Service and Support Animals

The Service and Support Animals Toolkit helps library staff understand the legal distinctions and responsibilities related to service animals, emotional support animals, and therapy dogs, ensuring respectful, inclusive, and compliant interactions with patrons and their animal companions.

Definition(s)

Service Animal: a dog (or miniature horse) that has been individually trained to do, work, or perform tasks for an individual with a disability

Emotional Support Animal: a dog or other animal that provides companionship, relieves loneliness, helps with depression, anxiety and some phobias, but does not have special training to perform a specific task that assists people with disabilities.

Therapy Dogs: a dog that provides companionship to individuals or groups of people on a volunteer basis to help with stress relief, manage anxiety, depression and grief.

Quick Tips

  • Both federal and local law may come into play when it comes to service animals. States and localities may require greater accommodation (but not less accommodation) than the federal law.
  • If your library has a “No Pets Allowed” policy, you are required to make a modification to your policies, practices, and procedures to ensure that people who use service animals are permitted to bring those animals into your library.
  • Service animals are not required to wear an identifiable harness, vest, tags, etc. Nor are they required to be certified. In situations where it is not obvious that the dog is a service animal, library staff can ask only two specific questions:
    1. Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? and
    2. What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?

If people say an animal is a service animal, take them at their word and let them bring the animal into the library with them.

  • Allergies and fear of animals are generally not valid reasons for denying access or refusing service to people with service animals. If other library users raise those issues, help them find a different place within the library to do their work.
  • The library may ask a person with a disability to remove their service dog from the library if and only if the dog is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it, or if the dog is not housebroken. When there is a legitimate reason to ask that a service animal be removed, staff must offer the person with the disability the opportunity to obtain goods or services without the animal’s presence.

Overview

Service dogs are becoming more common and there is a higher probability that you will see them visiting the library with their owners. While many of us see dogs as pets, and some may see them as a potential threat, it is important to understand that service dogs are not pets; they are working dogs. They have undergone a lengthy training process to perform vital functions for their owners and to ensure proper behavior in public places. Just as some disabilities are easy to recognize, some service animals are also easy to recognize. 

“Guide dogs” and “mobility dogs” may wear distinctive leather harnesses while assisting their owners to navigate or move around. Others may wear bright colored collars, vests, or backpacks with patches saying “SERVICE DOG” or “DO NOT PET”.  Although these special identifiers may be helpful to the public, they are not required. 

Rights of owners and their service dogs are protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) which is administered by the Department of Justice. Additional laws, such as the Department of Transportation’s Air Carrier Access Act, the Housing and Urban Development’s Fair Housing Act, and the Federal Rehabilitation Act also protect the rights of people with disabilities and their service dogs in circumstances where the ADA may not be applicable.

Terminology

It is important to understand the difference between service dogs, therapy dogs, and emotional support animals. “Service dogs” are trained to perform tasks and to do work that eases their handlers’ disabilities. Working as part of a team with their disabled partners, service dogs help them attain safety and independence. An example is a guide dog for a person with blindness or low vision.  

“Therapy dogs” also receive training but have a completely different type of job from service dogs. Their responsibilities are to provide psychological or physiological therapy to individuals other than their handlers. Typically, they visit hospitals, schools, hospices, nursing homes, and more. 

“Emotional support animals” (ESA) are pets that provide emotional support through companionship that helps ease anxiety, depression, and certain phobias. They may be prescribed by a licensed mental health professional, however they are not service dogs because they are not trained to perform a specific task.

Access

According to the ADA, a service dog must be allowed the same access to public spaces as its owner. Therapy dogs and emotional support animals are not given the same rights. Service animals help mitigate a person’s disability, which may or may not be visible.  Handlers are not required to carry official ID cards, certification papers or other “proof” that their dog is a service animal. Service dogs are also not required to wear vests, leashes or other visible items announcing their status as a service animal. 

A trained service dog can often be identified by observing its behavior. A service animal will be potty-trained and well groomed, it will be quiet and will not be running around (unless these behaviors are required to successfully perform their trained task). They will not be bothering or intentionally distracting anyone else, they will not be begging for attention or food from others, and they will be under the control of their handler.

If you are unsure whether the dog is a service animal, you are permitted to ask these two questions (and only these questions): Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? And what work or task has the animal been trained to perform? The answer to the first question should be “yes”. The answer to the second question will vary depending on how much an individual is willing to share, but may include things like:

  • Mobility assistance (pulling, beaching, stabilizing, guiding etc.)
  • Indications (alerting to sounds, or the presence of a person nearby)
  • Medical alert (sensing an oncoming seizure, or change in blood sugar, diabetes, allergies, etc.)
  • Retrieval (picking up dropped items, taking items to/from the handler, going to get help, etc.)

Staff cannot ask a person what their disability is, nor can they ask for a demonstration of the task the dog is trained to perform; this is intrusive and illegal.  If people say their dog (or miniature horse) is a service animal, take them at their word and let them bring the animal into the library with them.

If you see disruptive, or aggressive behavior from a dog or if the dog potties inside the library and the handler is unable to correct the behavior or control the dog, you can ask the handler to remove the dog from the premises due to its behavior. In addition to disrupting other library users, a dog displaying these kinds of behaviors can put an individual’s life in danger by distracting a service dog from their work.  In the event that you need to ask a handler to remove their dog from the premises you should always invite the handler to return without their dog or at a later time when their dog is no longer misbehaving.

If other patrons complain about the presence of a service animal, or say they have allergies or are afraid of dogs, do not deny access to the handler and their service dog.  Instead, help the other library user find a different place to do their work.

Interacting with people and their service dogs

It’s important to train library staff how to act properly around a handler and their service dog.  Many people are attracted to dogs, and will want to interact with them. Do not approach the dog or reach out and pet it without permission. It is best to minimize eye contact with the dog; speak directly to the handler and refrain from asking permission to pet the dog. Most service dogs are people-friendly, but distracting them can have terrible consequences. A distracted service dog can be a minor annoyance to the handler causing them to spend time refocusing their dog, or it could put the handler in a life threatening situation if, for example, the dog were distracted and missed a signal preceding a seizure.

Examples of service dogs jobs

Here are just a few examples of service dogs and work they do to help their owners.

Service Animals for Persons who are Blind or have a Visual Disability

Guide dogs keep their handlers on a direct route and maintain a steady pace while ignoring distractions; stop at curbs and at the top or bottom of stairs until told to proceed; turn left or right, move forward, or stop on command; disobey commands that would put their handler in danger; and recognize and avoid obstacles. These obstacles may include narrow passages and low overheads. Guide dogs also bring their handlers to elevator buttons.

Service Animals for Persons who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing

Hearing dogs alert their owner to sounds unique to their environment. These may include smoke alarms, stove timers, alarm clocks, distress sounds from family members or co-workers, ringing telephones, doorbells, and unusual sounds that may indicate danger or emergencies. Hearing dogs will nudge their owners towards the sounds. Most hearing dogs will recognize their owner’s name and alert them when someone is addressing them.

Service Animals for Persons who have Autism

Dogs trained to especially serve children with autism can guide and protect them from danger; interrupt them from engaging in repetitive behavior (e.g., flapping hands in front of their faces) and redirect their attention; draw attention to their name being called; get help when needed; calm them and help attenuate anger, aggression, and mood swings; and provide comforting touches that make it possible for children to interact in mainstream environments. These positive interactions allow the children to develop language and social skills. It is not unusual to see a child with autism tethered to the service dog as a security measure.

Service Animals for Persons with Mobility/Dexterity Disabilities

Dogs may be trained to pull wheelchairs; assist handlers if they fall; help with balance; carry or pick up things; open and close doors, cupboards, and refrigerators; turn lights on or off; and assist with dressing or undressing.

Service Animals for Persons with Psychiatric Disabilities

These service animals can help people regain the ability to venture out in public, and sometimes to return to work by helping control panic attacks, depressions, or agoraphobia.  Psychiatric alert dogs can be trained to remind handlers to take medication on time and help to provide discernment against hallucinations.

Service Animals for Persons with Epilepsy

Seizure-alert dogs can sense and notify their human companions of an oncoming seizure. The time frame in which the dog can sense the coming of a seizure can vary from a few seconds to forty-five minutes. The dog may alert its owner by making close eye contact, circling, pawing, barking etc. This behavior allows the owner to sit if standing or take other actions to minimize the effect of the seizure; seizure-alert dogs also can summon help, fetch medication, or to simply stay with the owner till the event passes.

Action Items

  • Never pet, talk to, or otherwise distract a service animal when it is working.
  • Become familiar with federal, state and local laws and policies on service dogs and make sure your library policies provide similar or more inclusive access.
  • Provide training opportunities to staff to ensure they understand legal responsibilities and so they are comfortable interacting with a variety of people, including those with service animals. 

Data

  • Less than 1% of Americans living with disabilities use service dogs - roughly 61 million Americans are living with disabilities (approximately 26% of the population). But less than 1%  of them are able to work with service dogs due to a mix of availability, costs, and barriers for service animals that still exist today.
  • There are approximately 500,000 service dogs working in the United States
  • People in need of a service dog sometimes have to wait 3 years for a dog
  • The cost of training a service dog can be more than $40,000
  • More than half of the assistance dog candidates do not complete their training

Trends

  • The use of dogs to help people with mental health and other invisible disabilities is increasing - Psychiatric uses are the fourth most common use of service dogs in North America, ranking behind guide dogs for the blind, service dogs for mobility and those for the hearing-impaired.
  • The number of fake service dogs has been growing, causing problems for businesses, landlords, and people with real service dogs. Some state and local governments have passed laws to make it an offense to misrepresent a service animal.

Resources for Librarians

Resources for Patrons

References

  1. 10 Remarkable Service Dog Statistics: What to know in 2022 by Genevieve Dugal
  2. 10 Interesting Service Dog Statistics in 2022 by Nicole Cosgrove
  3. 2010 revised ADA regulations, U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section
  4. About the Air Carrier Access Act, U.S. Department of Transportation
  5. Frequently Asked Questions about Service Animals and the ADA , U.S. Department of Justice,  Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section
  6. Housing Discrimination Under the Fair Housing Act from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
  7. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Sections 501 and 505 from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
  8. Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals: Where are They Allowed and Under What Conditions? , ADA National Network, Southwest ADA Center, A Program of ILRU at TIRR Memorial Hermann
  9. Service Dogs 101 by the American Kennel Club
  10. Service Dogs Increasingly Used for Mental Health, from UCDavis News

New toolkit updated by Teressa Keenan, Head, Collections & Metadata Services/ Metadata Librarian at University of Montana, 2022