HOME recently was called to intervene in two instances where a client who required a companion animal because of a disability feared a choice between having to find a new place to live or giving up their animal. Through educating the clients about their rights under fair housing law and the landlords about the requirements concerning companion animals, HOME contributed to the successful resolution of both cases.
Most landlords are now aware that fair housing laws require them to make “reasonable accommodations” or changes in their rules, policies or procedures to ensure that a person with a disability has the same opportunity to enjoy a dwelling as a person without a disability. Landlords may also be aware that this may require them to waive a “no pets” policy for a person with a physical disability who requires a service animal such as a guide dog.
What they may not be clear about is that that people with other kinds of disabilities, such as depression or high blood pressure, may also benefit from the assistance of an animal. These “companion animals” and the support they provide are often a key component in the ongoing management or improvement in their symptoms. Like service animals, companion animals are considered necessary for the people who have them and thus by law they are not considered to be “pets.”
Mary D* contacted HOME on behalf of her son Josh* who had an emotional disability and had a small companion dog. After Mary and her son moved into a new apartment, the manager told them the dog had to go. The management had a strict “no pets” policy.
Fearing that they might have to move again, the family reluctantly put the dog in “pet foster care” until the issue could be resolved. At the time that Mary called HOME, Josh’s progress had already begun to deteriorate. With the assistance of a fair housing counselor, Mary was able to resolve the situation. She learned how to request a reasonable accommodation from the manager which would allow her son to keep his companion dog. A week after Mary submitted her request, she called HOME and, with a multitude of thanks, let the fair counselor know that the “no pet” policy had been waived and the dog had been reunited with her son.
Margaret L*, a woman with a mental illness, lived with her companion dog in a building that had allowed pets. When the building went under new management, a notice was sent to all the residents that tenants with animals had two weeks to get their animal’s health records up to date and pay a pet deposit of $300. Failure to comply would result in a choice of getting rid of their pet or facing lease termination. HOME assisted Margaret, who had a limited income, to get additional time to get her dog’s records updated and, because the dog was a companion animal and not a pet, to get the $300 deposit waived.
*not their real names
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What to do if YOU need to request a reasonable accommodation:
Get a letter from your health care professional documenting that you have a disability and that the change in the landlord’s rules that you are requesting is necessary because of this disability. Send a letter to the landlord or management company which tells them that you are requesting that an exemption or “reasonable accommodation” be made in a particular policy for you because you have a disability. If the management does not respond in a reasonable amount of time (a week or so), call HOME at 854-1400 for free and confidential help.
PLEASE NOTE: Neither you nor your doctor has to tell the landlord what your disability is; you only need to say that it is medically necessary for you to have the accommodation you are requesting.
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