I just flew with my 7lb “ESA” maltese for the first time.
I spent $180 for a letter from one of the therapy dog websites. Price was $150 +$30 for getting it in 24 hours.
While I have always been against animals (exception service dogs) on planes I was not about to spend $125 x 6 over the next 2 months for a dog the size of a toiletry bag.
He slept in my lap on 4 of 5 segments and passengers commented that they didn’t know he was on the plane when we were de-boarding (he was in the carrier during boarding). One passenger asked if I drugged him because he literally didn’t move for 3 hours. I was afraid he might start making noise if I left him in the carrier the whole time.

Charging $125 each way for a dog to sit in a carrier under my seat or sleep on my lap seems excessive. I would be in favor of eliminating ESA completely but I sure as heck wasn’t about to shell out a bunch of cash while everyone else freerolls.
If you cant beat em join em!
If a pet can fit in a carrier under the seat I think it should count as the personal item. Or charge a more reasonable fee of say $25-$50 each way.