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Laws regarding service animals
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My most recent article discussed pet policies for rental properties and touched on laws regarding seeing-eye dogs and other service animals. Tenants with these animals have a broader right to have them in rental units than those of us whose animals are merely our companions, but this right is not unlimited or unconditional. Essentially, the need of the one tenant with a disability receives special consideration but does not entirely outweigh the needs of that person’s many neighbors.
The overall standard for allowing a tenant to have a service animal or for granting any other request regarding that tenant’s special needs is that a landlord is only required to make reasonable accommodations. Much litigation in many contexts requires interpreting what is “reasonable,” but the main idea regarding allowing service animals in rental property is that not allowing them is reasonable if a valid reason exists for that denial.
The special training that service animals receive make it very unlikely that they will bark excessively or act in any other way that creates a nuisance. However, the tenant must still ensure that the animal receives proper care and responds appropriately if notified that the animal is making “messes” in the building or on the rental property’s ground. Further, these tenants share the same liability as other tenants for any animal-related damage that occurs.
My e-mail address is nelsonexaminer@gmail.com; you are encouraged to write with questions, comments, and concerns. I ask that you please forgive me if I do not respond and/or it takes a while for this blog to address your question. It is important to remember as well that nothing in this blog or that I write in an e-mail can be considered legal advice or can be the basis for forming an attorney-client relationship.
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