Emotional Support Animal VS Service Animal

In this present world, everybody is busy with something. This has created a cycle of never ending needs. People have fallen prey to competitive natures and have become friends with frustration, depression, and anxiety.

According to the World Health Organization, more than 300 million people suffer from depression globally. The depression in people today are resulting in serious mental and physical disabilities.

The doctors and psychiatrists are dealing with thousands of people. To give them support and treatments to treat their mental and emotional disabilities.

It is true when we say that a little effort can create deep and meaningful relationships. This will give you the support you desire. Emotional support is considered to be the best support given to the lesser blessed ones.

1. What is an Emotional Support Animal?

Undoubtedly, animals can provide happiness to us. People with mental health concerns should try to be around animals they are fond of.

The animals that provide you with companionship to support your mental or emotional illness are known as emotional support animals.

In similar words, emotional support animal is an animal that offers benefits of some kind to the individual with disability. They disability can be mental, physical, or emotional.

Emotional support animals are not usually trained for specific tasks. Any animal that provides comfort, support, wellbeing, positive vibes, affection and companionship can qualify to be an emotional support animal.

2. Emotional Support Animal VS Service Animal

Emotional and service animals are often confused of having some similarities. But if widely observed, emotional support animals and service animals have certain strong differences.

2.1 Services Provided by ESA And Service Animals

ESA are often generalized and interchanged by the service animals. Broadly, service animals are nothing like ESA's. Service animals are specifically trained to perform different tasks for the patients. While ESA just provide an emotional support as a companion and friend without actually doing any physical help for the patient.

2.2 Protection Provided by The Law

Patients and owners of service animals largely depend on their animals as they perform physical tasks for them. Because of this, the service animals are provided legal protection under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

In contrast to this, the emotional support animals do not enjoy such protection by the law. Through liberty provided by the law, you can take your service animal anywhere you want. Either a public place or an office, a service dog can not be denied entrance.

On the other hand, because of the limitations, emotional support animals can not be taken everywhere. Though they can air travel with you now according to the Air Carrier Access Act. But cannot show up at a public place with you.

2.3 Certification

As the services of the two animals differ, the certification also have some differences. Usually the service animal agencies look for trained animals for you that can provide services for the disables. To get a certification of an animal, you just need a prescription. The prescription should be from a licensed mental health therapist stating the illness and how the animal would be of help.

In a nutshell, emotional support dogs are intended to just provide companionship to people. In contrast to the service dog trained to assist and help people with disabilities to work or perform tasks.

3. Why is Emotional Support Required?

Emotional Support is defined as empathy, compassion, and concern you provide to your loved ones. It is said that the real emotional support is found in the things and people you love.

Authentic people and dearly things provide you therapy that is needed most by you.

As human beings, authentic and meaningful connections with others give mental peace and stability.

Psychiatrists and psychologists believe that every mental and emotional disability can be treated by the behavior of people around you. The vibes and positivity of other people can give mental satisfaction to people suffering from mental illnesses.

People with disabilities can be given emotional support by the emotional support animals as well.

4. Benefits of an Emotional Support Animal

Experts have always supported the idea of animals helping and supporting people with mental and physical health issues.

Research shows that having a pet can cause positive mental effects. The reason is the emotional connectivity between the patient and the animal.

Emotional support Animals can be beneficial in many ways:

• Anxiety – By just rubbing your hand in your pet's head. And petting your dog can lighten your mood up and create relaxation response.
• Trauma – Emotional Support Animals and pets gives comfort to people who are in critical situations, like trauma.
• Physical Health – Researches have shown that emotional support animal owners have low blood pressure, and a healthy respiration rate.
• Loneliness – Animals can be your pals. People who live by themselves are suggested to own pets as the help to kill their loneliness.

Getting an emotional support animal for oneself is a healthier step that one takes towards his mental health. Your ESA give you peace and unconditional love and make your life normal again.

5. Benefits of Service Animals

• For People in Wheelchairs. - People who have difficulty in moving, service animals like dogs provide physical assistance and support. Service dogs can help their owners in opening and shutting doors, helping with the switches of light. And can even pick things up from the ground for them.
• Benefits for Epilepsy. - Service dogs can be really helpful to people who have epilepsy. As they can inform them before a seizure occurs which eliminates the chances of injuries during a seizure attack.
• For people with Physical Disabilities and Fatigue Problems. - Just like for those in wheelchairs, service dogs provide support to those who feel pain and fatigue in mobility. They help people with their balancing issues and preventing them from falling.

6. Animals That Can be Your Emotional Support Animal

Any animal can be your emotional support. There are different types of animals that you can keep as an ESA. Cats, dogs, peacocks, miniature horses, a fish, or even a goat.

But people tend to keep pets and can be kept in house easily. And give them support and affection in the best possible ways.

For emotional support as well as for service purposes, people like to keep dogs as their pet. If you are a cat person, you can keep a cat as your emotional support animal. However, a cat cannot be your service animal.

6.1 Emotional Support Dog

Emotional support dogs can be defined as dogs who possess ability to provide comfort, love, and affection, without being trained.

Emotional support dogs do not perform any task and they are not even allowed at all public places.

They are allowed to fly with the people who are emotional or psychological disable.

6.2 Service Dog

Service dogs are specifically trained to perform tasks. And to do work that can help ease patient's troubles or help a person with a disability. However, the Department of Justice still receives queries regarding the ADA and service animals.

This is the major difference between a service dog and an emotional support dog. For example, if you are visually impaired or have difficulty in hearing, you can keep a hearing dog or a guide dog to help you.

7. ESA Dog Requirements

Unlike service animals who are individually trained to do work or perform tasks, the ESAs do not require extensive training. They just have to provide comfort and affection to the patient.

The ESA dog requirements can be as follows:

• It is very important to make sure that your emotional support dog is well behaved.
• Your pet or an emotional support dog shouldn't disturb the people around. Even if at home or the airplane.
• According to the Americans with Disability Act (ADA), a service animal or emotional support animal should not be registered. To get your companion animals certified, all you need is an ESA letter.

8. How to Register Dog as an Emotional Support Animal?

Let’s bust your bubble! There is absolutely no such thing as emotional support animal registration. Surprised? There are a trillion online websites claiming to provide you the registration for your ESA in exchange of money.

Well they are there to basically rob you. Anyone claiming to provide you your pets registration as an ESA is nothing but a scam. Don't fall into this trap.

We provide authentic and legal certification of your emotional support cat or dog. So that you and your pet can enjoy all the rights.

To get an ESA you just need a letter by the mental health professional. The letter will include the following information about you and your ESA:

• Your Name
• Disability that requires you to get an ESA
• How the disability is a hindrance in your daily routine
• Reasons to get an ESA
• Details about the federal laws about the disabled and the ESA

Fill the information asked and a legal certificate will be issued to you. It is important to know that to enjoy all rights everywhere you should keep this certificate with you all the time.