Original Message:
Sent: 11-08-2024 01:19 PM
From: Vickie Ramirez
Subject: Welcome & Introduce Yourself to the One Health Community!
Just to add on to the topic of ESA letters, as a One Health Clinic, we also try to assess and support the animal in being someone's ESA. Not all animals are prepared to play the role, so we try to also consider their health in that relationship and what we can do to provide more support for the animal. We have a template for the ESA Letter we use at our clinics if anyone would like to also have a space for veterinary input on your letters. You can find it in the resource section of our free One Health Clinic toolkit (https://www.onehealthclinic.org/) under human healthcare
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Vickie Ramirez
Program Manager
University of Washington, One Health Clinic
WA
Original Message:
Sent: 11-08-2024 12:36 PM
From: Vanessa Hidden
Subject: Welcome & Introduce Yourself to the One Health Community!
Hi T',
Apologies that I missed this response earlier! However, I have connected with MDIMH's Founder, Christine Kim, to source some resources for you and the forum. She does note however, "Not all of these are ordinances or laws. Some of these are municipal/state strategies or funding opportunities, which still indicate that pets are allowed since there are government resources being made available for the effort."
There's also quite a bit of information on the role of ESAs in housing and who can write an ESA letter (it doesn't have to be a licensed mental health professional, although that's ideal). Anyone on a person's health team or with familiarity with the person's situation can write this letter, this includes peer supports, adoption counselors, case managers, etc. There are also a lot of templates available online for these letters. All this to say, it's still important to check with local laws and specific housing organizations, as these tend to be where nuances arise in what is accepted.
For extreme restrictions and denials of requests for accommodation, many local legal aid offices are ready to help by supporting rights under the law and clarifying all the steps necessary for getting your accommodation request fulfilled.
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Vanessa Hidden
Co-Sheltering Collaborative Administrator
My Dog Is My Home
Original Message:
Sent: 11-07-2024 12:48 PM
From: T' Fisher
Subject: Welcome & Introduce Yourself to the One Health Community!
I attended the webinar last week or so about ESA's and how social workers can help by writing letters of support for their clients need for their emotional support animal to help them secure housing. It was very informative!
A few of us also discussed service dogs vs emotional support animals and the differences. (I was placed with my service dog just over a year ago, and I know first hand what a life line and game changer these dogs are for those of us with a disability!) Someone commented their client had a service animal that was a bird. It was an educational opportunity for them to learn that only dogs can be service animals in the U.S. per ADA, but any species can qualify as an Emotional Support Animal or Assistance Animal per the U .S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
YES, please share with us some examples of community-specific ordinances in favor of co-sheltering! That would be a great resource for our social workers and other mental health professionals in this forum. Thank you!
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T' Fisher, Director of Operations
Program for Pet Health Equity
Original Message:
Sent: 10-01-2024 03:47 PM
From: Vanessa Hidden (she/her/hers)
Subject: Welcome & Introduce Yourself to the One Health Community!
Hi T',
Absolutely, I'd be happy to contribute to our resources! I'll be connecting with Christine again soon to ensure I don't miss anything that might be helpful here, but generally speaking, states tend to allow counties, cities, and often individual organizations to decide their own rules. Federally, we have the Fair Housing Act that requires reasonable accommodation from housing/shelter providers for assistance animals, including emotional support animals. Typically, service animals are dogs and emotional support animals are dogs or cats, with some exceptions. The reasonable accommodation request can be denied as noted in the link,
"The request may be denied if the animal poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by a second reasonable accommodation. The request may also be denied if the animal would cause substantial physical damage to the property of others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by an additional reasonable accommodation. HUD guidance emphasizes the necessity of individual determination in every request and any concern about dangerousness cannot be based on speculative concern or fear."
That being said, typically, local legal aid offices can assist individuals who have had their requests denied.
We can also pull some examples of community-specific ordinances in favor of co-sheltering to share here. Just let me know if there's anything else that might be helpful! :)
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Vanessa Hidden
Co-Sheltering Collaborative Administrator
My Dog is My Home
Original Message:
Sent: 09-19-2024 11:37 AM
From: T' Fisher
Subject: Welcome & Introduce Yourself to the One Health Community!
Welcome Vanessa!
Yes, My Dog Is My Home is a fabulous organization helping so many families! i am glad you have joined us. Please keep us current on all things going on with My Dog Is My Home and any calls to action that others here may be able to help with.
As we collect all types of resources around "One Health" in this forum, would you be able to provide us with a file (we can put in the library to download or a link to reference) of any state laws or city/county ordinances that allow co-housing of humans and their non human family members? IF allowed, is is only specific species? Requirements?
Thanks!
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T' Fisher, Director of Operations
Program for Pet Health Equity
Original Message:
Sent: 09-18-2024 02:43 PM
From: Vanessa Hidden (she/her/hers)
Subject: Welcome & Introduce Yourself to the One Health Community!
Hi Everyone,
I'm excited to see this space here in the Maddie's Forum!
My background is largely in access to veterinary care, including technician work and strategic program management. I also have experience with foster programs during my time in animal welfare. I currently work with My Dog Is My Home, a group focused on systems level change for the co-sheltering of people experiencing homelessness with their companion animals. We work with human service providers and animal service providers to make connections and build community through shared resources and collaboration. My title is the Co-Sheltering Collaborative Administrator with MDIMH, where I lead staff backbone functions for the collaborative through hosting working groups, large group gatherings, shared agendas, learnings and developing the steering committee.
I personally hope to contribute to One Health through my collaborative leadership work with MDIMH, my academics in Public Health, and in research projects around accessibility of shelter, pet friendly programming evaluation, and vector species.
I am interested in learning more about research opportunities and metrics that can facilitate systems change towards a more animal-inclusive approach to human services.
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Vanessa Hidden
Co-Sheltering Collaborative Administrator
My Dog is My Home
Original Message:
Sent: 08-05-2024 12:42 PM
From: T' Fisher
Subject: Welcome & Introduce Yourself to the One Health Community!
"A One Health system is comprehensive, addressing access to veterinary care and other essential services bonded families need, by fostering inter-professional collaboration. This approach innately requires the alignment of diverse programs, organizations, and industries, ensuring that we work together to achieve optimal health outcomes." ~ Dr. @Michael Blackwell
We are thrilled to launch this One Health Forum, a dynamic and innovative community dedicated to transforming programs and systems to support our bonded family society. Our goal is to ensure that essential services, resources, and activities within our communities are aligned to achieve optimal health and wellbeing for bonded families.
We'd love to get to know more about you!
- Please tell us a little about yourself and how you or your organization hopes to contribute to achieving the goals of the One Health Forum in transforming programs and systems.
- What are you interested in learning more about to support bonded families and enhance their overall wellbeing?
Add to this discussion and answer these questions before October 1st, and you'll be automatically entered to win a $50 gift card! The winner will be notified Oct 2nd.
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T' Fisher, Director of Operations
Program for Pet Health Equity
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