The answer is NO. Therapy animals are not covered by ADA disability laws, FHAA fair housing laws, or Federal transportation regulations.
This means that owners of therapy animals do not have the following rights associated with their therapy animals:
- No rights to public access. Each location must agree to have the therapy animal visit, but is not obligated to grant access unless it wants to.
- No right to accompany its owner on commercial flights. The animal can travel with its owner following the general rules for pets, but does not have any special rights under ADA or transportation regulations.
- No right for housing accommodations by landlords and hotels. The animal would be treated as an ordinary pet when it comes to housing, and a landlord or hotel can impose whatever restrictions it has in place for pets.
These restrictions are correct if the therapy animal helps other people at school, hospitals, and other locations, but the owner/handler is not himself or herself disabled.
Are you an owner of an assistance animal?
The Service Animal Registry of California invites you to have your assistance animal registered in order to designate its status. We also encourage you to take our online classes so you can be fully aware of your rights and gain more knowledge about your support animal.
Finally, we present to you our book entitled, “ASSISTANCE ANIMAL LAWS: LEARN YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING SERVICE ANIMALS, EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS, THERAPY PETS, AND OTHER DOGS, CATS, AND ASSISTANCE ANIMALS” to provide you with a complete education on assistance animals.
Purchase your copy of the book by clicking the text or image below.
