Emotional Support Animal (ESA) is a common term for Assistance Animals. The term Assistance Animal is defined by the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development for housing purposes.
“Assistance animals are not pets. Assistance animals could be a trained service animal, or they could be other animals that do work, perform tasks, assist, and/or provide therapeutic emotional support for individuals with disabilities that affect major life activities.”
(U.S. HUD)
While service dogs are specially trained to perform specific tasks and are allowed to accompany their handler throughout their daily lives, ESA’s are not, and do not need to have any sort of specialized training.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is the governing authority of all assistance animals in regards to housing, but service dogs are governed by the U.S. Department of Justice.
