Brigham Young University of Idaho’s Stance of Service Animals on Campus
To all employees of Brigham Young University of Idaho
10/20/2022
I am writing to clarify as to where the university stands on bringing service animals to campus. It
is important that all faculty and staff are up to date and aware of BYU-Idaho's complacency with
the Americans with Disabilities Act in the employment setting, and the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 (Section 504), in the academic setting.
All employees of the university are required to allow a service animal to accompany their owner
at all times and in all places on campus as stated in the Consolidated Assistance Animal/Guide
Dog Laws section I.C. § 18-5812A. This is exempt from where animals are specifically
prohibited in the building.
Service animals are working animals, not pets. Examples of such work or tasks include guiding
people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting
a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed
medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety
attack, or performing other duties.
Not all service animals are visibly service animals. When it is not obvious what service an
animal provides, only limited inquiries are allowed. Staff may ask two questions: (1) is the dog a
service animal required because of a disability, and (2) what work or task has the dog been
trained to perform. Staff cannot ask about the person’s disability, require medical documentation,
require a special identification card or training documentation for the dog, or ask that the dog
demonstrate its ability to perform the work or task.
Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service
animals under the ADA. Animals that do not qualify as service animals are not permitted on
campus.
While on campus, under the ADA service animals must be harnessed, leashed, or tethered, unless
the individual's disability prevents them from using these devices or these devices interfere with
the service animals’ safe, effective performance of tasks. To the extent possible, the service
animal should be unobtrusive to other students and the learning environment.
A person with a disability cannot be asked to remove his service animal from the premises
unless: (1) the dog is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it or
(2) the dog is not housebroken. When there is a legitimate reason to ask that a service animal be
removed, staff must offer the person with the disability the opportunity to obtain goods or
services without the animal’s presence.
Resources to the specific policy Brigham Young University of Idaho has implicated can be
viewed per this link. All employees must abide by this policy regardless of outer circumstances.
Please reach out with any following questions you might have on the matter.
This is an unpublished Professional Memo that was written for the “Writing For A Communication Career” Course at Brigham Young University in - Fall of 2022.
The objective of the assignment - “Develop writing skills for a professional work environment.”