ESA issue

[design_mom]

As between the ADA and the FHA for an ESA (enough acronyms for you? LOL), the law would come down against the person who "came second" if you will. Using the OP's fact situation, where the four roommates have lived together, one can presume, since the beginning of the academic year, and NOW one of the four creates a conflict between one of the roommates ADA allergy, and her ESA, I believe the court would say "ESA person....you created the problem by ADDING your animal, you are the one who must move" vs. the roommate who has the allergy all along and it wasn't an issue. re ample subleases available for the second semester, always.

My experience is with the ADA, not the FHA... but in the case I'm familiar with, I think you're right about the person who "came second" being the one who is less accommodated... but I'm not sure you're correct about who came first vs. second.

My experience was somewhat different -- was a work situation (ADA vs FHA) and it was a true service animal, not an ESA -- but it was still a dog vs. an allergy sufferer.

In my case, an employee asked for accommodation via the ADA to use his service animal. Another employee claimed to have terrible dog allergies. However, since the employee with the dog had requested accommodation first, we had to consider his accommodation first. The allergy sufferer did not have an accommodation request "on file" prior to the dog request being filed. And, at the time, it was pretty unusual to see a dog in an office building (so even if she did have horrible dog allergies, I'm not sure anyone would have thought to document them at work in an office building). I think dogs in office buildings are much more common now, whether they're service animals or "just visiting."

Anyway, we were able to move the allergy sufferer to the other end of the floor (as far as possible from the dog), and installed high powered (and expensive) air purifiers around the guy with the dog's desk in an attempt to accommodate both. However, the allergy sufferer was still very unhappy because she had to sit away from the rest of her team. However, apparently it was acceptable to move the allergy away from the allergen -- but it would have been discriminatory to ask the guy and his dog to move away from the allergy sufferer. (I think it might have been different if the allergy sufferer had a "no dog" accommodation request on file prior to the guy with the dog being hired (I think he was a new hire). His service animal would definitely have to have been accommodated, but we might have been able to position him away from the allergy sufferer or put him in an office with walls, etc. However, I'm not 100% sure on that because there is specific language in the ADA about how service animals must be accommodated and I'm not an expert. I'm not sure exactly what the FHA says about service animals vs allergy sufferers either, but I'm guessing that the dog would be considered to have "come first" if the allergy sufferer didn't have formal documentation of her allergy-related disability already documented.)

 

[LSUmiss]

I’m I the only one wondering why so many college kids needs ESAs these days

 

[mnrose]

I’m I the only one wondering why so many college kids needs ESAs these days

No. It's epidemic. Same with ESAs on planes. Neither of my kids has one. It's a miracle they can get through the day. Frankly, they are both so busy as students there's no time to take care of a dog. My daughter does have a goldfish though. LOL. I think as soon as they let the ESA cat out of the bag, people were going to use it, some legitimately, but sadly there are a lot of "made up" ESAs used as a reason to keep a pet in situations where a "pet" is not allowed. Somehow, we all made it through college in my day without them.

 

[LSUmiss]

No. It's epidemic. Same with ESAs on planes. Neither of my kids has one. It's a miracle they can get through the day. Frankly, they are both so busy as students there's no time to take care of a dog. My daughter does have a goldfish though. LOL. I think as soon as they let the ESA cat out of the bag, people were going to use it, some legitimately, but sadly there are a lot of "made up" ESAs used as a reason to keep a pet in situations where a "pet" is not allowed. Somehow, we all made it through college in my day without them.

I guess that’s what I’m thinking. I have a toddler & 2 dogs. They’re all a lot of work. They cause me most of my stress not the other way around lol!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I guess that’s what I’m thinking. I have a toddler & 2 dogs. They’re all a lot of work. They cause me most of my stress not the other way around lol!

Yeah....that's not at all the right comparison to make.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

No. It's epidemic. Same with ESAs on planes. Neither of my kids has one. It's a miracle they can get through the day. Frankly, they are both so busy as students there's no time to take care of a dog. My daughter does have a goldfish though. LOL. I think as soon as they let the ESA cat out of the bag, people were going to use it, some legitimately, but sadly there are a lot of "made up" ESAs used as a reason to keep a pet in situations where a "pet" is not allowed. Somehow, we all made it through college in my day without them.

I think people automatically do gravitate towards being fake but for those who need them they can be a great alternative or way to not take as much medication. We didn't use to think about animals in this way so it would make more sense that it's more prevalent and unfortunately people will always find ways to take advantage of things.

In the past we treated it as either you dealt with it because that's just what you did or you popped some medication and called it good.

 

[Colleen27]

I think people automatically do gravitate towards being fake but for those who need them they can be a great alternative or way to not take as much medication. We didn't use to think about animals in this way so it would make more sense that it's more prevalent and unfortunately people will always find ways to take advantage of things.

In the past we treated it as either you dealt with it because that's just what you did or you popped some medication and called it good.

I agree. Animals as a therapeutic tool have really gained popularity in recent years. Not just ESAs and service animals, though I've noticed the applications of service dogs have expanded over time, but also in hospitals, nursing homes, schools, etc. Our local alternative high school got grant funds to get a dog and send the school counselor to training through a local non-profit that trains animals for use in pet therapy, and my girls' elementary has a volunteer who comes in once a week with a dog that is used in the literacy/student support program. Those kinds of applications are a relatively recent development, IME.

And I don't think there's really much debate about the rise in anxiety among college students. Which makes sense, since more kids are going to college now that might have chosen a different path a generation or two ago and because so many students are dealing with the weight/risk of college loans.

 

[LSUmiss]

Yeah....that's not at all the right comparison to make.

Well I was kinda making a joke, but animals are a lot of work especially puppies so a puppy as an appropriate ESA is simply nonsense.

 

[DLgal]

Well I was kinda making a joke, but animals are a lot of work especially puppies so a puppy as an appropriate ESA is simply nonsense.

I'm not downplaying how much work a puppy is, BUT sometimes the best thing for anxiety is something to focus on/keep busy/distract you. I can kind of see how having a puppy to take care of could help with keeping your mind occupied and not spiraling into negative thought patterns, for example.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I agree. Animals as a therapeutic tool have really gained popularity in recent years. Not just ESAs and service animals, though I've noticed the applications of service dogs have expanded over time, but also in hospitals, nursing homes, schools, etc. Our local alternative high school got grant funds to get a dog and send the school counselor to training through a local non-profit that trains animals for use in pet therapy, and my girls' elementary has a volunteer who comes in once a week with a dog that is used in the literacy/student support program. Those kinds of applications are a relatively recent development, IME.

And I don't think there's really much debate about the rise in anxiety among college students. Which makes sense, since more kids are going to college now that might have chosen a different path a generation or two ago and because so many students are dealing with the weight/risk of college loans.

I also love the fact that more courtrooms have dogs to help people in the event they need to testify for instance and that's not just children but victims in general. In crisis events too we've increased our utilization of dogs in particular.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Well I was kinda making a joke, but animals are a lot of work especially puppies so a puppy as an appropriate ESA is simply nonsense.

You said dogs caused you stress so if you were joking well it didn't seem appropriate given the topic of ESA in which case for those who have one that may be the very thing alleviating their stress not causing it.

It's not a one size fits all. Only someone with whatever has caused them to believe an ESA will help can decide along with utilizing resources available to them to make the best decision for them.

A puppy can be an ESA and may very well be an appropriate choice depending on one's situation. To say it's nonsense well..

 

[LSUmiss]

You said dogs caused you stress so if you were joking well it didn't seem appropriate given the topic of ESA in which case for those who have one that may be the very thing alleviating their stress not causing it.

It's not a one size fits all. Only someone with whatever has caused them to believe an ESA will help can decide along with utilizing resources available to them to make the best decision for them.

A puppy can be an ESA and may very well be an appropriate choice depending on one's situation. To say it's nonsense well..

Have to agree to disagree as I honestly think the ESA thing is mostly nonsense altogether & I’m a mental health professional.
ETA: imo I think that’s part of the reason they’re not recognized/protected by ADA laws.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Have to agree to disagree as I honestly think the ESA thing is mostly nonsense altogether & I’m a mental health professional.
ETA: imo I think that’s part of the reason they’re not recognized/protected by ADA laws.

Yes I know your profession and that doesn't mean much in this topic as clearly others in the profession don't agree with you. I'm not out to convince you it's whatev just be careful how you approach the topic you never know how that animal may be helping someone and why they needed help in the first place.

 

[DLgal]

When I was in college, my ESA was the plush animal I brought from home. Seriously. I had a Gund polar bear that I had until I got married. If we, as a society, made it cool to carry around plush comfort objects, less people would need ESAs, probably.

My sons are autistic and one has pretty severe anxiety. He is 15. He sleeps with like 10 plush dogs. One of them, a little brown lab named Hershey, has been his "constant" since he was 6. It really calms him down. My 13 year old cannot fall asleep without hugging his GIANT Mickey plush. He makes do with a smaller one when we travel. I can see my son taking Hershey with him whenever he moves out.

We can't have dogs or cats. Oldest has severe allergies to both, so they make do with plush animals. Luckily, the ONE thing my son isn't allergic to is dust mites. Whew!

 

[kaytieeldr]

When I was in college, my ESA was the plush animal I brought from home. Seriously. I had a Gund polar bear that I had until I got married. If we, as a society, made it cool to carry around plush comfort objects, less people would need ESAs, probably.

Thank you. I'm going to unbox my plush unicorn, Sunshine, and start carrying her around with me.

Yes, I'm 100% serious.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I must've been ahead of my time - growing up my dogs were always ESAs to me, just not officially. Who knew?

 

[Christine]

No. It's epidemic. Same with ESAs on planes. Neither of my kids has one. It's a miracle they can get through the day. Frankly, they are both so busy as students there's no time to take care of a dog. My daughter does have a goldfish though. LOL. I think as soon as they let the ESA cat out of the bag, people were going to use it, some legitimately, but sadly there are a lot of "made up" ESAs used as a reason to keep a pet in situations where a "pet" is not allowed. Somehow, we all made it through college in my day without them.

When I went to Disney this year, I was absolutely shocked at the number of ESAs I saw in the parks. I had just been to Disney the year prior (of course it was July and super hot) and I never saw ONE. HUGE difference this year and was very noticeable. I stayed at the GF this year which is not one of the Disney's pet hotels; however, there were at least two very large ESA staying at the GF there because of their designation. I'm a dog lover so I really enjoyed seeing all the animals in the parks and on the grounds, but I know not everyone else is and can be quite put off by it.

 

[sam_gordon]

So I've been looking for a new dentist and noticed this on one's webpage...

I mentioned I'm not a dog person, so this isn't a "plus" for the dentist in my book, but thought it fit in this thread.

 

[gwynne]

So I've been looking for a new dentist and noticed this on one's webpage...
View attachment 462482
I mentioned I'm not a dog person, so this isn't a "plus" for the dentist in my book, but thought it fit in this thread.

My dentist has an amazingly well behaved office dog. I don't think a very well cared for and very well trained dog is similar to the situation the busy college student is forcing on her roommates.
Just to be clear, in my dentists office, having the office dog with you when you are seen is totally up to the patient. Yes is fine, no is fine.

 

[monsterkitty]

We trained our Golden to be a therapy dog. He had to be at least 1 year old before he could be trained (he was 6).Truthfully, he was a natural so it was us who needed to be trained. He worked at the hospital, airport, and cancer center. There were a few patients at the cancer center who would ask if Dug was working when they would schedule their appointments.

When my nephew was killed in the plane crash, my DH took Dug to the airport while his brother, SIL, and our nieces and nephews waited to fly to Daytona. While the all knew Dug, you could see them visibly relax as soon as Dug walked into the quiet room at the airport.

ESAs do have their place. Has the concept been abused? Probably. In the past 5-10 years of teaching I have seen a huge increase in students with anxiety and/or trauma. Most do not have access to mental health care and a lot of them turn to self-medication of any variety - drugs, alcohol, self-harming, or other means. If a therapy or ESA pet helps one of these students, then that a great thing. However, in the case of the OP, I really don't see this as a good thing because the stress it's going to cause the others in the apartment.