Healthcare Provider-Certified ESA Documentation

Official Pets helps eliminate all your worries concerning your ESA or PSD needs

You want to feel confident having your Support Pet by your side, whether you’re at home or traveling. Deep down you know having your pet by your side benefits your mental health, but you feel stuck when you feel like your pet isn’t welcome or even prohibited to be with you in certain places.

You want to be able to have the undeniable support of your pet without the restrictions and you want to understand your legal rights. You don’t want to be limited on where you can live or how you can travel. You want to know you and your pet are protected.

You want to live your life, with your Support Pet by your side. You’re in the right place, our team of experts at Official Pets got you covered, have no worries!

EXEMPT FROM
NO-PET POLICIES

Live worry free with your pet, even if there’s a no-pet policy.

TRAVEL MADE
EASY

Travel and fly with ease knowing you and your pet are legally protected.

MONEY SAVED,
WORRIES WAIVED

Save money by taking advantage of waived pet fees and deposits.

24 HOUR
DELIVERY

Receive your letter within 24 hours so you and your pet are protected as soon as possible.

LEGALLY COMPLIANT NATIONWIDE

Feel confident knowing your letter is legally recognized and compliant with federal and state laws in all 50 states.

100% Money
Back Guarantee

Don’t pay for services you don’t receive. If you’re not approved for an ESA or PSD letter you won’t be charged a penny.

CERTIFIED BY A
LICENSED THERAPIST

Your letter is prescribed by a Licensed Therapist and will legally protect you and your Support Animal.

UNMATCHED CLIENT
SUPPORT

We’re here to provide education, advocacy, resources, and additional documentation if needed.

Understanding ESAs AND PSDs

An Emotional Support Animal (ESA) is an approved pet that provides therapeutic benefits to someone suffering with mental health challenges. The pet is required to be approved and prescribed by a Licensed Mental Health Professional but does not require any special training. Their purpose is to provide comfort and support to anyone struggling with the effects of a diagnosed emotional, mental, or psychological disability.

A Psychiatric Service Dog (PSD) is a recognized type of service animal and is trained to perform tasks that alleviate symptoms of a mental health disability. PSDs can help individuals perform everyday tasks that might prove challenging due to their mental health condition.

Important to Note

An ESA and PSD both provide support and symptom relief from a mental or emotional disability. And while the qualification process for an ESA and PSD is very similar, the standard of training for your pet is different. Unlike an ESA, a PSD is trained to perform a task that aids your emotional or mental disability in some way.

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), “People with disabilities have the right to train a dog themselves and are not required to use a professional service dog training program”. You can have your dog professionally trained, or you can just train them yourself to perform a task that aids your mental health in some way.

WHO QUALIFIES?

Anyone with a mental health challenge can qualify for an ESA or PSD. Some examples would be:

Anxiety, Depression, Emotional Overwhelm, Panic Attacks, Social Phobia, Stress, PTSD, OCD, Medical Conditions, ADHD, Substance Abuse, Schizoaffective Disorder, Mood Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Autism, Eating Disorders, Personality Disorders, Physical/Medical Conditions, or more.

HOW IT WORKS

Submit
A Questionnaire

Fill out our online questionnaire for an ESA or PSD Letter. It’s easy and confidential.

Connect With Your
Licensed Therapist

A licensed therapist will contact you within 24 hours to discuss your ESA or PSD needs.

Receive Your
Letter

Your therapist will email you a copy of your legally recognized ESA or PSD Letter so you can immediately be protected.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMAL (ESA)

FOR PETS THAT PROVIDE EMOTIONAL SUPPORT

Access to “no-pets” residential buildings

Exempt from pet rent, fees, and deposits

Exempt from breed and weight restrictions

Legally recognized by housing providers

Protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA)

$120

get your esa letter

See what’s included in your ESA Letter

PSYCHIATRIC SERVICE DOG (PSD)

FOR DOGS THAT PERFORM TASKS IN RESPONSE TO THEIR OWNER’S SYMPTOMS

Access to “no-pets” residential buildings

Exempt from pet rent, fees, and deposits

Exempt from breed and weight restrictions

Legally recognized by housing providers, airlines, and establishment personnel

Access to public buildings like hotels, businesses, and stores

Access on airplanes free of charge

Protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA)

$175

get your psd letter

See what’s included in your PSD Letter

BRINGING TRANSPARENCY AND ACCESSIBILITY TO THE ESA AND PSD PROCESS

Our team of Licensed Therapists teamed up to open Official Pets after working in the industry and wishing things were done differently. We believe every pet owner in need of an ESA or PSD should have easy and affordable access to the support they need, without feeling taken advantage of or overwhelmed during the process.

We’re here to advocate for improved access to mental health care and support individuals with mental health conditions. We understand the power of Animal-Assisted Treatment Plans and want to help our clients use it to its fullest potential.

Learn More About Us

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is an Emotional Support Animal (ESA)?

An Emotional Support Animal (ESA) is an individual’s pet that has been approved and prescribed by a Licensed Therapist to provide therapeutic benefits, such as alleviation from anxiety, depression, or any other mental health challenge an individual may struggle with. The animal does not require any specialized training. Their purpose is to provide comfort and support to a person dealing with a diagnosed emotional, mental, or psychological challenge.

What is an ESA Letter?

An Emotional Support Animal (ESA) Letter is issued by a Licensed Therapist. The ESA Letter establishes that the individual has a mental health disability and confirms a legitimate need for the support that the individual’s companion animal provides. The ESA Letter will be provided on the Licensed Therapist’s official letterhead, signed, and dated. It will also include the therapist’s licensing and contact details, enabling your landlord to verify their credentials. The letter will contain everything legally required for an ESA prescription within the body of the letter. Our ESA Letter ensures that you live worry free with your pet knowing you are legally protected!

What legal rights do Emotional Support Animals have?

Emotional Support Animals (ESA) and their owners have certain protections under federal and state laws. Under the law, ESAs are recognized as Assistance Animals, granting them exemptions from pet-related regulations. ESAs are entitled to reside in residential buildings that ordinarily prohibit pets or have certain pet restrictions (breed, size, and weight restrictions will not be applied to an ESA). Landlords and other housing providers must allow tenants to live with their ESAs free of charge. The ESA Letter serves as proof of your mental or emotional disability, protecting you under the Fair Housing Act (FHA).

What are the requirements for qualifying for an ESA?

To have a recognized Emotional Support Animal (ESA), it is necessary to have an ESA Letter that has been prescribed by a Licensed Therapist. This letter confirms your mental health disability (anxiety, panic attacks, depression, PTSD, or many others) and the fact that having an Emotional Support Animal helps alleviate symptoms of that disability. According to federal law, this is the sole valid method to qualify an animal as an Emotional Support Animal.

Is it necessary to have a certificate, license, ID card, special harness, or vest for my ESA?

The ESA Letter is the only necessary and valid documentation to qualify and verify your Emotional Support Animal status. Your ESA does not require a certificate, license, ID card, special harness, or vest. Housing providers cannot require certificates, registrations, licenses, or IDs for your ESA, as these items do not hold any legal significance for an ESA. While some ESA owners use them as visual indicators, they are neither mandatory nor valid forms of proof that an animal is an ESA. Only a Licensed Therapist can issue a legitimate ESA Letter, and that is the only thing you will need!

Does an Emotional Support Animal need to be registered?

No! Registration is not required for your Emotional Support Animal (ESA). Registering your ESA in a database or registry is unnecessary. There is no legally recognized registry for ESAs in the United States. While many fraudulent sites claim that an ESA will need a registration number to validate its status, this isn’t the case and is simply the rhetoric of typical ESA scams or trying to upsell you on items you do not need to qualify your pet as an Emotional Support Animal. Any paperwork or documentation from these so-called registries or any type of certificates is worth absolutely nothing in the eyes of the law. These documents do not convey any rights under federal laws. All that’s required to confirm that an animal is an ESA is a legitimate ESA Letter signed by a Licensed Therapist.

Which types of animals can serve as Emotional Support Animals?

A diverse range of animals can serve as Emotional Support Animals. While dogs and cats are the most common type, ESAs can also include animals such as rabbits, hamsters, birds, mice, ferrets, turtles, and more. Essentially, any domesticated animal that is typically kept at home for companionship rather than commercial purposes can serve as an ESA.

What is a Psychiatric Service Dog (PSD)?

A Psychiatric Service Dog (PSD) is a trained dog that performs tasks that can help alleviate the individual’s mental health disability (anxiety, panic attacks, PTSD, phobias, depression, and many others). A PSD is a recognized type of Service Dog, protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA), American with Disabilities Act (ADA), and in accordance with the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA). Under these federal laws, owners have the freedom to reside and travel just about anywhere with their PSD.

The key distinction between a PSD and an ESA lies in the training. According to the ADA, “People with disabilities have the right to train the dog themselves and are not required to use a professional service dog training program.” An example of a trained task may be “Therapeutic and Tactile Distraction” which means your dog is trained to sense when you’re feeling anxious and place pressure on your body to encourage emotional regulation and bring you to a calm state of mind where you can cope with your daily activities.

Many owners obtain PSD Letters to help establish eligibility and potentially prevent any complications with the airline or the establishment personnel. Our PSD Letter assures that you travel with ease knowing you and your pet are protected!

Can I fly with my Psychiatric Service Dog (PSD)?

Yes! Under regulations issued by The Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), carriers must permit a Psychiatric Service Dog (PSD) to accompany a passenger with a mental health disability. A PSD is allowed to accompany the passenger in the cabin of planes, and airlines cannot impose any extra charges for their presence. Our PSD Letter ensures that you travel with ease knowing you and your pet are protected!

What legal rights do Psychiatric Service Dogs have?

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. Under the ADA, State and local governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations that serve the public generally must allow Psychiatric Service Dogs (PSD) to accompany individuals with mental health disabilities in all areas of the facility where the public is allowed to go.

PSDs carry many more rights than Emotional Support Animals (ESA) in terms of travel; but just like ESAs, PSDs are entitled to reside in residential buildings that ordinarily prohibit pets. Under the law, PSDs are recognized as Service Animals, granting them exemptions from pet-related regulations, such as pet rent, fees, and deposits. Additionally, PSD are not subject to restrictions based on breed, size, or weight. PSDs must be accommodated in most housing settings, including rental apartments, condos, co-ops, and HOAs.

Why choose Official Pets?

At Official Pets, we understand the profound impact of Animal-Assisted Intervention on mental well-being. As proud ESA and PSD owners, we know how essential it is to have your pet by your side.

We are dedicated to making the ESA and PSD process transparent and accessible. Every pet owner deserves easy and affordable access to the support they need. Our mission is to advocate for improved mental health care and help you utilize Animal-Assisted Treatment Plans to their fullest potential.

Our clients are our top priority, and providing exceptional support is our guiding principle. We understand the urgency of your needs and offer unmatched assistance through our dedicated client support and healthcare provider teams. We are here to stand by you, advocate for you, and ensure your letter is approved, even in the face of challenges.

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DOCUMENTATION CERTIFIED BY HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS