Keep two documents: a pet policy that governs animals kept by choice, and an accommodation procedure that governs animals a person with a disability needs. The first is a contract term the landlord may set as it likes within local law; the second is governed by the Fair Housing Act and Texas Property Code §301.025, under which refusing a reasonable accommodation — including an exception to a no-pets rule — is discrimination. The HUD/DOJ Joint Statement gives the example that decides most cases: a “no pets” building must admit the deaf tenant’s alerting dog. Mixing the two documents produces the classic errors — a pet fee charged for an assistance animal, or a breed rule used to refuse one.
Side by side
| Pet policy | Accommodation procedure | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it covers | Animals kept as pets | Assistance animals — service animals and support animals — needed because of a disability |
| Landlord’s discretion | Allow, limit or refuse pets; set deposits, fees, pet rent, size and breed rules | None to refuse on pet grounds; individual assessment only for direct threat or undue burden |
| Charges | Pet deposit (a security deposit under Property Code §92.102), pet fee, pet rent | No deposit, fee or pet rent; tenant liable for damage |
| Documentation | Vaccination records, photograph | Only if disability or need is not apparent: reliable information of the disability-related need — no diagnosis, no registry |
| Where it lives | Pet addendum | Accommodation log and an assistance-animal addendum |
| Conduct rules | As stated | Same conduct rules as everyone — waste, control, noise — applied equally |
Writing the two
- Pet policy: the rules, the amounts, the addendum — see the pet clause guide.
- Accommodation procedure: how a request is received (any form, oral or written), who handles it, what may be asked and when, the response time, and the addendum used on approval — see the accommodation workflow.
- One sentence in the pet policy that points to the procedure: “Assistance animals are not pets and are handled under the landlord’s accommodation procedure.”
- Train whoever answers the phone: “Do you allow pets?” and “I have a support animal” are different questions with different answers.
Service animals in public areas
Where a building has areas open to the public — a leasing office, a ground-floor shop — the Americans with Disabilities Act’s service-animal rules apply there too; in the dwelling itself the Fair Housing Act governs, and it covers both trained service animals and support animals.
Frequently asked questions
Is an emotional support animal a pet under Texas law?
No. An animal a person with a disability needs — trained or not — is an assistance animal handled as a reasonable accommodation under the federal Act and Property Code §301.025, not under the pet policy (HUD/DOJ Joint Statement, Chapter 301).
Can a no-pets building refuse a support animal?
Not on pet grounds; an exception to the no-pets rule is the standard accommodation, refusable only on an individual showing of direct threat or undue burden (HUD/DOJ Joint Statement).
Can the same conduct rules apply to both?
Yes — waste, control and noise rules that apply to all animals and all residents equally apply to assistance animals too.
Sources
Rules change and the right answer can depend on the home, the city, the lease and the timing. These are the official pages this guide relies on; check them before signing, charging a fee, sending a notice or making a legal decision.
- HUD/DOJ Joint Statement — Reasonable accommodations under the Fair Housing Act (May 17, 2004) ↗
- Texas Property Code, Chapter 301 — Texas Fair Housing Act ↗
- Texas Property Code, Chapter 92 — Residential Tenancies ↗
- Texas State Law Library — Housing discrimination ↗
General information for U.S. landlords, with a Texas focus. This guide is not legal, tax or accounting advice. Consult a qualified professional for your situation. Written by the rentalfreelease.com Editorial Team; last reviewed September 19, 2026.