Animals and Pets on Campus

The College for Creative Studies (CCS) prohibits staff, faculty, students, contractors, visitors, and volunteers from taking pets into any College building or facility. This policy applies not only to dogs but also to all other animals including, but not limited to, birds, cats, mice, gerbils, amphibians, reptiles, and ferrets.

Animals are restricted on the CCS campus to provide a safe and a healthful environment for members of the campus community to study, work and live, to comply with local animal ordinances, and to ensure public safety. Pets can pose a threat to the health and safety of the campus community as well as to a healthful educational environment through allergy, excessive noise, animal bites, and disease transmission (fleas, ticks, viruses, parasites, etc.). In addition to the potential for pets to cause health hazards, animals can be unpredictable, have uncontrollable behavior and can contribute to accidents in the workplace and distractions in the learning environment.

All members of the campus community are required to comply with all aspects of this policy. Employees and students who fail to comply, will be subject to corrective or disciplinary action.

In the event that a visitor who is not a regular member of the campus community brings a pet to the campus, these animals are prohibited from all College buildings. If a person enters College grounds with a pet, they shall ensure that the pet under their control remains restrained on a leash 6 feet or less at all times, will not be left fastened to stationery objects, and will be under effective control while on campus grounds. Any dog, cat, or other animal brought to campus must be licensed and fully inoculated in accordance with Wayne County regulations, with the burden of proof on the owner. Fecal matter deposited by any dog, cat, or other animal brought to campus must be removed immediately and disposed of properly by the owner. Animal owners are financially responsible for any damage caused by their pets.

Exceptions

• Service animals*, performing their duties, such as guide dogs for the blind.
• Emotional Support Animals (ESA)** are permitted in the residence halls after completing the necessary process with the Office of Residence Life.
• Residence Hall professional staff in their personal apartment in accordance with their employment agreement within Student Affairs.
• On-duty police dogs.
• Fish in containers of less than 10 gallons in the residence halls.
• Therapy dog(s) used in the Wellness Center on a scheduled basis as an augmentation to the current scope of services provided. Any therapy dogs will have at a minimum AKC Canine Good Citizen certification and up to date veterinarian records. Therapy dog presence will be limited in location to the Health Hub on the 1st floor of the Yamasaki building during normal business hours or in outdoor spaces. Therapy dog presence will not overlap with times the Nurse Practitioner has designated office hours to ensure that Nurse services are available to all students. Therapy dog hours will be readily available to ensure that those students that would prefer to not interact with the therapy dogs know when and where they will be on campus. Therapy dog presence will be limited to 2 business days per week at a maximum. Therapy dog interactions will be a combination of open walk-in hours and scheduled appointments. At no point will the Therapy Dogs be unaccompanied or allowed to roam CCS buildings or grounds without a designated handler.
• Animals brought to campus for the purposes of an academic project (e.g. photo shoot). Written Approval from the classroom instructor or the staff member responsible for a campus facility (e.g. Manager, Audio Visual Services) and the Dean of Students must be obtained at least 48 hours prior to the animal arriving on campus. Animals must be under the strict control of the owner at all times. Animals deemed dangerous or potentially disruptive by CCS will not be permitted on campus under any circumstances. If the animal becomes disruptive, dangerous, or causes damage to the College facilities, the owner will remove the animal immediately.

*Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), service animal means any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability. Other species of animals, whether wild or domestic, trained or untrained, are not service animals for the purposes of this definition. In addition, animals that serve solely to provide emotional support, comfort or companionship are also not included in this definition. The work or tasks performed by a service animal must be directly related to the handler’s disability.

**ESA’s are not permitted in any campus buildings or facilities other than the residence halls. The Office of Residence Life upholds the policy governing ESA’s on campus in compliance with Fair Housing Laws. Exotic or dangerous animals as determined in the sole discretion of CCS are not permitted to be ESA’s.

Responsibilities

Service Animal Owners/Handlers:

• Any CCS employee who seeks permission for a service animal as a reasonable accommodation for a disability should contact the Office of Human Resources. Students who seek permission for a service animal as a reasonable accommodations for a disability should contact the Office of Student Affairs. The College will determine on a case-by-case basis, and in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, whether such animal is a reasonable accommodation on campus.
• Service animals may not pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others and will be removed if its continued presence is disruptive or would result in substantial damage to the property of others.
• When a person enters College grounds with a service animal, they shall ensure that the animal under their control remains restrained on a leash 6 feet or less at all times, must not be left fastened to stationery objects, and under effective control while on campus grounds. Any dog, cat, or other animal brought to campus must be licensed and fully inoculated in accordance with Wayne County regulations, with the burden of proof on the owner. Fecal matter deposited by any dog, cat, or other animal brought to campus must be removed immediately and disposed of properly by the owner. The burden is on the animal user to arrange for removal of fecal matter if he or she is personally unable to perform the task.
• Service animal owners are financially responsible for any damage caused by their pets.

Residence Hall Directors:

• Must have an approved employment agreement with Student Affairs.
• Animals may not pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others and will be removed if its continued presence is disruptive or would result in substantial damage to the property of others.