Westjet lost this woman's gecko...

[ronandannette]

I want an emotional support monkey.

I felt happy, calm and in control the last time I ate a lobster - does that count?

 

[jevs]

It's bad enough sitting on a plane with other people, please don't make me sit near comfort animals as well.

 

[King Schultz]

I felt happy, calm and in control the last time I ate a lobster - does that count?

To me it does.



I want a support lobster now. . . with melted butter and lemon wedges.

 

[Magpie]

You have my sympathy. Pretty sure I would have tried to get my seat reassigned and if the nasty, ridiculous beast so much as touched me I'd be raising holy hell. (I realize this makes me sound like a grumpy old bat, which I'm really not, but people imposing their pets on me and expecting me to like it is a hot-button.)

Are you talking about the young woman, or Wilbur?

 

[ronandannette]

Are you talking about the young woman, or Wilbur?

Well, I'm certainly not fond of six hours in a sardine can, er, I mean air travel in general and I also hate being accidentally touched by people, but even so I do think a wet snout on my shoulder (pig, not person) is a little over the top.

 

[Magpie]

Well, I'm certainly not fond of six hours in a sardine can, er, I mean air travel in general and I also hate being accidentally touched by people, but even so I do think a wet snout on my shoulder (pig, not person) is a little over the top.

Personally, I don't think I'd want a wet snout on me from anyone - pig, person, guide dog, Pope, President, whatever.

But I'd take the girl with her pig in a blanket over the enormously overweight, sweaty gentleman I was squeezed in next to on one recent flight, any day! That was not fun.

 

[nd5056]

Well, it was nice while it lasted...

 

[fly girl]

There was an emotional support turkey on a flight in January.



Crazy! I understand having emotional support, but at what cost to other passengers? IMHO I think it's gone too far.

 

[Magpie]

There was an emotional support turkey on a flight in January.

View attachment 184777

Crazy! I understand having emotional support, but at what cost to other passengers? IMHO I think it's gone too far.

Cool... I found a news article (and hilarious video) about it: http://www.insideedition.com/headli...-for-emotional-support-shes-been-there-for-me

There's also a clip at the bottom of the page showing a stewardess's unhappy reaction when she finds an escaped cat wandering around in the plane, hopefully not on the same flight.

Edit: I think my favourite bit of the video is when the reporter says the turkey didn't make a sound on the flight, and you can hear it honk in the video clip.

 

[pryncess527]

Jodie Smalley, 34, says her turkey, Easter, has been there for her since her husband passed away from cancer three months ago.

She had a custom diaper made for Easter for their flight, and she has all the necessary documents that certify the turkey is a legitimate emotional support animal.

“Hearing about a turkey on a plane sounds ridiculous,” she said. “But people have no idea what I’ve been through.”

This is what gets me. My heart goes out to her, to lose a spouse to cancer, especially at 34 must be so painful. But it's also not such a unique or rare situation that people have no idea what she's going through. I don't want to rank her pain on a scale, but it almost seems like that's what she's doing -- claiming her pain is so unique and so much worse than anything anyone else is dealing with that we just don't get it. And I'm calling BS on that type of entitlement. My mom lost the love of her life at 36, it sucked, but she managed to get through it without emotional support turkeys, or without claiming that no one could possibly understand her pain.

 

[sonnyjane]

There was an emotional support turkey on a flight in January.

View attachment 184777

Crazy! I understand having emotional support, but at what cost to other passengers? IMHO I think it's gone too far.

About two months ago the same woman came into our store with the turkey (Easter) and went whale-watching haha! I think that's probably the first turkey to ever go on a whale-watching boat.

 

[Magpie]

This is what gets me. My heart goes out to her, to lose a spouse to cancer, especially at 34 must be so painful. But it's also not such a unique or rare situation that people have no idea what she's going through. I don't want to rank her pain on a scale, but it almost seems like that's what she's doing -- claiming her pain is so unique and so much worse than anything anyone else is dealing with that we just don't get it. And I'm calling BS on that type of entitlement. My mom lost the love of her life at 36, it sucked, but she managed to get through it without emotional support turkeys, or without claiming that no one could possibly understand her pain.

Well... my thought on this is, who is she hurting?

Asking and getting permission to do something isn't "entitlement". Entitlement is refusing to take no for an answer, not happily accepting "yes" (and getting all the proper paperwork in order, as well as having a doctor sign off).

I agree with you there are likely people in the world who do know what she's going through, but many people say things like, "People have no idea what I've been through," when what they really mean is, "No one I know personally has been through this." Certainly, I've never been in her shoes! I have no idea how I'd handle it, if I was. Would I be as graceful and resilient as your mom was? I'd hope so, but I couldn't guarantee it.

I guess, what it comes down to is I'm just glad that I don't need an emotional support turkey. Or a scooter, or a seeing eye dog, or a helper monkey, or a pacemaker, or an oxygen tank, or psychiatric medication or any of the many, many other things people rely on to get through their day. I'm not in any position to judge who actually needs/deserves the assistance (typically, that'd be the purview of the doctor who prescribed it). And I'm definitely not an advocate for yanking away someone's "crutch" just because it happens to have feathers.

 

[King Schultz]

I'm bringing my 'emotional support quart of Wild Turkey' with me next time I fly. . . let's see them argue that one!!

 

[TipsyTraveler]

I'd pay good money to sit next to a snake if it meant I wouldn't have to be seated near a small child. Different strokes for different folks.

 

[JaxDad]

I'd pay good money to sit next to a snake if it meant I wouldn't have to be seated near a small child. Different strokes for different folks.

Snakes on a plane?!