small unit. These are not service animal, there is a big difference between service animal and emotional support.

Just wondering if other have the same problem with barking emotional support dogs and what else can be done besides fining.

I was not aware the letter was good for one year. That is good to know.

They might be emotional support animals but that doesn't mean the dogs can act any which way.

I recently met some people who foster dogs who are being trained to be service dogs, and a lady with an emotional support dog. None of those dogs are yapping 24/7 - in fact, they're not supposed to because 5he service dogs have a job - when they bark its be cause the owner needs help or is being alerted to something like an oncoming seizure or dropping blood sugar. The emotional support dog I met was very mellow. It was a goldendoodle who had more golden in it than poodle and had to be calm so it could calm down the owner who has a mental illness.

In short, it's very reasonable to expect dogs to be trained so they can function in and out of the house. That only happens when you have responsible owners. The person with the three support animals may be playing you (no one person needs three support animals).

I say fine them and up the money with each offense- they should be able to file an appeal to explain why their dog isn't trained. Even better - see if there are some organizations in your area who train service animals and ask them for tips on what owners can do. There are pet stores and humane societies who can also help (some even offer obedience training).

Requiring proof of obedience training could be something the board mandates for all owners, but it would likely require a formal rule or change to the CCRs, which require homeowner approval.

I am concerned about my HOA challenging my need for an Emotional Support Chicken. Any suggestions?

Offer to pay any fines is eggs.

A lot of HOAs and associations are dealing with the same thing, especially the multiple ESA situation. The Fair Housing Act does require you to accept ESAs regardless of pet policies, but it does not mean you have to accept every request automatically. You're allowed to request documentation and evaluate each request individually, and if someone is claiming three ESAs, you can require separate letters for each animal from a licensed mental health professional.

The letters themselves matter a lot here. A legitimate ESA letter has to come from a licensed therapist who has actually evaluated the person, not just a website that generates certificates. If the letters being submitted look generic or don't include the therapist's license number and state, you have grounds to push back and request proper documentation. RealESALetter for example issues letters only after a real same-day evaluation with a licensed therapist, which is what a valid letter should look like.

On the barking specifically, that's a behavior issue and you can enforce noise rules regardless of ESA status. ESA protections cover the right to have the animal, they don't protect disruptive behavior. So keep fining for noise, it's completely within your rights.