Whether they live with students or are simply passing through campus, animals are a part of Elizabethtown College. There are two main types of animals that can live in student housing: assistance animals and service animals.

Assistance animals are the largest group out of the two. There are currently 27 assistance animals living on campus with about one and a half percent of students owning an assistant animal, according to Director of Disability Services and Director of the Learning Zone Lynne Davies.

Davies recalled students having a variety of species, such as turtles, rabbits, hamsters, cats, chinchillas, mice, bearded dragons and lizards live with them as assistant animals. She also believes they have been beneficial for students.

Service animals are different from assistance animals in that they can go anywhere on campus with their owner. This is because service animals are highly trained to perform specific tasks to help a person with a disability. There are currently no service animals living on campus, according to Davies.

Service animals are also protected under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Assistant animals are only protected under FHA, meaning they can live with a student on campus but cannot go to class with the student. They are considered a housing accommodation.

Under the Rehabilitation Act and ADA, only dogs and miniature ponies can be service animals. The only restriction placed on assistance animals is that they must be a species that can reasonably fit in a dorm room or apartment. Davies’s example was that students cannot have a giraffe live with them on campus.

The main role of an assistance animal is to provide friendship, security, a calming presence and emotional support to their owner. People often perceive assistance animals as helping those diagnosed with mental disorders, but they may also help students with physical illnesses.

Davies’s example was a student with rheumatoid arthritis requesting a dog to keep them warm during the night and provide motivation to get up in the morning despite the joint pain and soreness. Davies stressed that assistance animals are meant to increase students’ access to housing and are considered on a case-by-case basis because everyone’s situation is different.

Students must fill out a form, which is available on the Disability Services page of the Etown website, provide documentation from a healthcare provider that knows the student well and meet with Davies to request to have an assistance animal live with them.

Junior Hannah Seaver owns an assistance animal named after the Harry Potter character Dobby. He is a four-month-old gray tuxedo kitten that has been living with her for a couple weeks.

“It’s nice to come back after a stressful day and just relax and chill with him because he’s very cuddly and loving,” Seaver said.

Dobby is also friendly and often rubs against her legs and jumps on her lap. Seaver has found that Dobby has helped her learn responsibility, as well, especially since he currently needs to take medication for an upper respiratory infection. He has also helped her bond with her roommates.

Davies agreed that assistance animals often help more people than just their owner. She has had students tell her that they visit friends’ or neighbors’ assistance animals to help relieve stress or simply to cuddle with the animal.

Senior Brittany Romano lives with assistance animal Oliver. He is a one-year-old Jack Russel-Yorkie mix that has been living with her since May 2017. For her, he makes life more exciting. She trained him to do tricks and to ring a bell to let her know he needs to go out.

“It’s exciting to see him do tricks,” Romano said.

Oliver used to only ring the bell when he needed to, but now he rings it throughout the day, making Romano’s life interesting. Seaver’s cat Dobby has also made her life interesting. He climbs up her leg while she is feeding him and rips the litter tray liner.

Junior Victoria Tassallo also has an assistance animal named Maxwell. He is a nine-year-old pitbull that has lived with her since September 2017. She feels he is a good companion and can read her emotions.

“He’s chill when I’m chill. He gets excited about what I get excited about, except chicken. He is more excited about chicken than I am,” Tassallo said.

Tassallo has also found that walking Maxwell helps relieve stress. They go on 45-minute walks every evening. She likes that he motivates her to exercise.

Romano has found that taking care of her dog Oliver has been beneficial for her, as well. She enjoys when he sits and smiles at her. Romano plans to train Oliver to be a therapy dog, so she can bring him into hospitals and share his positive, calming influence with patients.

Therapy dogs from KPETS often visit Etown and help students destress, especially during midterms and finals week. Unlike assistance animals, therapy dogs are trained to provide affection and comfort to people and are certified to enter places like hospitals, nursing homes and schools.

Another type of animal on campus is pets. Currently, the only pets allowed to live in campus housing are non-carnivorous fish in an aquarium that holds 10 gallons of water or less, as stated in the Residence Life section of the Student Handbook. Starting Fall 2018, there will be pet-friendly housing options in the Royer and Myer residence halls.

“I think we’re going to see benefits,” Davies said. “Students are going to appreciate benefits for conditions that don’t rise to the level of diagnosis.”