Service Animals  @UTMB

UTMB follows the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act as Amended (ADAAA) regarding the appropriate use of service animals at our facilities.

A service animal is defined by the ADA as any breed and size of dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with disabilities.

Some common tasks include:

• Guiding a person who is blind or has low vision
• Alerting a person to a sound
• Pulling a wheelchair
• Alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure
• Reminding a person to take medication
• Calming a person during an anxiety attack
• Retrieving dropped items, pressing elevator buttons, etc.

The work or tasks a service animal has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability. A dog whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support does not qualify as a service animal under the ADA.

A service animal is not required to be certified or go through a professional training program and does not have to wear a vest or other type of identification.

Employees requiring the use of a service animal in the workplace must have a permanent job accommodation.

Under Title I of the ADA service animals are considered a reasonable accommodation. An employee must request that the service animal be present as an accommodation for their disability. Under Title II and III of the ADA, only dogs are considered service animals.  However, under Title I, in the workplace, there is no such definition and technically no limit to what type of animal can be a reasonable accommodation.  This means that accommodating an emotional support animal may be an appropriate reasonable accommodation.

To request an accommodation, please contact UTMB’s Institutional ADA Office at email the Institutional ADA Office or call them at (409) 747-4818.

All accommodations are considered on an individual basis through a collaborative and interactive process