Service Animal Policy

Service Animals

The Mokena Community Public Library District welcomes services animals, and service animals are permitted in any area of the Library where members of the public are permitted to go. Trainers are also permitted to accompany service animals in training in the Library. Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. 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 during an anxiety attack or performing other duties. The work or task that the dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability.

The ADA has also defined a miniature horse as an animal that may serve as a service animal if it has been individually trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability. To determine if a miniature horse can be accommodated in the Library, the Library will assess whether (1) the miniature horse is housebroken,(2) the miniature horse is under the owner’s control, (3) the Library can accommodate the miniature horse’s type, size and weight, and (4) the miniature horse’s presence will compromise legitimate safety requirements necessary for the safe operation of the Library.

Some service animals may wear special collars, harnesses, vests or capes and some are licensed and certified and have identification papers. However, special identification and certification are not required by the ADA. Employees may only ask an individual who accesses the Library with a service animal the following two questions: (1) whether the animal is a service animal and (2) what work or task the service animal has been trained to perform. Employees may not require identification documents for the animal and may not ask about the person’s disability.

A service animal may be removed from the premises only if (1) the animal is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it, or (2) the animal is not housebroken. Service animals must be harnessed, leashed, or tethered, unless such devices interfere with the animal’s work or the individual’s disability prevents using such devices, in which case the service animal must be otherwise under the handler’s control (e.g., voice control, signals, or other effective means).

When there is a legitimate reason to remove a service animal, staff will of fer the person with the disability the opportunity to obtain Library materials or services without the animal’s presence. Staff is not required to provide care, food or a special location for the animal.