Service Animals

• Accessibility
• Physical / Mobility
• Deaf / Hearing Loss
• Blind / Low Vision
• Cognitive / Learning
• Dietary

Death Valley welcomes all individuals with a disability! Explore the accessibility pages for relevant information categorized by disability type. Please contact us with any questions or for help planning your visit.

 

Anywhere you visit, your service animal may follow.

In October 2018, the National Park Service (NPS) issued a policy memorandum regarding the use of service animals by persons with disabilities in national parks. The revised policy aligns the NPS policy with the standards established by the Department of Justice and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Dogs classified as service animals are individually trained to perform a specific task that assists a person with a disability. Service dogs are legally permitted anywhere that visitors can go. They must be allowed wherever visitors are allowed.

Examples of such work or tasks include guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, or performing other duties. Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability.

Emotional support, therapy, and companion animals are not service animals under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), they have not been trained to provide a task directly related to a disability. Emotional support animals are considered to be a pet.

Service dogs-in-training are not service animals under ADA but are considered pets. Pets must abide by the Individual Park Pet Regulations.

Please keep in mind the following aspects when it comes to your service animal within Death Valley.

Water

• Water can be obtained at all campgrounds (except Thorndike and Mahogany Flat), all visitors’ centers/ranger stations, and at all of the hotels within the park. Potability status is variable.
• Avoid using natural water sources (creeks, puddles, springs, etc.) throughout the park because they could carry water-borne diseases like giardia.
• Don’t leave water or food unattended. This attracts coyotes and ravens. Place food bowls in your vehicle or camper during overnight hours.
• Death Valley is one of the hottest places in the world. Please carry extra fresh water for your group and furry friend!

Waste

Every rest area, campground, hotel, and visitor center throughout the park has trash cans for disposing animal waste, however, plastic bags are not provided. Please remember to bring your own doggy bags.

Terrain

Park trails are not maintained and may consist of dry falls, mixed gravel, sand, large boulders, and rocks. More descriptions can be found on our Physical / Mobility page.