Service Animals Policy

To regulate service animals on Cambrian College (‘the College’) property and provide conditions that inform their presence and safety. This document was adapted with permission from a variety of Ontario colleges and developed under the scope of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) and the Ontario Human Rights Code (OHRC) in a manner consistent with the College’s commitment to creating a campus community that is inclusive of all individuals.

As per the AODA and OHRC, Cambrian College has a duty to accommodate a person with a disability accompanied by a service animal. Accommodations for service animals will be implemented case-by-case based on medical documentation verifying the need for a service animal, or in the case of guide dogs as defined by the Blind Persons’ Rights Act, by providing the appropriate identification cards. Accommodation letters with respect to the use of a service animal will be issued by the College.

Under the AODA, service animals have training to perform specific tasks for people with disabilities and are required to be with the person they support at all times. Emotional support animals provide comfort and security and do not have training for specific tasks. Therefore, emotional support animals do not qualify as service animals.

1. This policy applies to all members of the College community who use service animals, including all students, employees, governors, contractors and suppliers of services, volunteers, individuals who are directly connected to any College initiatives, and visitors. It also covers all property owned or leased by Cambrian College (“College Property”).
2. This policy supersedes all other policies in relation to service animals. The Board recognizes that lobbying on specific issues may involve joint action with the College administration, Colleges Ontario, Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan), or other interested parties. The Board may also advocate on its own.

Competing human rights: In general, competing human rights involve situations where parties to a dispute claim that the enjoyment of an individual or group’s human rights and freedoms, as protected by law, would interfere with another’s rights and freedoms. This complicates the normal approach to resolving a human rights dispute where only one side claims a human rights violation. In some cases, only one party is making a human rights claim, but the claim conflicts with the legal entitlements of another party or parties.

Service animal: An animal for a person with a disability as noted under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, S.O. 2005, c. 11, if:

• it is readily apparent that the animal is used by the person for reasons relating to their disability.
  • an animal that can be readily identified as a service animal based on visual indicators such as a vest or harness worn by the animal, or
  • the person provides medical documentation from a physician or other regulated health professional confirming that the person requires the animal for reasons relating to a disability, along with other pertinent information.
• it is not a pet or an emotional support animal.
• it is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including, but not limited to, guiding individuals with impaired vision, alerting individuals with impaired hearing to intruders or sounds, alerting individuals to low blood sugar levels, providing minimal protection or rescue work to an individual during a seizure, or retrieving out of reach items. The animal may wear specialized equipment such as a backpack, harness, or special collar, but this is not a legal requirement.

Guide dog: A type of service animal trained to lead a person with visual impairments.

Service animal handler/Handler: A handler works with specially trained animals to assist with tasks and/or to alert them of a danger or onset of a medical condition. Handlers are responsible for their service animal and carry out the work for which the animal has been trained. Handlers live full-time with their animals. They feed and care for the animal every day, taking care of its needs. They are also responsible for the upkeep of the animal’s daily training.

Emotional support animals: Emotional support animals provide comfort and security and do not have training for specific tasks. Therefore, emotional support animals do not qualify as service animals. The contents of the policy below apply to service animals, not emotional support animals. Accommodation requests for emotional support animals should be directed to the Glenn Crombie Centre (GCC) for Accessibility, Counselling and Wellness. Note that on occasions, emotional support dogs are intermittently brought onto campus under the direction of the Student Union or Student Services, or those staff certified under the Canine Ambassador Program (CAP). These dogs also require yearly certification and a specific Handler.

1. Service animals are working animals. They perform tasks for a person with a disability/exceptionality such as, but not limited to:
   1. Guidance around obstacles
   2. Alerting a person to low blood sugar levels
   3. Protecting a person during seizures
   4. Calming a person in an environment with too much sensory stimulation and preventing behavioural outbursts
   5. Retrieving out-of-reach objects
   6. Alerting a person to sounds
2. Only approved service animals are permitted on campus.  All pets are prohibited from entry to all Cambrian College facilities/buildings.
3. The use of service animals by students living in on-campus residences owned by Cambrian College is covered by the policies held by Campus Living Centre.
4. The use of service animals by students during off-campus learning activities is determined by the organization’s policies and procedures, not the College.
5. All service animal handlers shall familiarize themselves and comply with their responsibilities under this policy.
6. The College will not issue academic credentials to service animals that attend learning environments with their handlers.
7. The College will accommodate service animal handlers to the point of undue hardship.
8. Where service animals are not permitted on or in a particular campus location or building due to health and safety laws or requirements, the College will endeavour to provide alternate support to permit access to goods and services or provide reasonable accommodation.
9. A service animal may be excluded when any one of the following conditions exists:
   1. The animal is disruptive, and the handler is not effectively controlling it.
   2. The animal’s presence, behaviour, or actions pose an unreasonable or direct threat to property or the health or safety of others. The risk may not be remote or speculative, such as thinking an animal might bite someone or will annoy others. Allergies or a fear of animals are generally not sufficient conditions to exclude service animals.

The College is guided and will act in accordance with the Ontario Human Rights Commission Policy on Competing Human Rights and will address each scenario on a case-by-case basis. “While many situations may at first appear to involve competing rights, one must recognize that not all claims will be equal before the law: some claims have been afforded a higher legal status and greater protection than others. For example, international conventions, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, provincial human rights legislation, and legal decisions all recognize the paramount importance and unique status of human rights.” – OHRC Policy on Competing Human Rights.

Vice President, Human Resources, Student Services and International is responsible for :

• Ensuring that this policy and associated procedure are reviewed, communicated, and fully implemented.

Director, Human Resources, Equity, and Organizational Development, Director, Glenn Crombie Centre for Accessibility, Counselling and Wellness, and Manager of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion are responsible for:

• Supporting this policy and ensuring that handlers’ human rights are respected.
• Reviewing concerns, complaints, or appeals regarding a service animal on premises.

Accessibility Advisors are responsible for:

• Working with handlers, reviewing all documentation, and approving or denying requests to have a service animal on campus based on the criteria described in the Service Animals Operating Procedure.

• Service Animals Agreement Form (students to contact the GCC for a copy; staff to contact Human Resources)