How can emotional support animals improve mental health for those struggling with anxiety, depression or PTSD symptoms?
Dr. R: When feelings of anxiety and depression start, the dog will perceive that’s going on and that they’ll come and calm you down. I have a niece; her big dog lays down with her or maybe she lays down on the dog’s chest and the dog will hear her pounding away.
So, it’s your understanding that dogs have this intelligence or intuition?
Dr. R: With a smell, a dog can tell that you’re not doing well.
Speaking of doing well, do you find that there’s a particular animals or breeds that work better as ESAs or does it vary person a person?
Dr. R: It varies a great deal. With dogs you can communicate simply by facial expression. It’s important because then you’re able to respond to their moods. The retriever family; of all breeds are especially good daschunds are really good. Basically any dog, but the ones I like are the ones with the pointy nose, not the ones with the flat nose. That’s just my preference.
Are there some unique ways that ESA’s help?
Dr. R: Everyone has a different relationship with their dog. One thing I would like to say is that dogs are smarter than we give them credit for. They should be talked to like they’re best friends not like they’re little babies. You should talk to the dog like they’re your best friend. When you say, “I gotta go cook dinner” and you tell the dog to go lay down now and you’ll wake them up when dinner’s ready or something like that. I’ve been watching YouTube videos on dogs and even cats responding to the English language. It’s really interesting!
Do you find that there are any challenges that you face operating a remote telehealth business, and how do you overcome these challenges?
Dr. R: I occasionally have trouble getting in touch with somebody after they have made an appointment. But once I connect with a client, I am usually able to establish an understanding of their situation. As a professional and someone who really understands the importance of emotional support animals.
Have you noticed any trends or changes in demand for ESA services since the shift to telehealth?
Dr. R: It wasn’t quite as hectic but other than that, it’s still a steady stream of people calling because they’re in a place that doesn’t allow pets
What legal protections are in place for people with ESAs?
Dr. R: I’ve only heard of one case that went to federal court and the judge made the apartment complex pay the legal fees of the patient. So it’s pretty simple. I call sometime the patient says “well it’s not this is not working out.” So then I’ll call the office of the property and inform them that “This is Dr. Rieser. I’m a physician in California and I sent you a letter that conforms with the HUD Rules, which are federal rules. This is a legal document stating that my client is allowed to keep the dog, so you can refer to that. I’d be happy to email these rules and our website has a link to those rules.”
I had to do that a lot during the pandemic.
What advice would you give to landlords or businesses unfamiliar with ESA laws?
Dr. R: Once a landlord told me, “The tenant didn’t tell us he had a pet” And I said, “Well, he doesn’t have a pet. He has an emotional sport animal” and then he replied “The tenant didn’t tell us he had an animal.” I tell my patient not to tell them they have an animal. Not until they get the letter and then they tell them, “By the way, I have an emotional animal” you don’t want the landlord to find out the person’s bringing an animal and then find other reasons not to accept the patient. So I’m looking out for the patient at that moment and looking out for the ESA. We were very clear about about when to tell the landlord. And I said to the landlord “it doesn’t matter. you can’t you can’t decline this.”
Do you have a favorite story or moment from your time working in this field?
Dr. R: It’s always a charge for me when when a patient that has had a dog or a cat for a long time and they hear from me that nobody can take the dog or the cat. That the cat stays with you, it’s the law. Then they start crying. That always really charges my batteries. they have such a release because they’re having all this stress around someone telling them “no, you have to get rid of the dog!” And when I tell them, “No you can keep dog, you can keep the cat.” They start crying and say “thank you, thank you, thank you.” They’re very grateful when they know that they’re gonna get to keep their animals. That’s what I love about this job.
There is an interesting study in the NIH about how emotional support animals help that you can read here.
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