Louisiana Laws on Service Dogs and Emotional Support Animals

Under Louisiana's service animal law and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), people with disabilities can bring service animals to all "public accommodations" in Louisiana, including stores, businesses, motels, restaurants, theaters, schools, and more.

Below, we explain which public accommodations are covered, which animals qualify as service animals in Louisiana, and some rules you might need to follow with your service animal. We'll also discuss emotional support animal laws in Louisiana and when your right to have one is protected.

Which Animals Count as Service Animals in Louisiana?

According to Louisiana law, a service animal is a dog trained to do work or tasks for someone with a disability, whether physical or mental. (La. Rev. Stat. § 46:1952.) Any of the following can meet the state's definition of a service animal:

• a guide dog
• a hearing dog
• a mobility dog
• an autism service dog
• a seizure alert dog
• a dog that provides assistance during a medical crisis, or
• a dog that assists people (including veterans) with post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injuries.

Under the ADA, a service animal is defined as a dog individually trained to do work or perform tasks directly related to its owner's disability. (28 C.F.R. § 35.104.) In addition to guide dogs and hearing dogs, here are some examples of service animals that must be allowed into public accommodations under the ADA:

• psychiatric service animals, which help their handlers manage mental and emotional disabilities by, for example, interrupting self-harming behaviors, reminding handlers to take medication, checking spaces for intruders, or providing calming pressure during anxiety or panic attacks
• seizure alert animals, which let their handlers know of impending seizures and might also guard their handlers during seizure activity, and
• allergen alert animals, which let their handlers know of foods or other substances that could be dangerous (such as peanuts).

Sometimes, individually trained miniature horses can qualify as service animals under the ADA. (28 C.F.R. § 35.136(i).) Louisiana law doesn't include them.

Emotional Support Animals Under Louisiana Law

Emotional support animals (ESAs) provide a sense of safety, companionship, and comfort to those with psychiatric or emotional disabilities or conditions. Neither the ADA nor Louisiana's service dog law includes protections for emotional support animals or therapy dogs.

Although these animals often have therapeutic benefits, they aren't individually trained to perform specific tasks for their handlers, so they aren't considered service animals. Under the ADA and Louisiana law, owners of public accommodations aren't required to admit ESAs, only service animals.

There are some federal laws that include protections for emotional support animals as "assistance animals." Federal housing laws, for instance, require that people with disabilities be allowed to have assistance animals, including ESAs, in their homes. (More on this below.) None of these laws apply to pets.

What Are Public Accommodations in Louisiana?

In Louisiana, you can bring your service dog into any public accommodation. (La. Rev. Stat. § 46:1953.) Public accommodations under Louisiana law include all of the following:

• streets, sidewalks, highways, and walkways
• public buildings and facilities
• all public transportation and common carriers, such as boats, buses, cars, taxis, ferries, and trains
• schools, from kindergartens to universities
• hotels, restaurants, and theaters
• all places of public amusement, accommodation, or resort, and
• any other place to which the general public is invited.

The ADA sets out a long list of facilities that qualify as public accommodations where you have the right to bring your service animal, including all the following:

• hotels and other lodging establishments
• public transportation and terminals, depots, and stations
• restaurants and other places that serve food and drink
• any place of public gathering, such as an auditorium or convention center
• recreational facilities, such as gyms, zoos, and parks
• educational institutions, and
• social service centers, like senior centers, homeless shelters, and food banks.

What Are the Rules for Service Dogs in Louisiana?

The ADA and Louisiana law set similar limits on what a public accommodation can ask about your service animal. The federal and state laws are also similar regarding your service animal's behavior in public and fees for your service animal.

Your Rights When In Public With Your Service Dog in Louisiana

Under the ADA and Louisiana law, a public accommodation can't ask you questions about your disability or demand to see certification, identification, or other proof of your animal's training or status. If it's not apparent what your service animal does, the establishment can ask you only whether it's a service animal and what tasks it performs for you.

The ADA and Louisiana law both prohibit public accommodations from charging a special admission fee or requiring you to pay any other extra cost to have your service dog with you. However, you can be required to pay for any damage your animal causes.

When Can Service Dogs Be Barred From Public Accommodations?

Federal and state laws allow a public accommodation to exclude your service animal if it poses a direct threat to health and safety. For example, if your dog is aggressively barking and snapping at other customers, the facility can kick the dog out.

Your service animal can also be excluded if it isn't housebroken or if it's out of control and you're unable or unwilling to effectively control it. Even if your service animal isn't allowed in for one of these reasons, you're still entitled to enter the public accommodation.

Are Psychiatric Service Dogs or Emotional Support Animals Allowed in Louisiana Housing?

Both federal law (the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973) and Louisiana law prohibit discrimination in housing accommodations against those who use service dogs or psychiatric service animals. Under these laws, you must be allowed full and equal access to all housing facilities.

Service Dogs and ESAs as Reasonable Accommodations in Louisiana

Having an assistance animal in your home is considered a reasonable accommodation. So, if your lease or rental agreement includes a "no pets" provision, it doesn't apply to your assistance animal. Your landlord also can't charge you extra for having a service animal (although you'll likely have to pay for damage your animal causes).

Louisiana law limits these protections for assistance animals to service dogs. (La. Rev. Stat. § 1954.) However, federal housing discrimination laws include service dogs and emotional support animals, if necessary for someone with a disability to have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy the home. To fall under these provisions, you must have both of the following:

• a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, and
• a disability-related need for an assistance animal.

In other words, the animal must perform tasks or services or alleviate the emotional effects of your disability to qualify.

Louisiana Landlord's Rights Regarding Service Dogs and ESAs

Unlike the ADA, federal housing laws allow housing providers to ask for documentation of your disability and your need for the assistance animal (if either isn't apparent). For instance, a landlord can't ask a blind person for documentation of disability or the need for a guide dog but could ask a blind person to document the need for an emotional support ferret.

Like the ADA, federal housing laws allow landlords to exclude an assistance animal that poses a threat to the health and safety of other people or property if another reasonable accommodation can't be used to reduce the threat. But the exclusion should be based on actual evidence of the conduct of your animal and not because of its size or breed.

For more information, see HUD's page on assistance animals in housing.