# Emotional Support Animals on Airplanes



## oldman (Sep 12, 2018)

Looks like Southwest is leading the charge to limit what animals can be brought onboard the aircraft. I recently received the following link to Southwest's new policy and thought at least some of you may like to take a look at it.

Before I retired, there was little to no policy from my airline regarding what animals could or couldn't be brought onboard. Service animals have hardly ever been an issue, but people with all sorts of animals have claimed them as "emotional support animals" for various reasons and of course number one is they didn't want to have to find a pet sitter or pay a boarding fee. All animals come under FAA guidelines, but unless things have changed, there is no mention as to what animals are and aren't allowed onboard. 

The pilot's consensus is that they don't like having a lot of animals onboard in case an emergency presents itself and an evacuation becomes necessary. Pilots understand that there are some people that cannot leave home without their animal. The pilot's answer to that is to stay home or to drive. The argument is that if a person can't hold it together for a few hours, then driving is their answer. 

I am glad that I no longer have to worry about that issue. 

I hope this link works for you.   https://www.airlinepilotcentral.com...nal-support-animals-the-debate-continues.html


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## RadishRose (Sep 12, 2018)

I realize pets can and do give emotional support to people who need it. The question seems to be what kind and maybe how many.

To quote the article Oldman posted in part:

"Some passengers have tried to bring on emotional support peacocks, snakes, and even penguins."

and....

"On one United Airlines flight, an emotional support animal had its *own* emotional support animal." !

One airline has insisted the animal either be in a pet carrier or leashed.


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## C'est Moi (Sep 12, 2018)

More of the "all about me" mentality that is so prevalent nowadays.   I avoid flying at all costs but it would annoy me to no end to be sitting next to some jerk and their emu.


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## dkay (Sep 12, 2018)

C'est Moi said:


> More of the "all about me" mentality that is so prevalent nowadays.   I avoid flying at all costs but it would annoy me to no end to be sitting next to some jerk and their emu.


 
Absolutely agree


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## oldman (Sep 12, 2018)

There are a few FAQ's that I can readily answer. The FAA does have guidelines for all animals brought onboard, so their protocol must be followed. Be sure to check the FAA and TSA websites for additional information. If I was going to fly with an emotional support animal, I wouldn't just show up at the airport with my 110 pound Doberman on a leash. I can't speak for all of the airlines, but I do know that United has a policy and that the passenger must fill out a fairly lengthy form and then wait until they receive the approval before they get to the airport. The animal must be able to fit under the seat in front of the passenger and may not block the aisle. Airlines make the passenger jump through hoops before Fluffy is allowed onboard.


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## RadishRose (Sep 12, 2018)

That makes sense.

Some people don't realize that if their animal poses a risk, the risk also affects their animal. That is exactly what my dog's emotional support animal (the goldfish) told me.


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## IKE (Sep 12, 2018)

RR if I get on a plane and the person sitting next to me claims to have "emotional goldfish" it had better be a big bag of these and they better be ready to share.


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## RadishRose (Sep 12, 2018)

Ike-


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## dkay (Sep 13, 2018)

Of course, I'm no joy to sit next to on a plane either.  That's why I don't fly at all anymore. I either get a massive nosebleed or I get sick (and those anti nausea meds or ginger don't work). I'm sure someone would rather have a comfort chicken next to them instead of me.


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## Falcon (Sep 13, 2018)

Finally   got rid of my aardvark.  No more  problems.


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## oldman (Sep 13, 2018)

dkay said:


> Of course, I'm no joy to sit next to on a plane either.  That's why I don't fly at all anymore. I either get a massive nosebleed or I get sick (and those anti nausea meds or ginger don't work). I'm sure someone would rather have a comfort chicken next to them instead of me.



I know that you would not be interested in this, but someone else may be. There is a patch that I have been told is really great for air sickness. This was told to me by a passenger that actually had to use the little white bag. I wrote the name down of the medicine and have actually memorized it because I have recommended it several times. The name of the medicine is Scopolamine. A prescription is also necessary. I actually looked this name up just to be sure that I spelled it correctly. In doing so, I read about the dosage and so on and it also stated that it is also used in operating rooms and given to patients so that they do not get sick with the anesthesia. Just a suggestion to those that get air sickness or actually any type of terrible motion sickness. Otherwise, Dramamine is as good as anything that anyone may be able to purchase over the counter.


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## dkay (Sep 13, 2018)

Thanks, I'm going to have to check that out. My sister lives on the West coast and if I fly then I'm usually so sick it takes a couple days to recover (dramamine hasn't worked for me). Driving is almost as bad, mountain roads in high elevations do the same thing only it's worse since I'm trying to drive. I'm such a whiny flat lander. Needless to say, anesthesia also makes me sick. I've written the name down,  will talk to the doc at my next visit, maybe I'll be able to travel a bit more. I'd really like that. Ayr saline gel has helped reduce the nosebleeds when I drive to Denver, haven't tried it at a higher altitude than that though.


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## AZ Jim (Sep 13, 2018)

Support animals (not seeing eye, hearing impaired) are a joke.  What kind of weaklings have we become?  I could go on and on about this subject but I'll spare you.


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## Warrigal (Sep 13, 2018)

First world problem?


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## debbie in seattle (Sep 17, 2018)

What happens to someone who is super allergic to the animal on the plane?    Folks aren’t notified of the offending animal.


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## jujube (Sep 17, 2018)

I sprayed my luggage with adhesive and rolled it around in the dog hair on the rug.  Now, it's my emotional support baggage and MUST come on the plane with me.  After all, I feel much more emotionally secure when my bags are by my side, y'know?


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## RadishRose (Sep 17, 2018)

jujube said:


> I sprayed my luggage with adhesive and rolled it around in the dog hair on the rug.  Now, it's my emotional support baggage and MUST come on the plane with me.  After all, I feel much more emotionally secure when my bags are by my side, y'know?


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## StarSong (Sep 17, 2018)

debbie in seattle said:


> What happens to someone who is super allergic to the animal on the plane?    Folks aren’t notified of the offending animal.



I have often wondered this, Debbie.  If my husband was seated near a cat on a cross country flight he would be in serious trouble.


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## jujube (Sep 17, 2018)

debbie in seattle said:


> What happens to someone who is super allergic to the animal on the plane?    Folks aren’t notified of the offending animal.



As it stands right now, the person with the service or emotional support animal holds all the "rights", right or wrong......  They'll try to put the allergic person as far as possible away from the animal, but if that's not good enough, the allergic person gets deboarded and put on a later flight (hopefully without any animals).   I think the same thing goes for just ordinary animals traveling with their owners, but there don't seem to be a lot of them anymore....they've miraculously turned into emotional supports instead of just pets".


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## RadishRose (Sep 17, 2018)

Oh my, that doesn't sound like the answer, but what would be? I could never put anything living into the baggage hold .

Hmmm, the first airline that develops a safe, comfortable, warm and sequestered pet area might just pull ahead of all the others. I know, I'm dreaming.

BTW, I wouldn't mind having an emotional support penguin... I love those little guys.


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## Don M. (Sep 17, 2018)

I can understand a Blind person needing to have their dog with them, but that's about as far as my tolerance goes.  Personally, I would Not want to be on a flight with someone who is so disturbed that they need an animal for "emotional" support.


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## oldman (Sep 18, 2018)

jujube said:


> As it stands right now, the person with the service or emotional support animal holds all the "rights", right or wrong......  They'll try to put the allergic person as far as possible away from the animal, but if that's not good enough, the allergic person gets deboarded and put on a later flight (hopefully without any animals).   I think the same thing goes for just ordinary animals traveling with their owners, but there don't seem to be a lot of them anymore....they've miraculously turned into emotional supports instead of just pets".



This is a pretty good answer, however, there is a bit more to it than what was explained. Service animals are boarded regardless and without any documentation. The animals must meet certain criteria, such as they are not allowed to sit in the aisle. Service animals may not show any aggression, including barking at other passengers. 

United is mostly lenient with these animals, but each airline has their own policy. I do believe that the policy regarding service animals is pretty consistent among all airlines. OTOH, emotional support animals are subject to the airlines’ policy. That would include having documentation from the passenger’s physician or psychiatrist stating the passenger’ necessity to have their animal with them. The letter may not be more than ten days old, but that rule is sometimes deviated from depending on other issues. 

When there is is an issue with an animal, the Purser will notify the Captain, who will then adjudicate the situation. We do try to keep everyone happy and if we can move a passenger without the animal to alleviate the situation, then so be it. In my case, if a passenger without the animal had an issue with an animal sitting near them, I would move them to first class or business class if there were seats available. That always settled the issue. 

In in any case, people who are taking animals onboard should consult with their airline at least a few days before their flight. This will give both parties an opportunity to straighten out any misconceptions regarding the airline’s policy regarding their animal. 

Lastly, I will state to everyone that the pilots do not like dealing with these situations. It interferes and is a distraction from doing their job at hand. Most pilots believe that if people cannot keep it together for a few hours, perhaps they should drive. This only applies to emotional support animals.


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## oldman (Sep 19, 2018)

I was speaking with another friend of mine who is also a retired pilot and I brought up the issue of Service and Emotional Support animals. He mentioned something that I had forgotten about. Just before I retired, there was a F/O (First Officer) who brought onboard his dog, which was a Pug as his support animal. The Captain refused to fly with him. Neither my friend or I know how he made out with that. I don't know or have I heard if members of the flight crew are permitted to bring on animals.

*Has anyone else heard anything about this issue?* I am going to check with another fellow that I know, who is still flying, but will be retiring come next April.


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## Lara (Sep 19, 2018)

If I had Blu with me and there were any other dogs in the cabin, Blu would be howling/barking the whole way


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## Lara (Sep 19, 2018)

RadishRose said:


> ...BTW, I wouldn't mind having an emotional support penguin... I love those little guys.


:lofl:


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## WheatenLover (Oct 7, 2018)

StarSong said:


> I have often wondered this, Debbie.  If my husband was seated near a cat on a cross country flight he would be in serious trouble.



Same with my daughter. She ends up in the ER if she is exposed to even a blanket a cat has sat upon. Cat-induced asthma.

If my dog were allowed on a plane, he would do his best to get free so he could visit people, eat their snacks, try their drinks, and generally turn the entire plane into a 3-ring circus. This is a dog who routinely gets out of seat belts, harnesses, and crates ... Houdini should be his name.


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## oldman (Oct 7, 2018)

I had a Southwest Captain tell me that if they have a passenger that presents a note from their doctor stating that they are allergic to peanuts, which Southwest is undeniably known as the "Peanut Airline," all peanuts must be removed from the aircraft. It was once stated that people allergic to peanuts would not have a severe reaction to just inhaling peanut dust, however, airlines just aren't prepared to take that risk.


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## StarSong (Oct 7, 2018)

oldman said:


> I had a Southwest Captain tell me that if they have a passenger that presents a note from their doctor stating that they are allergic to peanuts, which Southwest is undeniably known as the "Peanut Airline," all peanuts must be removed from the aircraft. It was once stated that people allergic to peanuts would not have a severe reaction to just inhaling peanut dust, however, airlines just aren't prepared to take that risk.



I flew SW just a few weeks ago.  No more peanuts.  I asked about it and learned that they made the switch fleet-wide in deference to people with peanut allergies.  They now serve little bags of pretzels.


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## SeaBreeze (Oct 10, 2018)

Flight delayed two hours when woman brought emotional 'support' squirrel on the plane, more here.


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## StarSong (Oct 10, 2018)

SeaBreeze said:


> Flight delayed two hours when woman brought emotional 'support' squirrel on the plane, more here.



I'm sorry, but I think this whole "emotional support" thing has gotten out of control.  Seeing-eye, hearing assist, seizure alert, and similarly HIGHLY TRAINED dogs are one thing, but emotional support squirrels?  Gimme a break.  

p.s.  If her MD gave her paperwork indicating that this was an emotional support animal, his/her license should be reviewed.


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## oldman (Oct 11, 2018)

I have been seeing more restaurants post, “No Emotional Support Animals Permitted” signs. It’s really getting out of hand. Where does it end?


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## StarSong (Oct 11, 2018)

I haven't seen these signs but would certainly support restaurants and other businesses who post them.


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## C'est Moi (Oct 11, 2018)

No kidding.   If you are too emotionally distraught to eat without your "animal," you need to stay the hell at home.


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## RadishRose (Oct 11, 2018)

Motion has been thirded and so carried.


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