Service and emotional support animals at UTRGV
University officials explained the process and the importance of service and emotional support animals for students on campus and in the community.
Shawn Saladin, director of Student Accessibility Services, explained the difference between an emotional support animal and a service animal.
“A service animal is an animal that provides a specific service for a specific individual with a disability,” Saladin said.
An example of a service animal would be guide dogs, which help a person who is blind to navigate.
“Emotional support animal is an animal that alleviates the symptoms of a type of disability,” Saladin said. “For example, emotional support animals are very common used for people with high-heightened levels of anxiety, so they can be productive in their environment.”
Service animals are federally mandated and people with them are allowed to be anywhere on campus.
Saladin said emotional support animals have a different process and restrictions from service animals.
“[For] emotional support animals, you have to go through the office of Student Accessibility Services and demonstrate that you do have a documented disability that is professionally documented,” he said.
Saladin said a professional needs to state the symptoms of the disability the emotional support animal alleviates.
“There’s also an interview between the student and the access coordinator to talk about the disability in general … any other academic accommodation they need and, especially, how the emotional support animal alleviates the disability,” he said.
The director said emotional support animals are not allowed into classrooms but can be in the dorms if students follow the process and have been approved by the Student Accessibility Services office. The Departmental Review Committee of Student Accessibility Services reviews the case, and Saladin has the final say on approval for all accommodations.
Rebecca Gadson, associate dean for Policy Management and director of Housing and Residence Life, said if a student resides on campus and has a request for an emotional support animal, after an approval of formal request from Student Accessibility Services, Housing and Residence Life will receive a formal notification and will work with the student to make a smooth transition for both to be on campus.
Gadson said some requirements they ask are the animal’s vaccination record up to date, compliance with city ordinance in terms of type of the animal allowed to be in residential facility, the living space has to be taken care of and cleanliness must be maintained.
“There is an expectation that the animals are not behaving in a way that could disrupt others or potentially be a danger to anyone else because it is a shared space,” she said.
The associate dean said the student would be responsible for any damage or additional type of cleaning as a result of the animal being within the living environment.
“It’s incredibly important for individuals to have access and support that aids in a full range of experiences at the university, and making sure that people can live independently and fully,” she said.
Gadson said it is vital for individuals with disabilities to have a trained animal to assist with a skill or task, and those rights are protected on and off campus.
“We want our students to be successful in and outside of the classroom and we would hope that students who reside on campus are fully comfortable and in an environment that is conducive for them to be successful,” she said.
Christopher Albert, director of the Counseling Center, said a service animal is a type of accommodation that is recognized by the American Disabilities Act.
Albert said if a student needs a service animal, it is based on a disability such as visual impairment or mobility impairment. The only animals that fall under the definition of service animals are dogs and miniature horses.
He said emotional support animals are not part of the American Disabilities Act, so it is not a federal protectant to have a right to have them on various premises.
“For example, here at UTRGV, can’t bring an emotional support animal into a classroom, can’t bring an emotional support animal into our Counseling Center,” Albert said. “So, we allow service animals. We don’t allow emotional support animals.”
He said if a person wants or feels the need to have an emotional support animal with them at their residence, normally, an apartment does not allow pets. They can get the appropriate documentation to show that they have this need and they can have an emotional support animal with them on that property.
“It’s been showing that for many people, you know, it’s just having a pet can do things like lower blood pressure,” Albert said. “So, we know that the presence of an animal can reduce anxiety, and just in general can be really good for our mental health.”
He said people need to understand that having a pet is a high amount of responsibility.
“Let’s say you have someone with anxiety, and maybe they haven’t cared for an animal like that before and, also, they take on this new responsibility,” Albert said. “It can actually drive up their anxiety higher than it was before and, then, it places the animal at risk.”
He said a person may consider a pet as a designated emotional support animal because of the benefits and premises that come with it. When someone struggles with mental health issues, it is ideal to have an assessment to help find out what best helps them.
