Chicken as Emotional Support Animal?

[EIEIO_farm]

Has anyone ever registered their hen or rooster as an emotional support animal? I’m flying to Portland from LA in a week, and I want to bring one of my chickens to give to my mom. He’s the sweetest rooster, and my mom really bonded with him when she visited recently. Her husband (my step dad) of 13 years passed away last September so she has had a pretty hard time adjusting to the new normal. I feel like Honeybear (the roo) would be a great companion for her. Anyway, I called the airline and they said they will not allow a chicken to fly in the cabin or as checked baggage because they are not considered a household bird. So, what I am thinking is if I get my chicken registered as an emotional support animal, and even get a doctors note, the airline has to accommodate right? Has anyone ever done this, or do you know what rights people have when it comes to support animals?

 

[BrindleFinch]

Any business can ask you two questions; is this a service animal? What tasks does this animal perform? You need only report two tasks. There is NO official organization for registering ESAs that is legally recognized.

That is it. That is all any company is SUPPOSED to be able to ask you. No documentation, no anything. However, please for the love of all that is holy do not use ESA privilege to circumvent airline rules. You're only making it harder for people with actual disabilities to utilize services they NEED.

 

[bobbi-j]

I think your mother and your rooster would both be better off if you found her an animal in LA. I would think the travel and change of location would be quite stressful on your bird. I would suggest a nice dog or cat. Something that can live indoors and welcome petting and cuddling if she is so inclined. Chickens aren't so much that way. Your chicken would also miss having a flock. They are flock animals and do better as such.

 

[BrindleFinch]

Ok I just really want to clear up some things as smoothly as I can, as someone who has an ESA and a medically documented need for one. He went to college with me. He's been around, he's my world. He is not a dog; he is a cat. It does not matter.

Service animals are trained to do tasks. They must do 2 tasks that relate to the disability. ESAs do not have to do tasks - but store owners/etc cannot legally really check if they can or if they can't. Store owners cannot ask for certification as in the animal being registered to a database. The laws governing ESAs and Service Animals are different.

1. You need to have a medical note from a professional. This note cannot and should not outline your specific disability, but as with anything it is ILLEGAL to ask for a falsified document from a doctor. Any doctor who would give a perfectly healthy individual an ESA recommendation shouldn't have the power to do so in the first place, imo.
1a. You do not need to have any other or further certification for your animal.
1b. You do not need a vest for your ESA, though it's not necessarily a bad idea.

2. "According to the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) of 1986, emotional support animals are allowed to fly in the cabin of commercial airplanes, though each airline may have their own rules and standards for how this plays out." Found here. Government info on the ACAA here.
2a. This means that airlines DO have control over what animals can and cannot be allowed on their flights; transportation.gov states, "
A wide variety of service animals are permitted in the cabin portion of the aircraft flying to and within the United States; however, most service animals tend to be dogs and cats. Airlines may exclude animals that:

• Are too large or heavy to be accommodated in the cabin;
• Pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others;
• Cause a significant disruption of cabin service; or
• Are prohibited from entering a foreign country."

2b. Transportation.gov also states: "Emotional Support and Psychiatric Service Animals - Airlines can request specific documentation and/or 48-hours advanced notice for service animals that are emotional support animals and psychiatric service animals." and defines the specific request-able documentation as follows: "
Airlines may require documentation that is not older than one year from the date of your scheduled initial flight that states:

• You have a mental or emotional disability that is recognized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM);
• You need your emotional support or psychiatric support animal as an accommodation for air travel and/or for activity at your destination;
• The individual providing the assessment is a licensed mental health professional and the passenger is under his/her professional care; and
• The licensed health care professional’s;
  • Date and type of professional license; and
  • Jurisdiction or state in which their license was issued."

That is it. That is all they can ask for. HOWEVER, as I stated above, you MUST have a DSM recognizable disorder. A doctor is risking their license and you are risking your trip by trying to request anything special from them.

Any animal CAN be an ESA, as noted by what an airline can exclude.

A chicken would likely be considered 1. a disruption to service, 2. a health threat to other passengers, 3. may not legally be able to be shipped between states. After all, you're technically not SUPPOSED to move chickens back and forth unless you're NPIP certified, right?

Think about other passengers that may have chickens. What about Mereks? Do you know for a fact that your chicken is not carrying any diseases communicable via dander/air to either humans or other chickens? Do you have any vet paperwork for the chicken at all? No, you don't legally NEED it, but PLEASE consider the safety of other chickens out there. You could be introducing some really nasty diseases into an area, especially if your chicken isn't going to be vetted beforehand.

Also, roosters crow. I think that right there is enough justification to declare a rooster a "disruption to service," as the government allows airlines to deny animals for.

 

[Pugsabi]

Has anyone ever registered their hen or rooster as an emotional support animal? I’m flying to Portland from LA in a week, and I want to bring one of my chickens to give to my mom. He’s the sweetest rooster, and my mom really bonded with him when she visited recently. Her husband (my step dad) of 13 years passed away last September so she has had a pretty hard time adjusting to the new normal. I feel like Honeybear (the roo) would be a great companion for her. Anyway, I called the airline and they said they will not allow a chicken to fly in the cabin or as checked baggage because they are not considered a household bird. So, what I am thinking is if I get my chicken registered as an emotional support animal, and even get a doctors note, the airline has to accommodate right? Has anyone ever done this, or do you know what rights people have when it comes to support animals?

It's changed because of too many people abusing the system. Airlines are becoming a lot more rigorous about what kind of animals are allowed on the plane. Emotional support animals were never covered, only service animals are protected under U.S. law.

 

[Blooie]

Warning: Long post, not meant to insult, but to enlighten! I realize that the OP has decided against doing this, but others will read this thread further down the road and might miss that.

This is a subject I am passionate about because I have first hand experience both as a trainer and as someone with a family member who may someday need such an animal.

Years ago the only animals permitted in public places were Guide Dogs for the Blind. Period. I was a professional dog trainer in South Dakota at the time, and an amazing man who was quadriplegic called and asked if I could train a dog for him to have as a “helper”. I’d never done anything like that before, and I explained to him that we’d all three be learning together. He was fine with that. So I helped him pick out the ideal puppy and we got to work. And did we ever work!! Jim and his wife were determined to have a happy, healthy dog to love, but one that was disciplined and steady to help him with everyday tasks while his wife was at work. And we did it!

After training, (not that training ever stopped) Jim took Max to the South Dakota State Legislature, where they demonstrated exactly what Max could do and how safe and independent he helped Jim become. They decided to take their issue directly to the Capitol after Jim, his wife, and Max were ordered to leave a public place because Jim wasn’t blind and Max wasn’t a Guide Dog. I am very proud to tell you that the Legislature passed the law allowing assistance dogs the same access as Guide Dogs, without a single dissenting vote after watching the two of them.

Jim and Max earned that for themselves and for others in the same situation. No, there was no special license issued. No, Max wasn’t trained by a trainer specializing in Service Dogs. There was no vest or special collar. But as the Legislators watched Max call 911 on a pad attached to a phone, saw him get everything Jim asked him for, knew to “seek help left” or “seek help right”, help Jim in and out of his chair, among many other things, they took notice. They saw first hand how valuable a well trained service animal was and they passed the law. So although not a true service dog, Max paved the way FOR true service dogs and their owners in South Dakota. We worked non-stop on total socialization. We never let up on basic obedience, but had to learn what “reasoned disobedience” meant. That’s where the owner gives a command that the dog knows will result in risk to the owner and the dog disobeys that command. The owner has to learn to trust his/her dog.

So that’s why being able to go on the internet to buy a harness that says “Service Animal”, or persuading a medical provider or transportation official that Spot, Fluffy, or Hei Hei are true service animals kinda grates on me. Months and months of hard work, frustration, dropping back 2 steps and starting over in a different direction, even Jim maneuvering his power chair through 3 to 4 foot snow drifts just to get to class, and his shoulder injury from training seems to mean nothing when the entire system is abused.

Yes, animals can be great stress relievers. Yes, they can calm someone experiencing a panic attack or give someone the courage to go out in public. Yes, they can perform simple tasks to help their owners. That doesn’t make them service animals, that makes them excellent companions. To lump them with animals that can detect the onset of seizures or diabetic crises, guide the blind, or assist a quadriplegic or other physically disabled person who can’t safely get through a simple daily routine on their own seems lopsided.

I have said for years that anyone who trains service dogs should be certified to do so, and that dogs pass a series of stringent tests, including basic manners, socialization, traveling on public transportation, and assistance skills before getting a National Certificate and a state or nationally issued and recognized vest and harness. The owner should be able to immediately produce a corresponding card that states the degree of training, the date of issue, and the basic disability. Do you know the irony of that? The dog I trained would not have been eligible since I was not a certified service dog trainer - I would not have had the credentials to do what we did, yet I fight for it. We desperately need a uniform system for training, standards, testing, and a way to identify qualified trainer/dog/handler teams. And we need to rigidly define what constitutes a service dog and limit it TO dogs. I’m sorry, I know other animals can do amazing things, but they simply cannot do the incredible variety of things a dog can do.

Why should everything from a guppy to an elephant (exaggeration, of course) qualify for a purchased vest and exceptions to “animals in public places” rules? It took years to get Jim and a Maxie working as a team. It took years to get that legislation passed. It took more years of ongoing, continuing work and refresher training to keep that partnership strong. You simply can’t do that with a chicken, sorry.

Right now I have a granddaughter who has been in her wheelchair since she was 9 months old. She’ll be 7 next week. She is mostly non-verbal, autistic, and has Spina Bifida. Many many people here on BYC have watched her over the years and grown to love her. I have written articles and posts about the world of benefits Kendra and her sister have received from the humble chicken. But you can believe that if Kendra can ever have a service animal, it will be a true service animal, professionally trained by a certified instructor who can train the dog and Kendra to work successfully together. Jim and Maxie paved the way for her. I only hope that someday soon the need for regulation will be realized.

End of rant....but not the end of the struggle for certification.

 

[frostic]

emotional support animals and service animals are 2 different things. service animals are like police dogs, seeing eye dogs and such wich people have to have to be mobile. a chicken can't be a service animal... and emotional support animals are NOT accepted... Sorry this is bad news however there are shipping services you can aquire for animals
through other companies. just not the airlines. birds like chickens could cause a lot of issues for the passengers and is a health RISK that no passenger airline will alow.... chickens can't even become service animals so there is no way they are going to allow them

 

[KentuckyRooster]

I'm a service dog user and I'm going to try to use nice words.

Please don't do this. It's illegal, no they won't let a chicken fly even as an emotional support animal, and what you are proposing is exactly what has hurt actual disabled people for years and causes nothing but problems. Ship the chicken via post like everyone else or buy her a pet locally.

 

[Pugsabi]

But isn’t it illegal for a company to ask why you need an emotional support animal? I have a doctor that will write me a note if need be. I just dont see why a chicken in a little carrier is any different than a little dog in a carrier. I do understand why the airlines are cracking down though.

They can ask you if it's a service animal and what tasks it's trained to do for you. Emotional support animals are not service animals and are NOT protected by law. Because of the nature of flying in such an inclosed space and inherent dangers both to the animals and people, they are trying to insure only service animals fly in the cabin. More than likely they will get the laws changed because of all the people with untrained animals bring passed off as support animals.
Personally I wouldn't be bothered but some people have allowed their pets to misbehave and even attack other people and animals, which ruins it for everyone.

 

[LDSmama]

please for the love of all that is holy do not use ESA privilege to circumvent airline rules. You're only making it harder for people with actual disabilities to utilize services they NEED.

This, exactly.