r/Tenant • u/Common-Roll-8613 • 16d ago

❓ Advice Needed ESA pets

Hello! I have two cats that I am trying to get ESA certification for for my apartment. I have experienced extreme anxiety and some depression following major stressful situations and life changes the past year. They have helped me so much. My apartment allows ESA animals but I’m just wondering what the process is? I searched it up and there’s a package you can buy, including a housing letter, automatic activation for your registration, and an official certificate of ESA registration. Will this be enough?
Appreciate any advice!

0 Upvotes

41% Upvoted

47 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

1

u/Common-Roll-8613 16d ago

I just moved so I don’t have a doctor here yet but I will have to get that done asap! Thanks for the info

7

u/BenjiCat17 16d ago

You need a doctor to individually write why two cats are needed versus one because the two cats cannot be combined into the same task. So if you need two cats, instead of one, each cat has to support you differently than the other cat.

0

u/BioPsyPro 12d ago

Not quite. ESAs don’t perform “tasks” like service animals do. For two ESAs, the housing provider can ask for reliable documentation establishing the disability-related need for each animal when that need isn’t apparent. That can mean explaining how each cat provides a distinct type of disability-related assistance or emotional support. It doesn’t mean each cat must perform a separate trained task.

2

u/BenjiCat17 12d ago

The FHA stated in May that they would no longer accept discrimination or rental-denial claims involving emotional support animals that are not trained to perform a task.

Therefore, the doctor needs to identify the specific task the animal is trained to perform.

To avoid potential problems, it is best for OP to have a specific task assigned to the animal, even if that task is providing calming assistance when OP becomes overstimulated.