Learn about ESA letters for cats in California, including eligibility, documentation, housing accommodations, and important considerations for owners.
Cats are some of the most common ESA animals in California since they are low maintenance, flexible, easy to live with in an apartment, and for some, they provide soothing comfort. If your cat helps you cope with anxiety, depression, or other mental conditions, California laws allow your cat to remain with you even in cases when there is no-pets policy in place. But, again, just like with any ESA animal, your rights depend on your documentation meeting the state’s requirements.
This article contains all the specifics about obtaining and using an ESA letter for a cat in California, such as the requirements of the letter itself, differences between cats and dogs regarding their rights under local regulations, and the boundaries of your ESA cat’s protection.
California ESA Pet Letter provides California cat owners with the opportunity to get professionally evaluated by licensed mental health professionals to obtain a properly written ESA letter. Here is what you need to know before starting.
An ESA letter is basically a document issued by a qualified mental health practitioner attesting to the fact that you have a disability and that your cat helps alleviate certain symptoms. As far as cat owners are concerned, the ESA letter is the document that grants you the rights under the FHA and FEHA Acts, such as the right to have your cat live in a “no pets” building without paying any pet rent or pet deposit fees and without being restricted by the size and number of pets allowed.
If you do not have the ESA letter, your cat will be regarded as a regular pet, and the general pet policy of your landlord will apply to it.
There is no difference in the required documentation according to the species in California. According to AB 468 (Health & Safety Code §§ 122317–122319), a valid ESA letter for a cat, dog, or other animal that qualifies has to be:
There is no alternative way or easy procedure since you have an ESA cat but not an ESA dog. Every company that offers you a same-day letter for your ESA cat most likely doesn’t follow the real legal requirements in California, and your landlord can easily find out.
What will likely come as a surprise to many cat owners is that, unlike dogs, there is no mandate anywhere in California to have cats vaccinated against rabies and licensed. While it is mandatory for dog owners by state laws to license and vaccinate their dogs, no such mandate exists when it comes to cats.
However, some cities and counties in California, including some in Los Angeles County, do require cat licensing and rabies vaccination, so it is advisable to inquire about any particular city’s or county’s ordinance regarding the issue, rather than make assumptions based on statewide laws. Regardless of whether it is required locally, veterinarians advise getting cats, including strictly indoor ones, vaccinated against rabies due to the low cost and high level of protection it provides from a relatively unlikely but dangerous disease.
Therefore, cat ESA owners will have one less local document to obtain than owners of dog ESAs, though it is still recommended to check with the city’s requirements to be ready to provide any necessary documentation if a landlord or an HOA should ask for it.
The majority of ESA cats remain indoors all the time, something that is worth mentioning since this question may arise during the discussion of the accommodations. If the cat lives all the time indoors and is not big, the cat does not pose any safety or liability issues that the landlord might be concerned about. However, this does not affect the documentation that one must provide – it is still necessary to have an ESA letter to enjoy the benefits of having an ESA.
As with any ESA, it’s important to understand that an ESA letter provides housing rights, not public access rights.
Since cats can’t be trained to do the specific physical work to qualify them as service animals under the ADA, a cat cannot be considered a psychiatric service animal legally. If you want your animal to have public access rights, this animal designation belongs to the dog (or occasionally a miniature horse), which is trained individually to do disability-related tasks.
If you are already a cat owner who wants to get an ESA letter for it, or you are simply asking if it is possible to have two ESAs, note that there is no specific legal limit to how many ESAs you can have. However, usually, each animal will require its own clinical assessment based on your need for an assistance animal because of your disability. The landlord would definitely be justified in asking about having more ESAs if there is no rational explanation for this.
In addition to those imposed by the landlord, some HOA or condominium association may impose its own rules for pets, which include a limit on the number of animals, breed or size restrictions (primarily for dogs), and an additional fee for keeping a pet. As an HOA is still bound by fair housing laws, such restrictions cannot be applied to your properly documented ESA cat, just like any other landlord would not be able to do this. In case you reside in an HOA property, it makes sense to submit your ESA documents to both the management company of the HOA and your landlord, as they do not necessarily share the information between each other.
California ESA Pet Letter helps California residents with cats to receive a genuine clinical evaluation, work with a licensed provider on the required 30-day relationship period, and get a letter covering all necessary criteria of AB 468.
Nothing is stopping a cat from being considered a fully valid ESA in California. It is a documented cat that qualifies for housing accommodations such as no pet fees, no refusal due to a no-pets policy, and no need to present your particular diagnosis. The documentation requirements are similar to those of dogs or any other ESA, according to AB 468. There is just an exemption regarding the license and vaccinations that are mandatory for dogs throughout the state, and depending on the local laws of cities and counties.
Not, certainly not at the state level. There is no statewide licensing or vaccination mandate against rabies in cats, although some cities or counties have their own local ordinances that you should be aware of.
No. According to FEHA, landlords may not ask to pay pet rent or a deposit for an authentic ESA animal, including cats, after presenting the appropriate letter.
No. ESA letters only guarantee rights to housing. Additionally, cats do not fall within the category of service animals according to the ADA guidelines due to their inability to perform tasks.
No. The same AB 468 conditions will hold whether we talk about species – an officially licensed Californian provider, a legitimate 30-day relationship, and a legitimate clinical evaluation.
Technically speaking, no legal restriction is imposed. However, each one must have its individual rationale concerning the disability of the owner.
No. Since a 2021 federal rule change, airlines treat ESA cats as regular pets, subject to standard pet fees and carrier requirements, the same as ESA dogs.
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