Apartment City

When she walks into her apartment, Elise Wantling, a sophomore from St. Charles, Missouri, can always count on a warm welcome from her furry, yellow- eyed companion named George . But the blue-gray manx cat is not the average housepet – he is Wantling’s emotional support animal (ESA). According to the University’s policy, an ESA “is an animal that provides personal comfort to an individual with a disability residing in University of Kansas Housing.” An ESA is not a pet, but rather an animal that is able to live with a student, according to Access Specialist Dr . Juliette Loring. Wantling said she was diagnosed with anxiety and depression during high school and sometimes has stress nightmares. At home, Wantling said there would usually be at least one cat on her bed when she woke up in the night. She also recalls living alone in a dorm room as a University freshman. “I didn’t have a roommate [and] I didn’t have a pet, so I would just wake up from these stress nightmar...