Woman with PTSD ordered to surrender emotional support dog who 'brought me back to life'

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Heather Yampolsky credits a puppy with saving her life. She was in the throes of a mental health crisis brought on by post-traumatic stress disorder when she adopted Honey, a 10-month-old Labrador and miniature pinscher mix.

Honey “brought me back to life,” Yampolsky said. “This dog saved me from suicide.”

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But just six weeks after Honey came into her life, Yampolsky lost the right to keep the dog in her apartment at Résidence Le Mile-End, a seniors’ home under the management of the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal (OMHM).

The building’s director, Amélie Morel, said residents had complained about Honey — which Yampolsky said came as a surprise — and gave Yampolsky 60 days to remove the dog from her unit. Honey now lives at a no-kill animal shelter in Vaudreuil.

Yampolsky staffed a hospital front desk through the pandemic, an experience she said affected her deeply.

“I dealt with anti-vaxxers, traumatized family members, the trauma of being constantly yelled at and the stress of whether you’re going to die or not,” she said.

Yampolsky suffered from a near-fatal case of food poisoning in April 2023. She then caught COVID in November 2023, suffering from a particularly long and severe case. She said the illnesses, combined with burnout at work, pushed her to a breaking point.

“I wasn’t in good shape and because of some pressures at work, I completely had a breakdown,” she said.

Yampolsky, 63, moved into the residence in March 2024 and went on sick leave for mental health issues in September 2024. She adopted Honey on Oct. 12, 2024.

“My doctor was very happy with the decision,” she said.

Yampolsky has autism, which she said contributes to her mental health issues.

“Sometimes with autism, it’s hard to feel things,” she said.

But with Honey, she “had to deal with puppy shenanigans. I had to take care of her. I had to do the training.

“I began to feel things again,” Yampolsky said.

“Heather was more happy” with Honey, “more calm, more relaxed. It really helped her,” said Marilena Kalogridou, Yampolsky’s friend and co-worker of over a decade. “She was a different person.”

But on Nov. 28, Morel met with Yampolsky to tell her she had 60 days to give up her dog. A Nov. 29 letter from Morel seen by The Gazette matched Yampolsky’s account of the meeting.

The letter references “numerous complaints from residents” that the dog was larger than permitted and frightened tenants. It threatened to terminate Yampolsky’s lease should she refuse to give up her pet.

“None of my immediate neighbours have complained about anything. I’ve checked,” Yampolsky said, adding complaints about the dog’s size and behaviour were unfounded.

OMHM interim communications director Valérie Rhême declined The Gazette’s request to interview Morel, saying the housing office doesn’t comment on specific cases.

“As the landlord, we must guarantee peaceable enjoyment of the dwelling for our tenants. When a situation infringes on that obligation, we have to act,” Rhême wrote in an email.

The regulations attached to Yampolsky’s lease allow for “one small pet, dog, cat or bird per unit,” without defining “small.” They also require tenants to notify the landlord should they bring a pet into their unit.

Yampolsky said a staff member approved the dog before adoption and told her the weight limit was 12 kilograms. Honey weighs 10.5 kilograms. In the Nov. 28 meeting, Yampolsky said, Morel told her the staff member had made a mistake and that the actual limit was 12 pounds, or just under 5.5 kilograms.

Yampolsky said Morel told her that neighbours had complained about the dog’s behaviour, including that she barked too much. But Honey was a puppy still undergoing training, Yampolsky said, and didn’t bark often since they were almost always home together.

“I completely collapsed into tears” during the meeting, Yampolsky said. She told Morel the dog had saved her life.

On Dec. 2, Yampolsky took Honey to the shelter, where she remains. Now, she is fighting to get her back.

On Dec. 18, Yampolsky submitted a letter signed by her doctor referring to Honey as an emotional support animal improving her mental health. The letter asks for reasonable accommodation, citing the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.

“I strongly recommend that she’s allowed to keep Honey with her in the residence, as an essential element in managing her mental health,” the letter reads in part.

After submitting the letter, Yampolsky said Morel told her she would receive a response. As of Tuesday, over two months later, she still hadn’t heard back.

She also wrote to OMHM general director Isabelle Pépin, but says she never received a response.

The day Honey went to the shelter, “I was left with the feeling that I betrayed her,” Yampolsky said.

Honey was in the back seat of the car between Yampolsky and Kalogridou, whose husband was driving. “We were giving her massive cuddles,” Yampolsky said.

“After we dropped the dog at the shelter, I was crying my head off,” Kalogridou said. Yampolsky was also in tears.

After losing Honey, Yampolsky was “very sad — heartbroken,” Kalogridou said. The progress Yampolsky made alongside her dog was gone.

“Now she’s back to what it was before” adopting Honey, Kalogridou said.

Yampolsky agreed. Before giving up her dog, she was “recovering quickly.”

“I was just about ready to go back to work,” Yampolsky said.

Now, she remains on sick leave and is unsure of when she will return.

Yampolsky still looks at photos of Honey.

“I miss her a lot,” she said. “When something saves your life, it’s hard not to think about her all the time.”

She continues to pay for a service that sends Honey treats and toys, and calls the shelter from time to time to ask about her dog.

Though she hopes to get Honey back, “I wouldn’t be upset if she got adopted,” she said. “I just want her to be happy.”