Can a Gecko Be an Emotional Support Animal?

Emotional support animals (ESAs) can be effective in treating mental health disorders, and if you think about how friendly and loving pets like dogs are, this comes as no surprise. However, furry animals aren’t the only option when it comes to ESAs.

Reptiles can also be emotional support animals. Even though reptiles tend to be less cuddly, they’re still fully capable of providing mental health benefits. Let’s talk about what an emotional support animal is, if a gecko can be one, and what rights ESAs have.

What Is an Emotional Support Animal?

An emotional support animal is an animal that is prescribed by a mental health professional to an individual with a mental health or psychiatric disability. Examples of mental health disorders that often qualify for emotional support animals include (but are not limited to) anxiety, PTSD, depression, ASD, OCD, and more.

Emotional support animals can reduce feelings of loneliness, decrease stress, improve one’s sense of self-worth, and help people keep a routine. Some ESAs, like dogs, can help their owners get more exercise.

Emotional support animals do not need to be trained at all; their presence alone and their need for care produce the benefits we mentioned. The fact that they are untrained is one reason why ESAs are not service animals. Another reason is that ESAs can be any type of animal whereas service animals can only be dogs.

Can a Gecko Be an Emotional Support Animal?

There are no limitations on what kinds of animals can be emotional support animals, which means a gecko can be an emotional support animal. There are a few types of geckos that are popular as pets, including leopard geckos, tokay geckos, day geckos, African fat-tailed geckos, crested geckos, and common house geckos.

Though geckos can be emotional support animals, they aren’t the cuddly kind. Geckos can be skittish and don’t typically enjoy being handled, though some can get used to it and tolerate it just fine. Some geckos are able to shed their tails and may do so if handling stresses them out. Others are feisty and may even try to bite those who attempt to pick them up.

As an ESA, a gecko won’t be an animal you can hug or hold to feel better, but they do require care in the form of feeding and habitat maintenance. Taking care of an animal can help people keep a regular schedule and feel as though they have a purpose. It’s not uncommon for humans to bond with animals, so having a gecko around can provide a sense of companionship and reduce feelings of loneliness.

Keeping a gecko as an ESA will incur some expenses. Upfront costs for a terrarium and accessories such as decorations and heating systems can cost up to $500 (though you can often find secondhand goods). Monthly costs for food and substrate can be anywhere from $20 to $40.

ESA Rights

Emotional support animals are protected by the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Under this law, landlords must allow tenants to live with their ESAs. They cannot charge pet rent or other pet fees for ESAs because ESAs are considered assistance animals rather than pets.

The only way a landlord could refuse to accommodate an ESA would be if the ESA was highly likely to cause them an undue financial burden, damage property, or harm others. A gecko is a pretty safe animal to keep and thus would not be something a landlord could easily turn down.

However, landlords are within their rights to ask for proof that you need an ESA. A licensed mental health professional will need to write you an ESA letter which you can present to the landlord. You can also choose to register your ESA; while it’s not legally required, emotional support animal registration can help if your landlord is problematic, especially if you have a more unusual ESA like a gecko.

Geckos Can Be ESAs, Too!

You may have thought that only furry creatures like dogs and cats could be emotional support animals, but that isn’t the case. Any animal can be an emotional support animal, including geckos.

Geckos don’t always like to be handled so they may not be the best choice if you want an ESA you can hug, pet, or cuddle, but they are very cool creatures that will enrich your life as you care for them.