Emotional support animals are essential to the well-being of many individuals. These companion animals can greatly improve the quality of life for people with anxiety, depression, and many other conditions.
However, ESAs don’t have all the same legal protections as service animals. While certain states have laws acknowledging emotional support animals, many still don’t. Thanks to this, many people with ESAs are searching for a way to have their animals more broadly accepted in the places they access day-to-day.
There is a lot of conflicting information online about how to get your animal registered, whether it’s even worth it, and how much it should cost. Here, we’ll cover the answers to those questions, along with the basic steps to registering your emotional support animal.
Do I Have to Register My Emotional Support Animal?
Unlike a service dog, which needs to undergo rigorous training (usually by a professional trainer) and pass a public access test to be registered, ESAs don’t have to follow such strict guidelines. Emotional support animals are often trained at home to perform certain helpful tasks for their owner. It’s typically more dependent on the bond between humans and animals than formal training.
Registering your dog won’t change the relationship that you two have, but there may be some benefits that make it worth your consideration.
It’s also important to remember that you are not legally obligated to register your ESA. All you need for your ESA to be considered legally valid is a legitimate ESA prescription letter.
Prescription Letter vs Registration
A physician or mental health professional can write you a prescription letter to assist in publicly acknowledging your ESA. This letter will outline your mental health diagnosis and recommend the use of an emotional support animal to help manage it. You will need a prescription letter to register your dog, but actual registration takes it one step further.
This letter can help protect your right to have your ESA. For example, your ESA will be permitted into pet-free housing since your dog is not merely a pet but has been prescribed by a doctor. Legally, a prescription letter protects you from housing discrimination because of your emotional support animal.
However, a prescription letter contains information about your health, which you may prefer to keep private from your landlord, and it’s inconvenient to carry a copy with you in your daily life for other situations that may arise.
Registering your pet has them added to a national database and provides you with an ID card for your dog. This is easier to keep with you, allowing you to provide evidence that they are an ESA in a variety of settings.
Benefits of Registration
When you enter a place of business that doesn’t normally allow animals, you may be asked to leave or tie your dog up outside. Having an ID card showing your dog is a nationally registered emotional support animal is an easy way to smooth over an uncomfortable situation. It doesn’t force you to disclose any of your personal details; however, it quickly shows the person confronting you that this is not just a pet but an animal performing a job.
Other than the convenience of an ESA identification card, there can be other benefits to registering your animal.
Adding your ESA to a national registry creates a paper trail showing exactly how long your dog has been performing this necessary service for you, further legitimizing it in the eyes of many landlords.
Registration services may also provide you with legal resources that allow you to better advocate for yourself and your rights.
How Much Should It Cost to Register My ESA?
Some websites prey on people and charge hundreds of dollars for services they may not even provide. Registering your emotional support animal shouldn’t be expensive.
There may be some cost incurred in visiting your family doctor or therapist to get the prescription letter you’ll need to start the registration process, but you can ask them at your next regular appointment. In most cases, you will not need to make an additional appointment to request a prescription letter.
Avoid Scams
The ESA registration process should be less than one hundred dollars. Any more than that, and you may have stumbled onto a disreputable service. However, an extremely cheap service can also be suspicious.
If a service claims to register your dog for under $50 and provides no legal support, it may also be a disreputable service. In situations like this, buyer beware.
Steps for Registering Your Dog as an ESA
No one wants to deal with a lot of paperwork. Fortunately, registering your dog as an ESA is not a simple task. The process can mainly be done from home and is relatively easy.
1. Train Your Dog
The initial step to registering your dog as an emotional support animal is to be certain that they are ready for the task. ESAs may be permitted into spaces that animals are usually barred from for health and safety reasons. This means that they will have to be well-behaved in various settings.
Since your dog is there to provide you with the support you need, they should be attentive to you. The two of you should also have strong communication skills so you can let your dog know when you need them and other information about how they should interact with the places and people they encounter.
2. Talk to Your Doctor
Mental health care is essential. If you aren’t seeing a psychiatrist or psychologist at the moment, you might consider getting a referral from your family doctor. Contacting your insurance company to see what affordable mental health resources they provide is another good step to take.
If you can’t afford to see a specialist at the moment, feel free to talk to your family doctor about other resources to support your mental health that are within your budget. You can ask them if they will be willing to write you a prescription letter as your current physician.
If you already see a mental health professional regularly, let them know that you are interested in using an emotional support animal as a complimentary form of therapy. You can ask them to write your prescription letter.
3. Find a Reputable Registration Service
Once you have your dog ready and a prescription letter, you can register your dog. Be sure to choose a website that provides you with legal information and resources to help protect your rights. Be sure to check the services they offer and compare pricing.
These services should offer registration on a national database and provide you with an ID card. Disreputable sites are also less likely to ask you for a prescription letter from a licensed doctor. If they don’t require a prescription letter, take that as a red flag.
4. Get Your Card and Vest
After you receive your ESA ID card, make sure you put it in your wallet or bag so that it’s always with you in public places where people may question your dog’s presence. To help reduce the number of uncomfortable public encounters, we recommend getting an appropriate vest, collar tag, and leash for your dog.
Accessories that clearly state “emotional support animal” help signal to those around you that your dog is performing an essential service. It will prevent too many questions and also stop people from trying to pet and play with your dog, distracting them.
Choosing an ESA Registration Service
Since there are some real benefits to registering your dog as an emotional support animal, it’s probably something you want to pursue. Sadly, though, not every registration service is legitimate or within everyone’s budget.
Cheapest Legitimate ESA Registration
At US Service Animals, registering your dog as an emotional support animal is an easy process. It also guarantees you registration on their national ESA registry, provides you with legal support resources, and issues you with an official ID card. The service is currently available for $89.98. While certainly not free, it’s at a price point that makes it accessible to most people.
The peace of mind it provides, and the legal assistance it offers, make it a good value for people who depend on their dogs for emotional support. While there are a handful of cheaper options online, the accessibility to extra services makes it appealing.
Register Your Emotional Support Dog Online
Several affordable options are now available for individuals looking to register their dog as an emotional support animal. Ultimately, to ensure you are getting the best value for your money, check thaT they require a prescription letter, and that they are in an appropriate price range.
Registering your dog as an emotional support animal should never cost more than one hundred dollars. It should be a simple and affordable process that helps make your life easier and gives you and your dog better access to the daily amenities you need.