Emotional Support Animal

Emotional Support Animals (ESA) are defined as animals that alleviate one or more identified symptoms or effects of a person’s disability. This animal provides the necessary support to an individual with a documented psychiatric disability and alleviates one or more identified symptoms of the individual’s disability. There must be an established relationship or nexus between the individual’s disability and the assistance the animal provides. It allows the student with a disability to receive full benefit or enjoyment of the residential facility on campus. Emotional Support Animals may not be brought into university housing without expressed approval from Accessibility Resources. It should be noted that animals needed to alleviate the psychological impact of disabilities may be referred to by different names such as companion animals, therapy animals, comfort animals, etc. At Moorhead, we refer to these animals as Emotional Support Animals.

Emotional Support Animals Policy

Documentation from the Internet
Some websites sell certificates, registrations, and licensing documents for emotional support animals (ESA) to anyone who answers certain questions or participates in a short interview and pays a fee. Such documentation from the internet is not sufficient to reliably establish that an individual has a non-observable disability or disability-related need for an ESA. A housing provider may request reliable documentation when an individual requesting reasonable accommodation has a disability and disability-related need for accommodation that is not obvious or otherwise known.

Steps for Requesting an Emotional Support Animal in University Housing

  1. Complete the Emotional Support Animal Request for Accommodation Form.
  2. Once the request form is received, the Director of Accessibility Resources will send you a form to be completed by a licensed provider.
  3. After all documentation is received, the Director of Accessibility Resources will notify Housing & Residential Life of your approved Emotional Support Animal accommodation.

Emotional Support Animal Request Accommodation Form