This Q&A is excerpted from the U.S. Department of Justice (July 2015). You can find it and other documents on their site. Should help clear up some questions. The boldface emphasis is mine.
I have a dog-friendly B&B and have several guests each year who bring "service dogs," both legitimate and probably not legitimate to my place. Did a presentation at the Vermont Inns & Bed and Breakfast Association meeting last fall on the subject.
The key thing to keep in mind is that if you rent out five or less rooms AND you live on the property, you are exempt from the ADA.
DEFINITION OF SERVICE ANIMAL
Q: What is a service animal?
A: Under the ADA, a service animal is defined as a dog that has been individually trained to do
work or perform tasks for an individual with a disability. The task(s) performed by the dog must be
directly related to the person’s disability.
Q: What does “do work or perform tasks” mean?
A: The dog must be trained to take a specific action when needed to assist the person with a disability.
For example, a person with diabetes may have a dog that is trained to alert him when his
blood sugar reaches high or low levels. A person with depression may have a dog that is trained
to remind her to take her medication. Or, a person who has epilepsy may have a dog that is
trained to detect the onset of a seizure and then help the person remain safe during the seizure.
Q: Are emotional support, therapy, comfort, or companion animals considered service animals under the ADA?
A: No. These terms are used to describe animals that provide comfort just by being with a
person. Because they have not been trained to perform a specific job or task, they do not
qualify as service animals under the ADA. However, some State or local governments have
laws that allow people to take emotional support animals into public places. You may check
with your State and local government agencies to find out about these laws.
Q: If someone’s dog calms them when having an anxiety attack, does this qualify it as a
service animal?
A: It depends. The ADA makes a distinction between psychiatric service animals and emotional
support animals. If the dog has been trained to sense that an anxiety attack is about
to happen and take a specific action to help avoid the attack or lessen its impact, that would
qualify as a service animal. However, if the dog’s mere presence provides comfort, that
would not be considered a service animal under the ADA.
Q: Does the ADA require service animals to be professionally trained?
A: No. People with disabilities have the right to train the dog themselves and are not required
to use a professional service dog training program.
Q: Are service-animals-in-training considered service animals under the ADA?
A: No. Under the ADA, the dog must already be trained before it can be taken into public
places. However, some State or local laws cover animals that are still in training.
GENERAL RULES
Q: What questions can a covered entity’s employees ask to determine if a dog is a service
animal?
A: In situations where it is not obvious that the dog is a service animal, staff may ask only
two specific questions: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? and
(2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform? Staff are not allowed to request
any documentation for the dog, require that the dog demonstrate its task, or inquire about
the nature of the person’s disability.
Q: Do service animals have to wear a vest or patch or special harness identifying them as
service animals?
A: No. The ADA does not require service animals to wear a vest, ID tag, or specific harness.
Q: Who is responsible for the care and supervision of a service animal?
A: The handler is responsible for caring for and supervising the service animal, which includes
toileting, feeding, and grooming and veterinary care. Covered entities are not obligated
to supervise or otherwise care for a service animal.
Q: Can a person bring a service animal with them as they go through a salad bar or other
self-service food lines?
A: Yes. Service animals must be allowed to accompany their handlers to and through selfservice
food lines. Similarly, service animals may not be prohibited from communal food
preparation areas, such as are commonly found in shelters or dormitories.
Q: Can hotels assign designated rooms for guests with service animals, out of consider
ation for other guests?
A: No. A guest with a disability who uses a service animal must be provided the same
opportunity to reserve any available room at the hotel as other guests without disabilities.
They may not be restricted to “pet-friendly” rooms.
Q: Can hotels charge a cleaning fee for guests who have service animals?
A: No. Hotels are not permitted to charge guests for cleaning the hair or dander shed by
a service animal. However, if a guest’s service animal causes damages to a guest room, a
hotel is permitted to charge the same fee for damages as charged to other guests.
Q: Can people bring more than one service animal into a public place?
A: Generally, yes. Some people with disabilities may use more than one service animal
to perform different tasks. For example, a person who has a visual disability and a seizure
disorder may use one service animal to assist with way-finding and another that is trained
as a seizure alert dog. Other people may need two service animals for the same task, such
as a person who needs two dogs to assist him or her with stability when walking. Staff may
ask the two permissible questions about each of the dogs. If both dogs
can be accommodated, both should be allowed in. In some circumstances, however, it may
not be possible to accommodate more than one service animal. For example, in a crowded
small restaurant, only one dog may be able to fit under the table. The only other place for
the second dog would be in the aisle, which would block the space between tables. In this
case, staff may request that one of the dogs be left outside.
BREEDS
Q: Can service animals be any breed of dog?
A: Yes. The ADA does not restrict the type of dog breeds that can be service animals.
EXCLUSION OF SERVICE ANIMALS
Q: When can service animals be excluded?
A: The ADA does not require covered entities to modify policies, practices, or procedures if it
would “fundamentally alter” the nature of the goods, services, programs, or activities provided
to the public. Nor does it overrule legitimate safety requirements. If admitting service
animals would fundamentally alter the nature of a service or program, service animals may
be prohibited. In addition, if a particular service animal is out of control and the handler
does not take effective action to control it, or if it is not housebroken, that animal may be
excluded.
Q; What does under control mean? Do service animals have to be on a leash? Do they
have to be quiet and not bark?
A: The ADA requires that service animals be under the control of the handler at all times.
In most instances, the handler will be the individual with a disability or a third party who
accompanies the individual with a disability. In the school (K-12) context and in similar
settings, the school or similar entity may need to provide some assistance to enable a particular
student to handle his or her service animal. The service animal must be harnessed,
leashed, or tethered while in public places unless these devices interfere with the service
animal’s work or the person’s disability prevents use of these devices. In that case, the
person must use voice, signal, or other effective means to maintain control of the animal.
For example, a person who uses a wheelchair may use a long, retractable leash to allow her
service animal to pick up or retrieve items. She may not allow the dog to wander away from
her and must maintain control of the dog, even if it is retrieving an item at a distance from
her. Or, a returning veteran who has PTSD and has great difficulty entering unfamiliar spaces
may have a dog that is trained to enter a space, check to see that no threats are there, and
come back and signal that it is safe to enter. The dog must be off leash to do its job, but may
be leashed at other times. Under control also means that a service animal should not be
allowed to bark repeatedly in a lecture hall, theater, library, or other quiet place. However, if
a dog barks just once, or barks because someone has provoked it, this would not mean that
the dog is out of control.
Q: What can my staff do when a service animal is being disruptive?
A: If a service animal is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to
control it, staff may request that the animal be removed from the premises.
Q; Are hotel guests allowed to leave their service animals in their hotel room when they
leave the hotel?
A: No, the dog must be under the handler’s control at all times.
Q:Are restaurants, bars, and other places that serve food or drink required to allow service
animals to be seated on chairs or allow the animal to be fed at the table?
A: No. Seating, food, and drink are provided for customer use only. The ADA gives a person
with a disability the right to be accompanied by his or her service animal, but covered
entities are not required to allow an animal to sit or be fed at the table.
Q; Are gyms, fitness centers, hotels, or municipalities that have swimming pools required
to allow a service animal in the pool with its handler?
A: No. The ADA does not override public health rules that prohibit dogs in swimming pools.
However, service animals must be allowed on the pool deck and in other areas where the
public is allowed to go..