Can You Bring an Emotional Support Animal To Work

Owning an emotional support dog or other emotional support animals can have several positive effects on your mental health. You may even be able to bring this animal to work under certain circumstances, but it is important to put plenty of effort into making your case to your employer for the best possible chance of having your request approved.

Here is an overview of things to consider before deciding whether you should request permission to bring your emotional support animal to work and how DoNotPay can help you do so.

Can I Bring My Emotional Support Animal to Work?

Depending on the nature of your work environment, where you live, and your specific mental health condition, you may be allowed to bring your emotional support animal to work. According to the ADA, your employer is not required to allow your emotional support animal in your workplace. However, he or she is generally expected to consider your request in the same way as any other accommodation request instead of simply saying no without weighing the pros and cons and considering whether an alternative solution might be a better fit.

That being said, not all work environments are appropriate for animals. Some job locations may not be safe for an animal that has not been specifically trained as a service animal, including those that:

1. Are hazardous
2. Are healthcare settings
3. Involve food

Your emotional support animal is also less likely to be able to be in these environments without disturbing others or violating health-related policies. Having your emotional support animal with you at work may be more feasible if you work in an office setting or another relaxed, quiet environment.

You may also be able to bring your emotional support animal with you if you need to travel for work purposes. Many major airlines allow small emotional support animals with proper documentation to fly with you under certain circumstances, such as:

• American Airlines
• United Airlines
• Southwest Airlines

Get Approved to Bring Your Emotional Support Animal to Work by Yourself

If you work in a reasonable setting for bringing your emotional support animal to work, submitting an emotional support animal letter to your employer is typically your first step in getting approved to do so. This letter, which must be written by a licensed mental health professional, explains what an emotional support animal is and why bringing yours to work may benefit your mental health. You may already have a letter that can be used for this purpose if your landlord required documentation before getting an emotional support animal in a rental that does not allow pets. However, it can be helpful to obtain one that specifically addresses why bringing your emotional support animal to work may benefit you.

Here are the types of letters you may need to protect both you and your emotional support animal:

Next Steps for Getting Approved to Bring Your Emotional Support Animal to Work if You Can't Do It Yourself

According to the ADA, your employer has no obligation to allow you to bring your emotional support animal to work in the same way that he or she would usually be required to allow a trained service animal in your workplace. The ADA does recommend that employers treat your request the same way they would any other type of accommodation request, but your employer ultimately has the final say. This means that making sure that your request is as clear and detailed as possible is a must in order to increase your likelihood of having it approved.

Although DoNotPay does not meet the criteria for writing your official emotional support animal letter, we can provide a supplemental accommodation request that can help sway your employer's decision in your favor.

Get Approved to Bring Your Emotional Support Animal to Work With the Help of DoNotPay

Here's how DoNotPay can help you handle concerns you may have related to owning an emotional support animal:

1. Search "service animal" on DoNotPay.

2. Select the type of issue you need help with, including contacting your landlord about your ESA/service animal, asking your airline about ESA options, or requesting ESA/service accommodations at other venues.

3. Answer a series of questions about your current situation and the details of your ESA/service animal, so we can generate the best results for you.

DoNotPay can use this information to get in touch with your employer on your behalf.

Why Use DoNotPay to Get Approved to Bring Your Emotional Support Animal to Work

Many employers do not have a thorough understanding of what places emotional support animals in a separate category from pets or trained service animals, which can make them unsure of why you are asking to bring an animal to work. Employers that are unfamiliar with the concept of emotional support animals may simply assume you want to bring your pet to work and may not believe that doing so can benefit your mental health without creating problems in the workplace. Even if they are open to the idea, they may have never heard of emotional support animals at all and may not know how to handle your accommodation.

Although we cannot write your emotional support animal letter for you, as this must be done by a licensed mental health professional, we can provide supplemental information for your employer that clarifies exactly what an emotional support animal is, how you can benefit from one, and what his or her rights and responsibilities are as far as finding a reasonable way to include your emotional support animal in part or all of your workday if it is safe to do so.

What Else Can DoNotPay Do?

DoNotPay can simplify your life by giving you straight answers and clear processes for solving nearly any issue that may come up in your life. Choosing us means you will not have to spend hours figuring out what to do about a wide range of problems because we can quickly and successfully handle the hard work for you. We can also help you:

• Break your lease
• Deal with unsafe conditions in your rental
• Improve your credit
• Improve your privacy by gaining control over your personal information that can be found online
• Obtain pet licenses
• Obtain copies of important documents
• Obtain discounts on your prescriptions
• Obtain assistance paying your rent

At DoNotPay, we are here to help you get the most out of owning an emotional support animal. Contact us today to learn more about what your best strategy for bringing your emotional support animal to work!