Original research · NSAR
The State of Assistance Animals in America
What 253,028 registrations reveal about the emotional-support and service-animal boom — 2009 to 2024.
- 253,028
- Active registrations analyzed
- 17
- Years of records, 2009–2024
- 90%
- Are dogs — but not all of them
The headline numbers
are emotional support animals — comfort animals that require no task training — the largest category by far.
the drop in yearly registrations from the 2016 peak to 2023 — before a sharp rebound in 2024.
registered animals that are neither dog nor cat — rabbits, pigs, monkeys, hedgehogs, even miniature horses.
psychiatric service dogs — now the single largest trained-service category, ahead of medical-alert dogs.
Section 1 — Growth over time
A boom, a bust, and a comeback
Assistance-animal registrations climbed steeply through the early 2010s, cresting at 48,706 in 2016. Over the next seven years the annual count fell by more than 90%, bottoming near 4,400 in 2023 — a collapse that tracked tightening airline and housing rules and a saturated market. Then 2024 broke the trend, rebounding to 18,897.
Registrations recorded per calendar year. 2025–2026 are omitted: they span NSAR’s platform migration and are not comparable year-over-year.
Section 2 — Species
A nation of dogs — and a small menagerie
Nine in ten registered assistance animals are dogs (227,848), trailed by cats at 8.4% (21,224). But the long tail is where it gets interesting. Beyond dogs and cats, Americans have registered nearly 4,000 other animals — from birds and rabbits to pigs, monkeys, and even miniature horses.
Species is self-reported at registration. A further 1,095 records list another species not itemized here.
Section 3 — Comfort vs. trained work
Support animals outnumber service dogs two to one
Emotional support animals— which provide comfort through their presence and require no task training — make up 63.3% of all registrations. Trained service dogs account for 29.3%. The two categories are legally distinct: only service dogs are individually trained to perform disability-mitigating tasks and carry public-access rights under the ADA.
Within the service-dog population, the mix has shifted toward mental health. Psychiatric service dogs are now the largest trained-task category, narrowly ahead of medical-alert dogs, with mobility, seizure, hearing, and guide work filling out the rest.
Remaining service dogs are in training or list a task outside these leading categories.
About this report
Figures reflect 253,028 active animal registrations recorded by the National Service Animal Registry between 2009 and 2024. This is a registry sample— a view of the people and animals that registered with NSAR — and not a population estimate for the United States. Registrations are voluntary, so the figures describe who chose to register rather than the full population of assistance animals.
All figures are aggregate counts; no personal or identifying information is included. Species and service type are self-reported at the time of registration. Records predating 2026 were migrated from NSAR’s prior registration platform; 2025–2026 are excluded from year-over-year figures because they span a platform transition and are not directly comparable.