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AA FA bitten by purported emotional support animal / ESA 22 Jul 2019

AA FA bitten by purported emotional support animal / ESA 22 Jul 2019

Old Jul 25, 2019, 9:25 am
  #46  
 
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 10:00 am
  #47  
 
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No one ever mentions the stink of these animals. Most have very offensive doggy odor and then there’s the constant farting at altitude and in some cases they take a crap (mostly these are the little dogs) and the whole cabin smells horrendous for the entire duration of the flight. I hope, for once (not holding my breath, however), that AA will take the lead and ban ESAs citing safety concerns for all future flights.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 10:21 am
  #48  
 
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Originally Posted by Segments


Many dogs trained to assist individuals with PTSD are trained service animals. They are trained to keep space open around the person to prevent close encounters that may trigger an attack. They also are trained to sense and respond to anxiety to prevent an escalation of symptoms, as well respond to events known to trigger an attack to prevent/reduce reactions.
Originally Posted by CLTUSCAPTIVE
I largely agree, with the sole exception of dogs owned by combat veterans with PTSD.
As a combat veteran (but one who doesn't have a service animal), I see a clear distinction between ESA and trained service animals. There are a couple of good charities out there that train service animals for vets. I'm not remotely concerned about on of the trained PTSD biting a neighbor. Untrained ones ... who knows

Originally Posted by ijgordon
Why?

**
This "problem" is largely one of the airlines' own making, in their greedy pursuit for ancillary revenues. I think the in-cabin pet fee is something like $150 each way. More than many tickets, and the dog doesn't get a seat. It also needs to stay in a carrier under the seat. Now obviously the issues in recent years with transporting pets as cargo has compounded this somewhat, but I don't think *that* many people want to travel with their 50lb dog. (Most ESAs I see are lap pets, but of course there are exceptions).

Charge no more than $25 each-way (maybe plus a refundable security deposit?), raise the bar higher for ESA clearance, and I think a lot of the problem goes away (to the extent it's really a problem -- I read a LOT more about misbehaving passengers than misbehaving dogs, but maybe that's just because there are more passengers flying).
Respectfully disagree. People see someone doing it and they decide to copy it because they want bring Fluffie on the plane and don't really care about anyone else. They also do it because they like the attention from other people. Lately I see a significant increase in large dogs -- the other day, I saw a couple each with their own large "ESA."

If you think about it, on every plane of 150 people, there is likely to be someone who is fearful of or allergic to dogs. Also, plane seating even in F is just too confined to put another 5-10 dogs on a plane.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 10:46 am
  #49  
 
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It's really sad to see how many crew and passengers need to get injured or killed before the government steps in and closes the loopholes. How much more is it going to take?
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 10:50 am
  #50  
 
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Emotional Support Animals receive no special training and are not any different from a normal pet. ESA is a requirement for the PERSON to prove they have a need/derive benefit, and a doctors letter states just that. It has nothing to do with the animal, only the person.

On a separate but related topic, I own some rental properties including a small apartment building. We see TONS of emotional support animals of the Pit Bull breed. Its a complete scam, but these people know that landlords wont rent to people with pit bulls in most cases. This is their way around it. We cant legally prevent them, and cant even charge a pet fee because they are not technically pets.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 11:03 am
  #51  
 
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Many (most?) pitbulls are wonderful, loving dogs. Landlords are the problem with this type of doggie-discrimination. Shame on any such landlord! Any way back to the main topic, the point here is that ESA are a scam but airline shave to follow the law and allow them. This is on Congress to dic
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 11:21 am
  #52  
 
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Originally Posted by CLTUSCAPTIVE
I largely agree, with the sole exception of dogs owned by combat veterans with PTSD.
Why? Because ESA’s owned by veterans magically don’t bite?
https://www.military.com/daily-news/...s-lawsuit.html

Airplane Passenger Mauled by Veteran's Support Dog Files Lawsuit
ATLANTA -- A man mauled by another passenger's emotional support dog on a Delta Air Lines flight has sued the airline and the other passenger for negligence.

The lawsuit filed in Fulton County state court alleges Marlin Jackson was in a window seat when a dog sitting in the lap of the passenger next to him suddenly attacked his face and pinned him against the window of the plane.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 11:31 am
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 12:00 pm
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Originally Posted by LINDEGR
Many (most?) pitbulls are wonderful, loving dogs. Landlords are the problem with this type of doggie-discrimination. Shame on any such landlord! Any way back to the main topic, the point here is that ESA are a scam but airline shave to follow the law and allow them. This is on Congress to dic
Try getting a homeowners insurance policy. At least in my state, there are specific carve-outs for what they consider dangerous breeds and pit bulls are explicitly listed. We had to call our insurance company and they threatened to cancel our policy. It was a nightmare in terms of being stuck between the law and insurance companies.

Also, the most recent pit bull that we had in the apartment building got loose and killed the small breed dog of the lady that lived (she promptly broke her lease) in the next apartment.

So dont shame me - shame the people that take advantage of the system to the detriment of those who legitimately need protection under the law, just like the passengers bringing their pets on their flight under the guise of ESA.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 12:15 pm
  #55  
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One thing I've always wondered about these ESAs (I also largely view them as BS, but am absolutely sympathetic to people that really need them) is they expose folks with allergies potentially to hours of suffering. Even if they or the ESA is moved farther away, it could set off an asthma attack etc.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 12:25 pm
  #56  
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what group of clowns came up with the ESA definition/law/language in the first place?

Idiots.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 12:27 pm
  #57  
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Originally Posted by Finkface
Why? Because ESAs owned by veterans magically dont bite?
https://www.military.com/daily-news/...s-lawsuit.html

Airplane Passenger Mauled by Veteran's Support Dog Files Lawsuit
ATLANTA -- A man mauled by another passenger's emotional support dog on a Delta Air Lines flight has sued the airline and the other passenger for negligence.

The lawsuit filed in Fulton County state court alleges Marlin Jackson was in a window seat when a dog sitting in the lap of the passenger next to him suddenly attacked his face and pinned him against the window of the plane.
If you read the article - it specifically says the military vets ESA - not a service animal - now - it may be quibbling over words, but a ESA is vastly different from a service dog and I would be shocked if a service dog did that - not saying it couldn't happen, but generally those dogs are pretty much on point 24/7
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 12:31 pm
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Originally Posted by Hipplewm
If you read the article - it specifically says the military vets ESA - not a service animal - now - it may be quibbling over words, but a ESA is vastly different from a service dog and I would be shocked if a service dog did that - not saying it couldn't happen, but generally those dogs are pretty much on point 24/7
A service dog is trained to perform services. An ESA is sort of like a breathing blankie ...and doesn't require any special training.

And, occasionally, when I'm annoyed, I'll ask the panhandling "veteran" wearing a partial uniform what unit he was with. 99 percent are frauds.
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Old Jul 25, 2019, 12:40 pm
  #59  
 
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Recently leaving the area near the Rome Parliament Building I spotted a group of professional Italian men next to the Italian equivalent of a Secret Service element complete with a Military attachment. They were all laughing and joking in Italian, making fun (unbeknownst to the target) of an American man who walked by with a small frou-frou dog with an “Emotional Support Animal” vest. I speak Italian and suffice it to say, I won’t translate what was said because the Italians have a unique way of making any vulgarity exponentially more disgusting than necessary, but suffice it to say there was an unkind attack on this guy’s masculinity. And frankly, it was hilarious because the guy with his little dog came across as a wimp. As someone above so aptly pointed out, a lot of this ESA stuff is about getting attention, in this case, not the type that was probably desired.

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Old Jul 25, 2019, 1:01 pm
  #60  
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Originally Posted by CLTUSCAPTIVE
I largely agree, with the sole exception of dogs owned by combat veterans with PTSD.
Are you suggesting only combat veterans can have PTSD?
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