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For information about the use of service animals in the state of Ohio.
Revised Code Section 955.43
This statute generally gives a person with a disability the right to have a service dog accompany that person in all places "to which the general public is invited." The statute is written specifically to cover people who are blind, deaf or mobility impaired, and only refers to dogs, not service animals in general. The dog must either be serving as, or be in training to be, a guide, leader, listener, or support dog. The owner must have proof that the dog has been or is being trained as a service dog.
If these criteria are met, then the person, accompanied by the dog, is entitled to full and equal access, advantages, facilities, and privileges of all public accommodations, includes educational institutions, as would any other member of the public, with only the following limits:
- The dog cannot occupy a seat in any public conveyance;
- The dog must be on a leash in any common carrier;
- If the dog is in training, the agency training the dog must have an insurance policy protecting the public from injury.
A person accompanied by a service dog cannot be charged extra for having the dog.
Revised Code Section 955.28(B)
The owner or keeper of a dog can be liable for injury by the dog under either common law or a statute. There is no exemption for a dog acting as a service animal. The statute imposes strict liability for any injury caused by a dog, but only allows for recovery of actual damages. Strict liability means that the person injured does not have to prove that the owner was negligent. There are just two exceptions in the statute to the owner's liability:
- There is no liability if the injury happened while the injured person was trespassing or committing some other crime on the owner's property or was committing or attempting to commit a crime against any person; and
- There is also no liability if the injured person was teasing, tormenting or abusing the dog on the owner's property.
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