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SERVICE DOGS AND ASSISTANCE ANIMALS IN VACATION RENTAL HOMES

Ocracoke Island Realty is a very animal-friendly environment. Many of our employees have pets, especially dogs. We encourage our rental properties to be pet friendly. Often times even our owners and guests will bring their pets with them when they stop by for a quick visit with the staff.

SERVICE ANIMALS ARE NOT PETS

We get a lot of requests to make reasonable accommodations for Service Dogs and Assistance Animals. Service animals are not pets, they are trained to work and provide assistance to their handlers. We are always willing to waive our normal Pet Fees and make accommodations for TRUE Service Dogs and Assistance Animals in our Pet Friendly and No Pet vacation rental properties in accordance with the ADA regulations and Fair Housing Laws, in which we are very well versed. However, as much as we all love dogs, as much as we respect service animals and what they do, and as much as we want everyone to be comfortable on vacation, we have a duty to our property owners and to future guests to uphold the rule of law. The laws governing Service Dogs and Assistance Animals are much more nuanced and in depth than one may think from a cursory search on the internet. There is a lot of false information out there.

PETS ARE NOT SERVICE ANIMALS

Unfortunately, we get a LOT of people that claim that their pet is a Service Dog or Assistance Animal. We know that there are a LOT of websites and organizations that will help people try to portray their pet as a Service Dog or Assistance Animal, without meeting any legal requirements; through online or mail-in “certifications”. Please know that currently there is not any type of legally recognized organization for registering Service Dogs or Assistance Animals. These websites are simply making money off people that do not know any better.

In reality, people who falsely claim a pet is a Service Dog or Assistance Animal can face extreme punishments, including hefty fines and even imprisonment. Know that out of our love and respect for Service Dogs and Assistance Animals, we have a zero-tolerance policy on misrepresentation, and we report all suspected offenders while pushing for full prosecution. We know that some people have been misinformed or misled by some websites and organizations that try to sell a “Service Dog” certification to owners for pets that really are not qualified or needed. If you are one of these people, we caution you.

ABOUT SERVICE DOGS

The ADA regulations provide that the work or tasks performed by the service dog must be directly related to the person’s disability and specifically mention the following examples:

  • assisting persons who are blind or have low vision to navigate or other tasks,
  • alerting persons who are deaf or hard of hearing to the presence of people or sounds,
  • assisting an individual having a seizure,
  • pulling a wheelchair,
  • alerting a person to the presence of allergens,
  • retrieving items such as medicine or the telephone,
  • providing physical support and assistance with balance or stability to a mobility-impaired person,
  • preventing or interrupting impulsive or destructive behaviors in persons with psychiatric or neurological disabilities.
ABOUT OUR POLICIES

As a licensed real estate company in North Carolina, we are committed to protecting our clients’ properties and ensuring they receive payment for their use. We provide two types of vacation rental properties in terms of pet and allergen policies:

  • Pet Friendly: Guests can bring pets by paying a pet fee, except for true service animals, which do not incur this fee.
  • No Pets: Guests are not allowed to bring pets to these properties, although property owners might have pets. True service animals are still permitted without a pet fee.

 

We offer a wide range of properties that welcome both pets and service/assistance animals. We warmly receive them and even provide check-in gifts for our four-legged visitors, regardless of whether they are pets or service animals. We have just two fair requests for our guests:

  1. Don’t try to represent your Pet as a Service Dog or Assistance Animal if it is not. A 10-minute online application and $65+ fee does not pass and is insulting to animals and owners that earned it through months or years of hard work and training.
  2. Don’t expect a property owner to pay or lose an additional $485 to $10,000+ for your TRUE Service Dog or Assistance Animal; that’s not what the laws intended nor state. We will do our best to find a property that works for you at no additional charges for your working animal. Please know that we have the utmost respect for the training and hard work this animal has been through.
BRINGING A SERVICE DOG OR ASSISTANCE ANIMAL

When planning to bring a service dog or assistance animal to an allowed vacation rental home:

  • All service dogs and assistance animals must be declared at the time of booking whenever possible and prior to the check-in date in all instances.
  • Be prepared to answer the following questions:
    • For Service Dogs:
      • Do you or a person in your party need this animal to accompany him/her due to a disability?
      • What work or tasks has the animal been trained to perform that relate to the disability?
    • For Assistance Animals:
      • Does the person seeking to bring the animal have a disability, i.e., a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities?
      • Does the animal work, provide assistance, perform tasks or services for the benefit of the person with the disability or provide emotional support that alleviates one or more of the identified symptoms or effects of the person’s disability?
  • We may require documentation from a physician, psychiatrist, or mental health professional stating that the animal provides support that alleviates one or more symptoms or effects of an existing disability. Such documentation is sufficient if it establishes that an individual has a disability and that the animal in question will provide disability related assistance.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding Service or Assistance animals, our pet policies, or training resources; please email me or call me.

Sincerely,

Kari Styron
General Manager
Ocracoke Island Realty

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