david55

Wouldn't your dog be happier staying with family or even some lux doggie care then being dragged to Europe? When we travel we always use house-sitters that our dogs love and seem disappointed when we come home.

Often1

Sent the whole thread off to DOT's civil rights folks so they can see what a mess they've made with the emotional support issue.

The more that is sent in, the more there will be pressure to require some form of a formal diagnosis and formal process.

Somehow it's more socially acceptable to lie about an emotional disturbance than about say, "I'm paralyzed" when one is not.

justsawaufo

There is a form of diagnosis and formal process -
https://www.united.com/web/en-US/con...imal-form.html

apparently UA will contact your mental health professional and verify the details.

WineCountryUA

More discussion on this in http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...solidated.html

Wombat1

+1

I simply don't see why people feel the need to drag their pets around the planet with them. Please do your fellow passengers a favor and leave Fido at home with proper care.

COSPILOT

I'm pretty sure Fido doesn't brag to his fellow dogs about his travels, as he barely remembers seeing a squirrel in the yard yesterday which distracted him from pooping for a few minutes.

I have two dogs, and short of moving out of North America, both will never set foot (paw) on an airplane.

kale73

Not only fellow passengers, but the pets as well. Domestic dogs and cats are territorial animals and are most comfortable in familiar surroundings. Forcing them to travel to unfamiliar places for the benefit and comfort of their human handlers is, IMO, a form of animal cruelty that must be resisted by all means possible! (Are you listening PETA?)

Eupatoria

I think it's a bit extreme. If you have a small dog like a chihuahua, many of those are perfectly happy being dragged places, including on flights, as they are often toted around by their humans anyway. They are probably happier being with their humans v being left behind at a kennel. Putting a large dog like a Great Dane in a cargo compartment of a plane is very different.

I have flown with my cat multiple times (all domestic) -- he is an excellent traveler, very relaxed, doesn't mind at all and very happily sits in his carrier and checks out the airport / plane around him. It beat leaving him with a cat-sitter we didn't know because our regular one couldn't honor a commitment and we were going away for a fairly extended period of time.

justsawaufo

I managed to convince UA to change our flights to LH. I refused to pay the difference in fare and after 2 hours on the phone, UA confirmed they will "eat" the cost.

LXFlyer

Neither Europe nor the US have quarantine for dogs, at least under these circumstances.


By the way, AA *does* allow dogs for the JFK-SFO flights even though that's lie-flat. http://pointmetotheplane.boardingare...abin-for-real/

geo979

How do you post a picture on here? I've got a pic of a guy (maybe 5'10", 180 lbs. ~30 years old) with a ridiculous Service animal on his lap... not in carrier and in bulkhead. Flight attendant did nothing.

zitsky

I'm surprised these loose animals don't run away. At least they're calm.

sammyindc

Just experienced traveling with our dog for the first time and it was surprisingly a breeze. We just adopted a pet 2 weeks ago and had a pre-planned weekend trip to LA from Florida. Couldn't cancel the trip and didn't want to leave our dog (Shih Tau, 11 pounds) with friends and or a doggie hotel (he was just abandoned) so we decided to take him with us.

Bought a dog carrier (I won't get into the service animal lie game), practiced with him for a few days before the flight so he wouldn't feel scared or anxious, paid the $125 fee and took him with us in F on the 5 hour flight. He didn't make a noise, he sat and slept in his carrier the entire flight, no barking and no whining. He had a blast in LA and spent the entire flight home sleeping in his carrier.

SFO 1K

Thanks for being a role model pet parent. ^
Our dog travels exactly as yours does, without incident, noise, hassle, drama, etc. There are plenty of good examples of this, but the few that make it tough for all get over dramatized on these boards.

sammyindc

Totally agree. The key for me was to practice with him and his dog carrier for a few days before the flight. On the first attempt he hated it and wanted to get out but a few days later he was going in on his own and laying there waiting for us to take him somewhere .