NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Bringing your emotional support animal into a restaurant in Tennessee will now be illegal.
A new law bans emotional support animals (ESA) from going inside restaurants or grocery stores, unless they’re trained or being trained to perform tasks or work for a person with a disability.
Gov. Bill Lee signed the new law on Friday, March 15. The bill was originally filed in January by state Rep. Kirk Haston (R-Lobelville) and state Sen. Page Walley (R-Savannah). It was met with mixed reaction online from News 2 viewers.
Some called it “lame” and “ridiculous” on Facebook. Others were in agreement the new law, commenting, “Good, they are just pets.”
Parker Fillmore is the owner of Dog Training Elite in Nashville and works to train service dogs. He said since the bill was first introduced, he’s had more inquiries from people wanting to certify their pets.
“We’ve had a variety of clients – clients that have ESAs with disabilities – they have looked into us for that further training or to get that certified service dog, and we’ve helped them with that route,” Fillmore said.
The Nashville-based dog trainer also said there is a distinct difference between service animals, emotional support animals, and therapy animals.
“An emotional support animal is an animal that’s exactly that: it provides emotional support. They are protected under the Fair Housing Act, but they do not hold the same rights as a service dog. A service dog is a dog that is trained to perform tasks for an individual with a disability. We’re going to train that dog to do certain tasks to manage situations out in public. A therapy dog is a dog that provides emotional support to a group of people,” said Fillmore.
When it comes to canines, ESAs are also not considered service dogs under the American Disabilities Act (ADA). Fillmore told News 2 in an interview, as more people look to get their ESAs certified, it’s important to know what’s involved in the process.
“First of all, we want to make sure that that person has a disability that requires a service dog. That’s super important. Next, we’re going to evaluate temperament of that dog to see whether or not they’re going to be able to perform those tasks and also be able to handle themselves in public,” Fillmore said.
