Pet Free Flight?

[BlovesC]

If my cats were let loose on a plane, the cabin would look like a scene from a horror movie by the end of the flight. I have no idea what that FA was smoking, but I definitely don't want any of it.

Also, this is the first time I've ever heard of "Emotional Support Companions". Leave it to the DIS! And to think, growing up we just called those things "flasks".

[jahber]

Originally Posted by BlovesC

If my cats were let loose on a plane, the cabin would look like a scene from a horror movie by the end of the flight. I have no idea what that FA was smoking, but I definitely don't want any of it.

Seriously. My cat took one car ride with my sister without a crate (she had to pick the cat up from the emergency vet for me). I assured her it would be fine. The cat immediately peed on the seat. My sister has been driving around with no backseat (and will indefinitely) because her husband took the seat out to clean it/hose it down/disinfect it two weeks ago and it STILL stinks. Imagine that on a plane, only you're stuck for 5 hours. Wheeeeee!!!!

[Callie]

If I ever travel with skittles, I'll make sure to be a good pet owner, and fellow seatmate.

If the FA allowed, I might open her carrier to give her a pet, or let her on my lap. But she would be in her harness, so she couldn't get away.

If someone was allergic, I would respect that. I am, but I deal with it.

[Callie]

Originally Posted by EMom

I am going to be totally and completely politically incorrect here and say that while I have no problem with service animals, "emotional support" animals push me over the edge. Need your dog, cat or snake to fly with you so that you don't have a meltdown? Sorry. That same animal may send someone else into their own omotional tailspin and what about THEIR emotional needs? We need a balance. Take a Valium before you get on the plane or something.

It is a balancing of needs. A true service dog/animal is something society has to deal with and I think most people get that even if they have a fear of said animal. But if someone needs an animal along to support them emotionally and that very animal is going to infringe on someone else's emotional well-being, then the person with the "I must have my animal with me" should have to accomodate and do without the animal.

It doesn't help my attitude that so many people fudge and call their pets "emotional support" animals when they just want Fifi along for the outing. You know, my cats relax me and put me at ease, but I leave them at home for the good of just about everyone. If I got on a plane and someone had a snake along for emotional support, I would claw my way off that plane. And honestly, I don't put it past someone.

I hope you wouldn't look down upon me, as I have an emotional support cat. I don't take her places with me, except the pet stores. My doctor suggested getting one, as I have a mental issues.
I had to have her made an emotional support animal so I could have her in the apartment. She does provide amazing things. I have never been happier, or as stable. She helps reduce my anxiety, and I am able to take less medication because of her.

I wouldn't call her an emotional support animal on a plane. I'd make sure she was just a normal cat.
But I hope you do understand in some cases, they aren't bogus, and do enhance ones life.

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

Originally Posted by Jaya

You haven't LIVED until you've had a flight with two parrots talking to each other. My sister once flew with her two parrots in a kennel. One was a great talker, sounding like a demented old British lady straight out of a Monty Python skit. The other one's vocabulary consisted mostly of "SHUT UP!" yelled at the other one. You could tell people were looking around, looking for the crazy old lady that was apparently on board and off her meds.....

[EMom]

Originally Posted by Callie

I hope you wouldn't look down upon me, as I have an emotional support cat. I don't take her places with me, except the pet stores. My doctor suggested getting one, as I have a mental issues.
I had to have her made an emotional support animal so I could have her in the apartment. She does provide amazing things. I have never been happier, or as stable. She helps reduce my anxiety, and I am able to take less medication because of her.

I wouldn't call her an emotional support animal on a plane. I'd make sure she was just a normal cat.
But I hope you do understand in some cases, they aren't bogus, and do enhance ones life.

I can see where an animal can provide emotional support. I think pets are good for us. Take your cat to Petsmart? Normal. Have it in your apartment? It is not bothering anyone. Moving to another state and need to take the pet on the plane with you? So long as the pet behaves, that is to be expected.

It's the people who want to take their non-service animals to the mall, restaurants, the movies, ice skating rink, the museum, etc. that irritate me. People who are allergic to these animals have just as much right to NOT have the animal around, not to mention those who have overwhelming fear of animals. They have emotional needs too. As I said, it is a balancing act. I love my pets and have had pets my entire life. But I believe non-service animals belong at home for the most part. In our culture, we do not let cats and dogs go everywhere and anywhere.

Under my belief in balancing, Person A wants to take their pet someplace where pets are not regularly seen so they can have the emotional support of the animal. Person B is phobic (or severely allergic) about the animal in question and expects to be able to visit the place without having to be in close contact with such an animal because animals really aren't supposed to be there. Who trumps? I say the ones who expect to be in a place where animals really do not belong. (Service animals excepted.)


Truly, you hardly ever see this with cats. It's usually someone dragging their pocket dog EVERYWHERE. I miss the days when dogs were dogs, people were people, and humans had enough sense to know the difference. Your dog does NOT feel compelled to rush to Macy's in time to buy a bracelet on sale. It does not feel incomplete if it fails to make a Walmart run. It will not be depressed if it misses the Monet exhibit at the museum. It's a dog. And you can be separated from it for brief periods of time. It's not that I dislike pocket dogs. My mother always had one. But the dog stayed home when we went out. And it wagged its little tail when we returned. Like a dog.

[EMom]

Originally Posted by ShelsGoingToDisney

We were eating at McDonald's in the 80s and a man walked in with a parrot on his shoulder. No, this is not the beginning of a joke.

He ordered his food, sat down and ate the hamburger......while sharing every other bite with the parrot. Let me say that parrot's beak was NASTY. And it was nastier yet with chewed up hamburger in it. Geez, I love my cats, but I do NOT eat after them. My friend and I chunked our food and left, having lost our appetite.

[avgeek81]

I took my cat on a plane when I moved her to florida with me. She was in the crate the whole flight. The part of I was worried about was going thru security when you have to take her out of the crate. She does not liked to be held and I was afraid she might try to run away. She was fine though.

You would not know she was on the flight unless you saw me take her on or off. She only made one tiny meow when we took off. She is a good traveler, we used to take her camping every weekend. Most of the time we wouldnt use the crate in the car. I was in the window seat and my mom was next to me. I think there were only 2 seats on either side of the aisle.

[NHdisneylover]

Not that the OP is about a service animal--but technically a service animals is supposed to be leashed or harnessed or in a carrier or there is a physically in control of the owner at all times when in publc placesthat normally do not allow animals, unless dong so prevents it from performing its duties.

For air travel an emotional support animals are only allowed if the person has a letter from a treating Dr which specifies that the person must have the animals for travel or an activity at their destination, etc. General anxiety is not enough--and it cannot be a general letter giving blanket coverage.

[Friend of a Mouse]

Originally Posted by EMom

I can see where an animal can provide emotional support. I think pets are good for us. Take your cat to Petsmart? Normal. Have it in your apartment? It is not bothering anyone. Moving to another state and need to take the pet on the plane with you? So long as the pet behaves, that is to be expected.

It's the people who want to take their non-service animals to the mall, restaurants, the movies, ice skating rink, the museum, etc. that irritate me. People who are allergic to these animals have just as much right to NOT have the animal around, not to mention those who have overwhelming fear of animals. They have emotional needs too. As I said, it is a balancing act. I love my pets and have had pets my entire life. But I believe non-service animals belong at home for the most part. In our culture, we do not let cats and dogs go everywhere and anywhere.

Under my belief in balancing, Person A wants to take their pet someplace where pets are not regularly seen so they can have the emotional support of the animal. Person B is phobic (or severely allergic) about the animal in question and expects to be able to visit the place without having to be in close contact with such an animal because animals really aren't supposed to be there. Who trumps? I say the ones who expect to be in a place where animals really do not belong. (Service animals excepted.)


Truly, you hardly ever see this with cats. It's usually someone dragging their pocket dog EVERYWHERE. I miss the days when dogs were dogs, people were people, and humans had enough sense to know the difference. Your dog does NOT feel compelled to rush to Macy's in time to buy a bracelet on sale. It does not feel incomplete if it fails to make a Walmart run. It will not be depressed if it misses the Monet exhibit at the museum. It's a dog. And you can be separated from it for brief periods of time. It's not that I dislike pocket dogs. My mother always had one. But the dog stayed home when we went out. And it wagged its little tail when we returned. Like a dog.

Emotional support animals are not allowed in places that generally don't allow pets.hey are allowed out on airlines, but only under the guidelines mentioned by a pp. The recent reauthorization of hte ADA closed a lot of the service animal loopholes. The only animals currently protected by law are dogs or miniature horses. They must be individually trained to perform a specific task to mitigate a disability. Simply petting it to make yourself feel calmer does not meet the criteria. A business is allowed to ask what specific task the animal performs but cannot ask the disability. If the animal is disruptive or destructive they can be asked to leave, but the owner must be allowed back without the animal.

As for the airlines, the letter must stated that the emotional support animal is to mitigate a disability. Mental illness by itself does not qualify. It muts interfere with a basic life activity.

[Glennie5]

Originally Posted by EMom

He's just a mess. We have his half sister (same father) who is almost 2 years older. She is just the most dainty, ladylike thing you've ever seen. Eats with tiny little bites, always looks like she ought to be on the cover of a calendar. And then there is HIM.

I give him 3/4 of a can of cat food and her 1/4. He gulps down his food so he can try and finish his huge portion and attempt to scarf down her teeny portion. I have to clean up his dry food bowl area at least 3 times a day, as he manages to toss the food all over the place. I have caught him scooping it out with his paw, just to watch it roll all over. He slaps at the water fountain, making a mess. He farts and belches. He lives to throw himself on her, and she is not a fan of roughhousing. He can't jump for anything, but I think that is because he is growiing so fast he cannot handle his own body. Yesterday, DD got a package and next thing you know, kitty had stolen two packing peanuts and DH had to chase him down and dig them out of his mouth. If you hold him too close and he smells meat on your breath, he will lick your mouth like crazy. He wakes DD up every morning by licking her face.

As I said, he lacks manners entirely. The ones he has are bad. She is the embodiment of a lady and he is like every bad stereotype of a teenage boy. But we love the little dickens.

He sounds like he would be quite entertaining and she sounds adorable.

[MichelleinMaine]

We were on a flight last year with a cat walking up the aisles. They kept paging for the person with the cat to come and get it out of the galley.
Finally realized the owner was a sleeping passenger. The cat had gotten out of its carrier somehow.

We were definately not expecting to see a cat walk by on the plane!

[atp]

Originally Posted by EMom

He's just a mess. We have his half sister (same father) who is almost 2 years older. She is just the most dainty, ladylike thing you've ever seen. Eats with tiny little bites, always looks like she ought to be on the cover of a calendar. And then there is HIM.

I give him 3/4 of a can of cat food and her 1/4. He gulps down his food so he can try and finish his huge portion and attempt to scarf down her teeny portion. I have to clean up his dry food bowl area at least 3 times a day, as he manages to toss the food all over the place. I have caught him scooping it out with his paw, just to watch it roll all over. He slaps at the water fountain, making a mess. He farts and belches. He lives to throw himself on her, and she is not a fan of roughhousing. He can't jump for anything, but I think that is because he is growiing so fast he cannot handle his own body. Yesterday, DD got a package and next thing you know, kitty had stolen two packing peanuts and DH had to chase him down and dig them out of his mouth. If you hold him too close and he smells meat on your breath, he will lick your mouth like crazy. He wakes DD up every morning by licking her face.

As I said, he lacks manners entirely. The ones he has are bad. She is the embodiment of a lady and he is like every bad stereotype of a teenage boy. But we love the little dickens.

LOL, I never knew cats could be like that. Sounds like a cat version of Stitch!