Despite ridicule, growing numbers of college students are turning to emotional support animals.
While living in a college dormitory once meant leaving your favorite four-legged friend at home, a growing number of college students have found a way to circumvent the rules about animals on campus in the name of mental health.
The last few years have seen a growing number of college students requesting, and being approved, to keep a personal cat or dog with them on campus, in the name of an emotional support animal.
While traditional service dogs for people with certain disabilities have been around for many years and are protected under the Americans With Disabilities Act, emotional support animals have become more of a recent phenomenon as a new way of treating mental illness.
Following a federal clarification about the classification guidelines for such animals by the Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2015, an increasing number of individuals have begun seeking legitimate medical certifications to carry an ESA with them, and college students have been no exception.
According to administrators at Temple University, the number of requests for emotional support animals on their campus has risen substantially over the past few years, from six requests in 2017-2018 to 20 requests for the 2018-2019 academic year.
While doctors can refuse to diagnose individuals as needing an emotional support animal based on the severity of their condition, online advertising by several online companies has emerged as a way for willing providers to conduct telephone screenings with patients in need. A spokesman for one company, CertaPet, acknowledged the likelihood that many clients likely fake their symptoms, but defended the animals as being medically appropriate.
Despite the likely existence of fraud among many students seeking approval for emotional support animals, college administrators often have a difficult time denying such animal, especially if it is for the student’s mental health. The last decade has seen a large increase in the number of mental health diagnoses among college students, and many colleges are understaffed and ill-equipped to accommodate students in need of mental health treatment.
While it is unclear whether or not colleges will eventually find a way to implement stricter rules regarding the presence of emotional support animals on campus, students will likely see an increasing number of furry, four-legged friends on campus for the foreseeable future.
John Patrick (@john_pat_rick) is a graduate of Canisius College and Georgia Southern University. He interned for Red Alert Politics during the summer of 2012 and has continued to contribute regularly.
