Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Miles&Points > Airlines and Mileage Programs > United Airlines | MileagePlus
Reload this Page >

Does (should) UA have a policy on dogs poopin in the lavs?

Does (should) UA have a policy on dogs poopin in the lavs?

Old Sep 17, 2017, 2:05 pm
  #61  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Ewa Beach, Hawaii
Posts: 10,899
Originally Posted by Collierkr
Why does someone who MUST have a service dog with them need to travel internationally? I can think of a few you might offer but none of these are must travel or die situations. There are a lot of things that can be accommodated for in life but there are also limits.
Why do you need to travel for any reason? Just because they need a service dog shouldn't preclude them from living life.
notquiteaff likes this.
Baze is online now  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 2:34 pm
  #62  
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,011
Originally Posted by halls120
I'd rather have the dog go in its kennel in the hold where it belongs.
Where UA will lose it or kill it? No thank you.

Almost every dog or cat I've shared the cabin with has been better behaved than almost every small child I've shared the cabin with, FWIW. You don't see folks calling to ban noisy children from planes.

I'm also allergic to a few perfumes; I have had flights where the pax in the row in front or behind me has had those perfumes in a high dose, and have sneezed and coughed the entire flight.

To me, I have no problem with pets, kids, or people with perfume, so long as they're all well-behaved.
EdV likes this.
exerda is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 2:44 pm
  #63  
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Somewhere in EWR
Programs: UA GS, HH Diamond
Posts: 855
Originally Posted by exerda
Almost every dog or cat I've shared the cabin with has been better behaved than almost every small child I've shared the cabin with, FWIW. You don't see folks calling to ban noisy children from planes.

I agree. Put the kids in the hold instead.
EdV, travellingcari and NoLaGent like this.
AugustusM is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 3:11 pm
  #64  
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: MRY - CNX - TXL
Programs: UA 1K / *G / Marriott PE / Expedia Gold+ / Hertz PC
Posts: 7,058
Originally Posted by exerda
. You don't see folks calling to ban noisy children from planes.

.
Hold my beer...
JVPhoto is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 3:15 pm
  #65  
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 57,252
Originally Posted by exerda
Where UA will lose it or kill it? No thank you.

Almost every dog or cat I've shared the cabin with has been better behaved than almost every small child I've shared the cabin with, FWIW. You don't see folks calling to ban noisy children from planes.
Kids often act like animals, but they are humans. Fido and Kitty might be more lovable than children, but they are animals, no matter how well behaved they are.

If Fido and Kitty have to be in the cabin, they belong in a kennel for the entire flight. They shouldn't be using lavatories intended for passengers and crew.
halls120 is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 5:24 pm
  #66  
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: dark side of the moon
Programs: papa card, UA 1K
Posts: 707
When I skimmed through this thread I didn't see reference to any guidelines so I guess there aren't any.

I also think that animals (except service animals) should be in the hold. I don't have any negative experiences, but one of my brother in laws (GS) was transporting 'his' dachshund TCON J on a red eye - the dog 1/3 of the way apparently had serious diarrhea in it's soft carry bag/crate and he had to clean it out in the lav which apparently took forever and then when he sat back down the dog went again an hour later and he had to go through the same process (Flights have been diverted for this kind of thing). He doesn't even like dogs but he's the one who ends up looking after them.

The possibility for cross contamination is so high there is no way that humans and animals should share airline toilets so the only sensible policy is to put the animals in the hold.

Also I think airport comfort animals are a great idea for nervous flyers however IMO they have no business in the main cabin and the program as we all know is massively abused.
ermintrude is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 6:49 pm
  #67  
 
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Seoul
Programs: None anymore
Posts: 983
Originally Posted by halls120
This. x1000. Too many people are scamming the system all because they don't want to pay extra to put their pet in the hold - where it belongs.
YES so many people are scamming the system. A number of people I work with even are scamming the system because they don't want to put their pet in the hold. Frankly don't travel with your pet unless you're moving and you have no other choice.

My dog is able to hold it for at least 9 hours, her last walk of the night is at 10 and she doesn't go out again until 7, and there are no accidents in my apartment. And she's a medium sized dog. So frankly I think it's reasonable that a dog can "hold it" for a 2-6 hour flight (assuming domestic).

I'm dreading moving with my dog when I eventually move back to the US, but she'll be going in the hold because she's ~25lbs and won't fit under the seat.
warrenw is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 6:52 pm
  #68  
 
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Seoul
Programs: None anymore
Posts: 983
Originally Posted by Baze
Why do you need to travel for any reason? Just because they need a service dog shouldn't preclude them from living life.
There's definitely a difference between a "service dog" and an "emotional support dog" which is where the abuse of the system is.
warrenw is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 7:44 pm
  #69  
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: SFO
Programs: AS, UA, WN, IHG Diamond Elite, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Gold, CET 7*
Posts: 3,284
Originally Posted by JVPhoto
I'm on an Allegiant flight with a therapy dog that has its own Instagram page...
I don't know which is funnier, the fact that you're on an Allegiant flight (I'm sorry!) or that the therapy dog has his own IG page.

This thread is why I love flyertalk. Thanks for the chuckles everyone!

(and for the record, yes, the abuse of the system when it comes to this topic is insane, however, I'd also prefer that an owner deal with the poor animals bodily functions in a lav than in a kennel next to me or in the aisle)
NoLaGent is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 8:30 pm
  #70  
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 57,252
Originally Posted by exerda
Where UA will lose it or kill it? No thank you.
I've had to fly with my pets before. They always made it unscathed.

This isn't a matter of who is more well behaved. It's a matter of animals being transported in an environment where there aren't adequate sanitary facilities for those animals. I don't particularly want to share the lav with someone's pet animal, and I doubt I'm alone in this regard.
halls120 is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2017, 10:31 pm
  #71  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: LAX
Posts: 10,904
Originally Posted by halls120
I've had to fly with my pets before. They always made it unscathed.

This isn't a matter of who is more well behaved. It's a matter of animals being transported in an environment where there aren't adequate sanitary facilities for those animals. I don't particularly want to share the lav with someone's pet animal, and I doubt I'm alone in this regard.
Ironically in the recent UA killed another dog thread many responded along the lines of "why would he put it on cargo hold"???

UA doesn't want to invest in ensuring safety of animals in cargo hold therefore i completely understand a pet owner who takes the path of getting a fake cert...
We probably need a Dao-like incident with animals to have smth done (i picture emotional support pitbull mauling pax and crew in F when told they only had pasta left)...
azepine00 is offline  
Old Sep 18, 2017, 7:48 am
  #72  
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: PHL
Programs: UA 1K 1MM, Marriott Gold, IHG Platinum, Raddison Platinum, Avis Presidents Club
Posts: 5,257
Originally Posted by nigos
....and UA even has a policy that prohibits dogs in bulkhead seats. ...
They do? Is this written someplace?

On a flight IAH-SEA, a lady with a large dog went to her seat in row 10 (window or aisle I think). The FA came up to us (in the row 7) and asked if any of us were willing to switch. The girl next to me (in the middle) happily volunteered. This dog was large enough where the head went under the bulkhead and the rest of the body completely blocked the floor. The tail must have been on the bag of the person behind. The lady's legs basically straddled the dog. Then the FA proceeded to ask a the other guy in my aisle to push his bag further under the bulkhead and asked me to unplug my charger (totally ignoring the fact that my egress was completely blocked by the dog). At the end of the flight, the lady said something like "thanks, it takes a village...". My thought was "yeah, we all had to suffer for your own convenience"
eng3 is offline  
Old Sep 18, 2017, 8:54 am
  #73  
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Dulles, VA
Programs: UA Life Gold, Marriott Life Titanium
Posts: 2,757
I sat in 1A on a A320 with a blind woman in 1B. Her seeing-eye golden retriever was jammed in there with us.

For the record, the dog didn't pee or poop on the 4+ hour SFO-IAD run. If the dog did need to go, I would have preferred him to pee or poop in the lav vs. anywhere else in the cabin.
catocony is offline  
Old Sep 18, 2017, 10:50 am
  #74  
 
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: BNA
Programs: HH Gold. (Former) UA PP, DL PM, PC Plat
Posts: 8,138
Originally Posted by eng3
They do? Is this written someplace?
See the links I posted earlier in the thread.

A pet must be in a carrier under a seat so no bulkhead seating for pets.

Service animals do not have to be in a carrier so no restriction on bulkheads.
LarryJ is offline  
Old Sep 18, 2017, 11:30 am
  #75  
 
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Palm Beach/ New England
Programs: AA EXP 3MM, DL GM, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 4,376
Originally Posted by nigos
An increased number of pets (alias "comfort animals") inevitably increases the odds of poop in the cabin.
Every surface on every airplane should be expected to be unclean, including fecal material. Basically, consider an airplane like a public toilet.
fastflyer is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.