Treating service animal requests (always treat the animal)

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August 14th, 2018

Service animal pop quiz (yes/no):

  • The ADA permits assistance dogs to be with their person where members of the public can go (yes)
  • The ADA requires service dogs to be professionally trained (no)
  • Minature horses are covered under the ADA and Great Danes can be the size of miniature horses (yes and yes - I saw two at the dog park last night)

Peter Petesch at our partner Littler, suggests, among other things in this SHRM article, covering the following when handling service animal requests:

  • it's an accommodation request
  • alternatives?
  • doctor's note?
  • confidentiality!
  • what are the ground rules?

And for those of you in Philadelphia, a BONUS Littler workshop on September 6, Doggy Dilemmas: Accommodating Service Animals for Employees and Customers, complete with a demonstration from Canine Companion's assistance dog Mork.

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