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Can I Have 2 Emotional Support Animals?

According to Service Dog Certifications, you can have 2 or more emotional support animals.
The presence of a furry or a scaly or a feathery companion can provide a form of unconditional love, acceptance, and support. This is why many mental health professionals are now prescribing an Emotional Support Animal to those patients that would benefit the most.
In this post, we will discuss the number of emotional support animals allowed, the laws governing ESAs, and how a person can get a legitimate Emotional Support Animal letter.
How Many Emotional Support Animals Can I Have?
You can have more than one ESA. There are no specific rules stating the maximum number of ESAs you may have. As long as the animal(s) does not violate any state or local laws and your therapist agrees your ESAs are there for your well-being, you can have more than one emotional support animal. The number of emotional support animals you have must also make sense. For example, having one or more horses in an apartment may not be feasible.
The Fair Housing Act states that a landlord, building manager, or owner of any rental unit must make reasonable accommodations for a person with an emotional support animal. As long as this reasonable accommodation clause does not cause any undue burden to the rental unit’s landlord, manager or owner.
The health and wellbeing of the ESA must also be addressed. All animals will need to be fed, groomed and given veterinarian care. Does your budget allow for these financial extras?
Can my landlord deny reasonable accommodations if I have multiple ESAs?
There are only a couple of circumstances that may allow your landlord to reject your emotional support animals.
When it comes to multiple ESAs, it would depend on the species and number of animals that are being housed. For example; 6 large dogs that bark in a small apartment or 2 goats in a condo can be considered an undue financial burden to the property owner. Thus, challenging the reasonable accommodation clause.
How Do I Get an Official ESA Letter?
There is a simple process that needs to be followed to either make an existing pet an Emotional Support Animal or if you are going to adopt a new animal.
Step # 1 – Work with a Mental Health Professional
The law states that you must be working with a mental health professional such as a therapist, psychologist or psychiatrist. This mental health professional must then write you a prescription for the ESA in the form of an ESA letter.
Step # 2 – Get a legitimate ESA Letter from a Therapist
The letter is more than a few words scribbled onto your doctor’s prescription pad. The document must include or state –
- – Your therapist believes that an Emotional Support Animal would be beneficial in your treatment plan
- – The laws that protect you as an Emotional Support Animal handler
- – Your therapist’s direct contact information and licensing information
- – Written on your therapist’s official letterhead
The letter is typically only valid for one year.
Step # 3 – What if you do not have access to a therapist?
You may choose to work with a legitimate online ESA letter referral company. Not all online referral companies are the same. A few things to look out for –
- Referral services that provide “instant approval” or are priced too low (under $100) – a real licensed therapist’s time is more valuable
- Referral services that pair you with an out of state therapist
- Make sure that your therapist’s licensing information is listed on the ESA letter
Step # 4 – Register your Animal(s) and order your ESA License and Certificate
You are not legally required to have your ESAs registered, but some people chose to do so for the benefits. Certifying your emotional support animals will put you into a database, as well as provide you with custom identification cards, vest, and certificate.
Having this extra validation will help when you are applying for housing or booking a flight with your emotional support animal.
One, Two or More ESA’s Work!
When deciding how many emotional support animals are necessary, consider the space and time you have along with your finances. Once you have your ESA(s) and the letter you need from your mental health professional to make it legitimate you are well on your way to living a happier and healthier life.
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Can you have two ESAs under one letter or do you need two letters, one for each ESA, from your therapist?
Yes, you can multiple ESAs covered in one letter. Under HUD guidelines, there is no limit to how many ESAs you can have, but each ESA has to be recommended by your licensed healthcare professional to individually help you as part of your treatment. So your licensed professional must mention the exact number of ESAs in the one ESA letter. Airlines, however, will generally only allow you to fly with one ESA.
You may find this article that I’ve found on another website interesting – it discusses exactly the question of how many ESAs you can have https://esadoctors.com/how-many-emotional-support-animals-can-you-have/.
I was more-so asking what do I need to do in order to find a therapist to help me? What questions would I need to ask in order to know if their therapist is right for me.
Can you bring two emotional support dogs into a store at one time? That’s what someone is doing in our little food co-op and it is causing problems for the employees who don’t want to create a disturbance but must answer to the questions of other shopper.
ESAs have no public rights access, that is only service animals. If someone tries to say that they are allowed to bring emotional support animals into a non-pet friendly establishment they are lying. Another thing, emotional service animals are also not a thing. Mental health service animals are, I hope this helps 🙂
Emotional support animals on not the same as service animals emotional service animal is solely so the owner can bring them into an apartment or on an airplane.
more and more people are getting an esa letter and telling restaurants that they are allowed to bring it in that is not true they are not allowed to bring dogs into grocery stores and the likes.
but that’s what people do they try to take advantage they want to bring their dog everywhere they’re on buses now and McDonald’s and customers are afraid service animals are for the blind and disabled but the esa dogs is solely that they cannot refuse Tenancy or to board a flight with such animal
My daughter at 16yr has severe anxiety and emotional moods. She has 2 dogs and they give her some great love!
This has been very helpful. I too have 2 esa dogs. One is my husband one is mine. Our management changes our manages constantly. I’m constantly having to update them on my beloved esa dogs. So far it’s been ok. However I’m afraid I’m going to run into a manager that’s going to give me grief. I’m glad the law backs us up. My babies enrich my life and truely help with my anxiety.
Call animal control. Plain and simple. If they cannot take the dogs from her this will at least be a wake up call that she is being watched and needs to do better or she will lose them. I speak from a little personal experience….
I have had my dogs for 5 years where I live. It is one pet but my dogs are esa for 2 of my kids. One has mood disorder and one has Tourette’s with emotional disturbance. My land lord all of a sudden says I can’t have them. I have papers from the dr and they are up to date with the shots and are nutered. This is the new manager and she has known for 2 years now about them without it being a problem. What can I do
Provide your written letters regarding BOTH dogs and send it to the landlord immediately and their lawyer. They can not dispute a ESA letter from a license mental health provider
My landlord wants to evict me for getting am esa in addition to my 2 other companion animals. What do I do
I live in hud housing
I had a similar issue with my landlord. They were unaware of the law regarding ESA animals so I googled the laws and gave them copies both hard and sent via email along with a copy of the letter from my daughter’s therapist.
esa letter you got from your therapist should have his contact information explain that you do fit the criteria to have these esa dogs and to State the laws that protect this right that you have your landlord might have an attitude problem about it but he cannot legally make you give up your dogs
I feel that this is big help deciding whether or not to register anyone’s dogs as a esa dog
My neighbor has 2 dogs who she does not take to a certified vet. She does not feed them properly and the new one chews on things and drops toys and chewed items onto my patio. She has left her out in the rain on the balcony for hours and fed her out there. She does not walk these dogs or exercise in any way. She had left the one alone for days with no one checking or feeding her during those days. She does not have them for support. Plus her physician, not her psychiatrist gave the permission. This is a small one bedroom. The shepherd is young and untrained. But large. She already had a dog she did not take care of. Plus there is the barking. It is beyond disturbing. And she ignores it. I have tried getting help with those giving the licenses as I am an animal advocate when I can be. Other tenants are remarking on the cruelty of not exercising and especially leaving her out in the rain and not having the room. Who is in charge and needs to see to their well being? Why isn’t there someone to check on the companion animals? Kathleen Waterbury,
This has been very helpful. I too have 2 esa dogs. One is my husband one is mine. Our management changes our manages constantly. I’m constantly having to update them on my beloved esa dogs. So far it’s been ok. However I’m afraid I’m going to run into a manager that’s going to give me grief. I’m glad the law backs us up. My babies enrich my life and truely help with my anxiety.