Those of us who teach (and yes, preach) about fair housing are regularly and routinely asked “Do we have to take restricted breeds as service animals?”  That question is never easy to answer (at least not easy for me), since State laws and various court cases are not consistent on this topic and issue. And let’s be honest – the question is usually a paraphrase of “Do we have to take pit bulls?”  (Right or wrong, when we hear on the news that tragically a child has been mauled or killed by a dog, we usually do not wonder if the canine involved is a Peek-a-poo.)

Well, now the question will be easier for me answer when asked, but you probably won’t like the answer.  And continuing with the “let’s be honest” theme here, I will admit that I don’t like the answer that I will be giving.  This is one of the (not very often) times that I disagree with what HUD is saying.   

Recently, on April 25, 2013 to be exact, HUD issued a notice about service animals, updating and clarifying some of the issues that relate to integrating service animals into the multifamily housing environment.  Included in that notice was a discussion about limitations.  Here goes, directly cut-and-pasted from HUD’s document: Breed, size, and weight limitations may not be applied to an assistance animal. A determination that an assistance animal poses a direct threat of harm to others or would cause substantial physical damage to the property of others must be based on an individualized assessment that relies on objective evidence about the specific animal's actual conduct — not on mere speculation or fear about the types of harm or damage an animal may cause and not on evidence about harm or damage that other animals have caused.

Yep, you read correctly.  You cannot automatically limit a service animal by breed.  If your policy excludes certain breeds as pets, that policy does not apply to service animals.  So while statistically pit bulls and Rottweilers may be the breeds of dogs that account for the most dog bites/attacks, you cannot automatically keep them from your community when they are assisting a person with a disability (PWD).  And that includes when the assistance is for emotional support, which will likely be the scenario.  You must engage in an interactive dialogue with the PWD and assess their dog on an individualized and objective basis.  And I don’t know exactly what that means (and HUD certainly did not give “guidance” on that).  I believe that asking the PWD for permission to discuss the animal with the PWD’s veterinarian (technically the dog’s veterinarian) would be reasonable, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that HUD, a judge or a jury would think Nadeen to be correct on this.

Consider yourselves to be forewarned.  Don’t reject a particular breed of dog as a service animal without careful and documented objective consideration.

And quite honestly, whatever decision you make could, in one way or another, come back to bite you!