Traveling With Your Service Animal or ESA - A Step-By-Step Guide

Traveling with a service animal or emotional support animal is a necessity for people, who are suffering from certain kind of psychological illness and are prescribed ESA's for recovery. Almost all travel carriers legally allow both emotional support animals and service animals without any extra charge. However, this allowance is based on some needful or particular legal documents that clearly mentions that the animal serves the individuals for recovery of their psychological or emotional disabilities. Having fulfilled the required legal documentation, you can easily get your ESA or service animal with you during travelling.

Requirements to Proof an Animal a Service Animal or ESA

As per the federal law, an animal is categorized as an emotional support animal or service animal with the help of a letter of recognition provided by a certified medical practitioner. This letter serves as the only source of identity and protection for the emotional support animal or ESA. Having the service animal travel letter with you is sufficient to prove that you are carrying a service animal and not a pet. The service animal letter is the legal document, you need to show at various checkpoints when you are travelling anywhere with your emotional support animal or service animal.

Benefits of Having a Service Animal Letter

Carrying a service animal letter has many benefits, such as:

1. Free Allowance for Traveling in Trains, Flights, Cruise Ships, Taxis, etc
2. Unlike the Other Pets, the Service Animals Experiences Special Treatment
3. Rather than a storage crate, Service animals travel with the cabin of an airplane
4. No extra Charges can be taken for the service animals
5. And many more

The legal recognition that service animal letters provide enable the emotional support animals to experience a wide number of advantages while travelling.

Upon arrival at the TSA checkpoints usually while travelling in flights, there are special lanes for passengers travelling with animals. The passengers travelling with their ESA or service animals are usually advised to use these lanes.

Needful Mentioned in the Service Animal Letters

When you desire to travel with a dog as an emotional support or psychiatric service animal, then you will need to ensure that your animal is harnessed properly. You should provide supporting documentation in the form of an original letter on the letterhead of a certified psychologist. A service animal letter is only prescribed to individuals, who have any sort of psychological or emotional disability.

The letter should clearly state or confirm that:

• The individual carrying the ESA or service animal with them is having a disability recognized by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
• You essential need the companionship of your dog or emotional or psychiatric support animal during travel
• The letter is provided by a licensed medical practitioner

The service animal letter should also include information about the medical practitioner providing the letter (i.e. the type of the license, date issued, issuing authority, etc).

Thus, if you are travelling with your ESA or service animal, then having a service animal travel letter with you is a must.

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