ADA

Emotional Support Animals

Under the Fair Housing Act, a support animal is an animal that provides therapeutic emotional support to a student with a disability. In contrast to service animals, support animals must remain in the student’s personal residence and cannot be brought to public common spaces.

An individual may keep an emotional support animal as an accommodation in campus housing if all of the following apply:

The individual has a disability.
The animal is necessary to afford the individual an equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling.
There is an identifiable relationship between the disability and the emotional support the animal provides. Emotional Support Animals are NOT allowed in any other college buildings.

EXCEPTIONS

The College may exclude an emotional support animal from campus housing if the animal: is not housebroken; would cause substantial physical damage to the property of others or college facilities; would pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others; would fundamentally alter the nature of a program or activity; or is not being cared for by the individual. Students will be liable for damage caused by emotional support animals in the same manner they are responsible for personal damages to any Vernon College property.

RESONSIBILITIES OF INDIVIDUALS WITH EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS

Vernon College is not responsible for the care or supervision of an emotional support animal. Individuals with disabilities are responsible for the control of their emotional support animals at all times and for ensuring the immediate clean-up and proper disposal of all animal waste. Individuals must comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including vaccination, animal health and leash laws, as well as Vernon College's rules in lease provisions regarding vaccination, leash control, cleanup rules, animal health, and community relationships.

Students with a disability who desire to reside with a support animal should submit an application to the Office for Students with Disabilities. The use of an animal in campus housing must be approved through the Office for Students with Disabilities prior to being able to bring the animal into any residence hall.

PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS FOR EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS

All Emotional Support Animal requests must be submitted to the Office for Students with Disabilities, located in Wright Library, Room 217, 4400 College Drive, Vernon, TX.

No animal will be permitted in a residence hall that:

Is not approved by the Office for Students with Disabilities
Poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others
Would cause substantial physical damage to university property and other residents
Would fundamentally alter the nature of the college’s housing operations

Standards for approved emotional support animals:

Support animals may be dogs, cats, small birds, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, other rodents, fish, turtles, and other small, domesticated animals that are traditionally kept in the home for pleasure rather than for commercial purposes. If an individual requests to keep a unique type of animal that is not commonly kept in households, then the requestor has the substantial burden of demonstrating a disability-related therapeutic need for the specific animal or the specific type of animal.
There are no restrictions on animal breed; however, animal size may need to be considered on a case-by-case basis.
All approved emotional support animals must comply with applicable laws regarding animals, including Chapter 8 - Animals and Fowl of Vernon Code of Ordinances, their treatment, and care.

STANDARDS OF BEHAVIOR BY ANIMAL AND ANIMAL OWNER

Health, sanitary, safety, and disruptive standards must be maintained as follows:

Animals require daily food and attention, as well as a daily assessment of their general health, behavior and overall welfare.
Animals cannot be left unattended overnight at any time. If the owner must be away, they must either take the animal with them, or make arrangements for them to be cared for elsewhere, which does not include other residence hall spaces.
Emotional support animals must not be taken into a residence hall or apartment office, administrative offices, or common space.
Animal waste must be taken care of immediately and in a sanitary manner. Animal feces, defined as cat litter box contents and any solid animal waste, must be disposed of properly. It is the owner's responsibility to remove feces from college grounds, dispose of it in a plastic bag, and then place that bag in the garbage dumpsters outside. Cleanup must occur immediately. Animal feces may not be disposed of in any trash receptacle or through the sewer system inside any building on the college campus. Waste must be taken to a dumpster for disposal.
Residents with cats must properly maintain litter boxes. In consideration of the health of the cat and occupants of the residence hall room, cat litter box contents must be disposed of properly and regularly. The litter box must be changed with new cat litter regularly as outlined by the manufacturer.
Animal accidents within the residence hall room or apartment must be promptly cleaned up using appropriate cleaning products. Delay could damage flooring or other property.
Regular and routine cleaning of floors, kennels, cages, and litter boxes must occur. The odor of an animal emanating from the residence hall room or apartment is not acceptable (see Cleaning Section below).
Any flea or tick infestation must be attended to promptly by a contracted professional extermination company at owner's expense. Owners are expected to promptly notify the Housing Director and arrange for extermination when a flea problem is noted. Animal owners may take some precautionary measures such as flea medications prescribed by veterinarians, flea and tick collars, and taking your animal to the veterinarian for flea and tick baths. Because not all of the precautions listed above can prevent flea and tick infestations, the animal owner is responsible for extermination costs after vacating the residence hall room.
Animals must not be allowed to disrupt others (e.g., barking continuously, growling, yowling, howling, etc.). Animals which constitute a threat or nuisance to staff, residents or property, as determined by the Housing Director, designee, or campus police must be removed within seven (7) calendar days of notification. If Vernon College Police Department personnel determine an animal poses an immediate threat, animal control may be summoned to remove the animal. If the behavior of the animal can be addressed by the owner, and the owner can change the behavior of the animal so that it does not have to be removed, then a written action plan must be submitted by the owner. The action plan must outline the action to take place to alleviate the problems and also must give a deadline as to length of time the plan will take to complete. Any action plan must meet the approval of the Housing Director or designee. The day after the deadline for removal from the residence hall, housing staff will do a room inspection to check damages and infestation, and a mandatory cleaning and extermination will be scheduled. Any animal owner found not adhering to the removal directive will be subject to disciplinary action, which could include contract cancellation and loss of housing privileges.
An animal must not be involved in an incident where a person experiences either the threat of or an actual injury as a result of the animal's behavior. The animal owner will take all reasonable precautions to protect college staff and residents, as well as the property of the college and that of the residents.
The owner will notify the Housing Director if the animal has escaped its confines and is unable to be located within eight (8) hours.
All liability for the actions of the animal (bites, scratches, etc.) is the responsibility of the owner. Violations concerning any of the aforementioned may result in the resident having to find alternative housing off-campus for the animal and, as warranted, may also result in a resident being in breach of their housing contract.

CLEANING AND DAMAGES

When the resident moves out of his/her residence hall room, or no longer owns the animal, the residence hall room will be assessed to determine if damage to property can be attributed to the animal. The Housing Director maintains the right to conduct residence hall room inspections annually for the purpose of assessing damage caused by the animal or otherwise determine the resident's compliance with this procedure.
The animal owner has an obligation to make sure that the apartment or residence hall room is as clean as the original standard. Damages and extraordinary cleaning caused by the animal are the responsibility of the resident. Replacement or repair of damaged items will be the financial responsibility of the owner and assessed by the Housing Director.

REQUIREMENTS FOR SUPPORT ANIMAL APPROVAL

Requirements for emotional support animal approval include:

Office for Students with Disabilities Application for Accommodations

Acknowledgement & Information Form which provides animal information and the animal's health affirmation
Signed Emotional Support Animal Procedure Form wherein the student agrees to the maintenance of the animal
Signed Roommate(s) agreement if the student has one or more roommates.

If you have any questions about emotional support animals in Vernon College Housing, please contact the Office for Students with Disabilities at (940) 552-6291 ex. 2308 or e-mail pass@vernoncollege.edu.