I
will probably be getting an emotional support animal, so it won't be
needing any training. Do some insurance companies help cover the costs?
Update:
I find it interesting my doctor considers emotional support animals in a way to be service animals, and a lot of you don't
Answer
Gregory:
Emotional
support animals and a service animal are NOT the same thing. Real
service animals have been extensively trained to help those with
physical disabilities (we are talking about animals that cost $15,000 if
you are lucky and live in a cheap area). It takes a lot of time &
money to train a service dogs and I don't know of any insurance that
will cover the costs. It is either out of pocket expenses or you apply
to a program that helps to defray the costs. Emotional support
animals are just any run of the mill dog / cat whose presence helps
relieve stress / anxiety...personally a load of sh$t for most people.
Nekkid:
An
esa is NOT a service dog. It is just a pet. So the cost is
however much YOU are willing to pay for a PET, be it from a rescue,
shelter or breeder.
No, insurance will not pay for it.
It doesn't matter what a Dr thinks. By LAW, an esa is NOT a service dog. A pet certainly is beneficial to many people, and therapeutic (much as any hobby could be). But it is not a service dog. You cannot take it in public to stores, restraunts etc.
No, insurance will not pay for it.
It doesn't matter what a Dr thinks. By LAW, an esa is NOT a service dog. A pet certainly is beneficial to many people, and therapeutic (much as any hobby could be). But it is not a service dog. You cannot take it in public to stores, restraunts etc.
Triggle:
No,
there is no financial help with emotional support animals. A lot of
insurance companies won't even pay for service animals. And service
animals are something different than emotional support animals. Which is
important because there are different laws for them. Whether your
doctor knows this or not is irrelevant. Look at the link below for an
explanation.
Any dog needs a lot of training to be a pleasant companion. Your dog will not make you feel better if the dog isn't house trained, pulls on a leash like crazy and barks day and night. Unless you get an adult dog which happens to be well trained you will have to learn how to train a dog. Dogs are a lot of work. It depends on you whether you find it more a chore or fun.
As a rule of thumb $1000 yearly expenses for a dog is realistic.
Any dog needs a lot of training to be a pleasant companion. Your dog will not make you feel better if the dog isn't house trained, pulls on a leash like crazy and barks day and night. Unless you get an adult dog which happens to be well trained you will have to learn how to train a dog. Dogs are a lot of work. It depends on you whether you find it more a chore or fun.
As a rule of thumb $1000 yearly expenses for a dog is realistic.
Anonymous:
Emotional Support Animals are NOT the same as service animals. They're
normal pets owned by the mentally or emotionally disabled that have a
mitigating effect on the disability by providing comfort or affection.
Their cost is the same as any other pet. While they may receive special
treatment in some rental housing and domestic air flights when
accompanied by documentation from your treating mental health
professional, they cannot be taken to other public locations that don't
allow pets unless your state law makes a special provision for that.
There is NO cost assistance from insurance for you to own a pet. There
is NO cost assistance for service dogs from insurance, either. Service
dogs run in the area of $25,000-$50,000 USD depending on the types of
tasks they are trained for. Some nonprofit training programs may offer
cost assistance. However, you would need to require the dog to perform
actual tasks to assist you to qualify for a service dog, not merely
provide emotional support.
Star-o-Darkness:
You
are not disabled so you can't have one. They cost thousands since they
come from breeders that only bred service dogs and it takes a year or
more to train them.
You can't adopt a dog and lie about it being a service dog since you can't have one.
An ESA is only a pet. its not a service dog at all. You can't have it in stores, can't take on public transport, can't have it in pet free rentals and have to leave it at home. And you have to be under the care of a docter to have one.
Not to mention haveing an ESA means you will be branded as so mentally or emotionally unstable that you have to have a dog to use as an unhealthy crutch by every one around you. This will cost you jobs since mangers don't want someone who is potently so unstable they have to have a dog around them all the time to make them feel good. It will cost you rentals since Ll never have to allow ESA. It will cost you a lot.
Doesn't matter how you feel about it. That's the was society will treat you.
"Do some insurance companies help cover the costs?"
No. An ESA is only a pet therefore they wont cover anything.
"I find it interesting my doctor considers emotional support animals in a way to be service animals, and a lot of you don't"
Sure he does. Sure. An ESA is only a pet. You can't have it in pet free rentals,. you can't lie and call it a service dog since its not, you can't have it on public transport, can't be in stores with it.
You can't adopt a dog and lie about it being a service dog since you can't have one.
An ESA is only a pet. its not a service dog at all. You can't have it in stores, can't take on public transport, can't have it in pet free rentals and have to leave it at home. And you have to be under the care of a docter to have one.
Not to mention haveing an ESA means you will be branded as so mentally or emotionally unstable that you have to have a dog to use as an unhealthy crutch by every one around you. This will cost you jobs since mangers don't want someone who is potently so unstable they have to have a dog around them all the time to make them feel good. It will cost you rentals since Ll never have to allow ESA. It will cost you a lot.
Doesn't matter how you feel about it. That's the was society will treat you.
"Do some insurance companies help cover the costs?"
No. An ESA is only a pet therefore they wont cover anything.
"I find it interesting my doctor considers emotional support animals in a way to be service animals, and a lot of you don't"
Sure he does. Sure. An ESA is only a pet. You can't have it in pet free rentals,. you can't lie and call it a service dog since its not, you can't have it on public transport, can't be in stores with it.
Lakelady:
No. They don't. Some organizations will help with service dogs.
EDIT, as to the disparity between what your doctor thinks and others, there is a relatively new designation for ESA's. By law an ESA is an "assistance animal" and is covered both in a clause in the ADA and two clauses in the fair housing act. The parameters are the same as always though and insurance companies don't cover them.
EDIT, as to the disparity between what your doctor thinks and others, there is a relatively new designation for ESA's. By law an ESA is an "assistance animal" and is covered both in a clause in the ADA and two clauses in the fair housing act. The parameters are the same as always though and insurance companies don't cover them.
Bluebonned:
They
require no training. An ESA is just a pet so soothe you when you get
home from daily activities. It does not provide an service to you, it
is just there. Any body can have an ESA, it is just a pet &
nothing more. It doesn't even have to be a dog, it can be any animal
that you can connect to. A bunny rabbit would serve the same purpose.
The only reason for an ESA is to allow you to have a pet when your living arrangements say NO PETS. & ESA is an exception. That is the only advantage of having an ESA. I don't think you understand what an ESA is. I know it is not what you think it is.
The only reason for an ESA is to allow you to have a pet when your living arrangements say NO PETS. & ESA is an exception. That is the only advantage of having an ESA. I don't think you understand what an ESA is. I know it is not what you think it is.
