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Managing Animal Accommodation Requests: Service and Emotional Support Animals and the ADA
Feb 13, 2025 8:00:00 AM
When an employee comes to you and asks to bring their dog (or maybe a cat, bird, or other animal) to work, how should you respond? Unless one of the perks of your workplace is bringing pets to work, your first instinct might be to say no. However, it’s important to first consider the reason for the request.
Let’s look at an example: you manage a medical center, and one of your nurses asks to bring her service dog to work due to an anxiety disorder, providing medical documentation to support the need. Given the nature of the job, you have concerns but decide to discuss possible options with her. You begin by allowing her to bring the dog on a trial basis, but problems arise when other nurses and patients with allergies are affected. You suggest that the dog wear a bodysuit to reduce shedding and minimize allergic reactions, but the nurse explains that no suit properly fits her dog. You then propose keeping the dog in a crate away from patients and colleagues while allowing frequent breaks for her to spend time with the animal. However, the nurse rejects this idea, instead recommending that you relocate nurses and patients with allergies to a different floor. You decide this solution would negatively impact patient care and ultimately deny her request to bring the dog to work. As a result, the employee sues for disability discrimination.
While this scenario might seem far-fetched, it is based on a real case: Bennett v. Hurley Medical Center. Despite the lawsuit, the employer won because of the steps they took. The employer engaged in the interactive process by sitting down with the employee, reviewing her disability-related restrictions, and attempting to find a reasonable accommodation. Though they were unable to find a solution that didn’t create an undue hardship for the employer, their efforts to work with the employee were key to their defense. Allowing the dog on a trial basis was a strong first step, and when it proved unsuccessful, they explored other alternatives.
Under the ADA, the presence of a bona fide service animal can be considered a reasonable accommodation for a disability. However, four exceptions allow an employer to deny such a request:
- If granting access would fundamentally alter the nature of the workplace;
- If the service animal poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others;
- If the service animal is out of control; or
- If the service animal is not housebroken.
Employers should be cautious before denying an accommodation request based on concerns about allergies or fear of animals. Such concerns may not meet the standard of a "direct threat" under the ADA. For example, if another employee is allergic, the employer can explore workarounds like having the two employees work in different areas, planning different travel paths, or using portable air purifiers. In the case mentioned earlier, the employer offered to keep the dog in a crate away from employees and patients, while allowing the nurse frequent access to it.
While the example above involved a service animal, what if an employee asks to bring an emotional support animal? In recent years, pet owners have began taking their pets to public places previously off limits to non-service animals such as the grocery store or restaurants, often referring to them as an emotional support animal. Due to unfamiliarity with the ADA or just for the sake of keeping the peace, many businesses are reluctant to enforce restrictions out of fear of violating the law. According to the ADA under Titles II and III, which applies to state and local governments services, programs, and activities and public accommodations, service animals are protected while emotional support animals are not. However, Title I of the ADA, which applies to employment, includes no definition of service animal.
Does this mean you should have a policy prohibiting both service and emotional support animals? Not necessarily. Regardless of how the employee categorizes their animal, it is essential to engage in the interactive process. Some employees with mental health disabilities may have a legitimate need for an emotional support animal, and this option should be explored.
But what if you suspect the request is not disability-related? Occasionally, employees may request to bring a pet to work under the guise of needing emotional support. Since the ADA does not define "emotional support animal," they might argue that the pet improves their emotional well-being. Engaging in the interactive process can help you determine whether the request is legitimate. While you cannot ask for specific diagnoses, you can request documentation from the employee’s healthcare provider that supports the need for accommodation.
If the employee provides a doctor’s note, but something seems off, what should you do? As an employer, you can contact the healthcare provider to confirm the validity of the note or ask for clarification. However, you must avoid requesting personal health information, such as the employee’s condition or diagnosis. One tip is to search for the provider’s contact information online and call the official business number instead of relying on the number listed on the note. Additionally, keep in mind that some enterprising healthcare providers sell letters claiming the need for an emotional support animal without having any actual contact with the individual so looking into the provider can sometimes uncover these questionable practices.
Ultimately, an employer’s objective should be to enable the workforce to perform their job duties effectively. This may require an accommodation, which can range from modified work schedules, providing specialized tools, or even permitting a fur-covered aide in the workplace. Clients of FrankCrum can reach out to their FrankAdvice HR Consultant for assistance with understanding the interactive process and the considerations involved in allowing service or emotional support animals in the workplace.
