No pets should be allowed unless they clear it with everyone sitting around them. Its not fair for me to have to breathe in toxic air.

Pets
 

Allergies are one thing, toxic air is another. Please be clear, if you have allergies, that is another matter. Pet lover, my dog should be SM! 3 times ORF to SFO and 3 times ORF to MEX.

All be sure to make sure that you clarify PEC Pet In Cabin, RES and outlying stations aren't very clear on differences.

That is not required by the airlines though. If someone has a problem with sitting near me and my pet, then perhaps they should be the one to move.

Airlines allow pets on board. Petowner is not doing anything wrong, especially since we pay extra.

Pet in Cabin
 

About $100 to $150 for a Pet In Cabin for a space our feet already occupy. Albeit my 15 pound Chug (Chihuahua Pug Mix) and her 5 other possible companions can add to the weight of the plane might take X amount of jet fuel......Especially when I fly over 100K miles a year...

Depending on where you are flying to and from, you may want to look into Pet Airways. They serve a limited # of markets so far, but you won't have to worry about taking your pet through the WTMD, potty breaks, whether others have allergies, etc.

www.petairways.com

You don't "lose" anything as far as leg room is concerned. EVERYONE has a choice about bringing something on the plane and using the space underneath the seat in front of them for a carry-on or to not bring a carry-on and have that space open. You are not being denied some sort of right, nor being treated differently than anyone else in that respect. You could purchase a seat for your pet and avoid the problem. An I'm sorry if the airline doesn't let you go on with three bags, including the pet carrier, but, again, the airline is treating you like everyone else. You've got to remember that many of the airlines do not let pets fly at all.

If it was explained to me that the passenger with the pet had a disability, I would likely move to the back of the plane. If the person with the pet had entitlement attitude, I would likely play the PM card and ask that the person with the pet be accomodated on a later flight, calling my doctor if necessary to have him confirm that I have been hospitalized twice for reactions to cats.

As another poster pointed out, I was willing to work with the pet owner. I know as long as I do not accidently get pet hair in my eye, I'm okay. (For some reason it's my eyes that cause the problem, even though it results in my throat and eyes swelling and the throat swelling is the problem. And no, it's not the dander. I'm allergic to the cat, as are a small minority of people with cat allergies.) Having the pet on the other side of the plane and making sure it stayed in the holder minimized the risk.

If I thought for one minute that the owner would act unreasonably and start making demands, I would have, under the American's With Disability Act, asked the pet to be denied boarding. Even with a disability, the owner can be denied boarding if it's because of the pet, which, unless a service animal, is not covered under the act. Pets in the cabin are purely at the discretion of the airline and pilot.

Fortunate for me, the time it did happen, the GA, the other passenger and I each acted like rational adults and looked for a way to make everyone happy. Luckily, none of us was looking to be the alpha dog. We were each just looking for the best way for both of us to get where we needed to go with as little inconvenience and risk as possible.

The airline obviously disagrees. You can think I should have to move all you want, but I've got the airline and the law behind me. Nothing you can do about it.

You do realize that if the pilot decides he does not want the pet in the cabin, all he has to do is arbitrarily say "no go" and your pet is not on board, right? Pets are last and least on the list.

You may have just inspired me to get a letter from my doctor explaining my medical problem and carry it with me at all times, requesting any and all cats be denied boarding on my flight. Under the ADA, I would be entitled to such accomodation. Your attitude has shed a new light on my being willing to fly with cats in the cabin.

Added: Just called my Doctor's office. He is sending me a letter to keep with me when I fly in case I run into someone like you on the plane and need to get them moved to a later flight. Thanks for making me aware of this potential issue so I can be prepared. You've done a service to all of us with pet allergies today. You should be proud. You may have benefited someone's health today by reminding us that some pet owners are clueless and need to be reigned in.

Things seem to be getting a little heated in here. That being said, I personally dislike having personal pets in the cabin, especially in F. A well trained service animal is one thing, but having had to endure a two hour flight with a yippy "cat that barks" in the seat behind me was almost too much to bear. It was worse than a screaming infant in my opinion. Paying an extra fee does not entitle anyone to make my flight experience worse. An airplane cabin is an enclosed space, with no where to go to seek solace from offending noises, smells, or other nuisances and travelers should consider the impact they have on others when flying.

Please produce a link to an airline's frequent flyer program where this is true. I don't believe you will find one. Infants in arms have never earned frequent flyer miles, unless the parents decide to purchase a child ticket for them.

I am all for allowing a legitimate service animal, meaning an animal that is helping a person with an actual disability who needs the animal to navigate the airport with them. 100%.

But if you are so emotionally unstable that you need a support animal to get through a flight, maybe you don't need that vacation as badly as you think. Save yourself the "trauma" and stay home. You and your "emotional support animal" will both probably be happier.

I think it is ridiculous that people bring their pets on the plane with them. Your 5 pound cat or Chihuahua is no more "traumatized" by flying in a carrier with the baggage than my 90 pound labrador. We love our dogs as much as you do. But if I want to fly with my dog, he goes in a cage, and in with the baggage. So should yours. There's no difference except for size. When I go on vacation I leave my dogs home with a sitter. If I had to move, I would bring him in a cage, period.

The reality of the situation is that bringing a pet on the plane could seriously pose a health risk to the other passengers. Many people have pet allergies, and they are not told in advance when an animal is going to be on the plane. Maybe they see the pet in line, maybe not. Maybe they don't find out until it is too late and have to sneeze, cry and cough coast to coast, or overseas.

Barking, whining and various odors can just inconvenience those unlucky enough to be sitting near the pet.

Plus, I find the behavior of small dog owners often (but not always) disgusting. I've seen (and so have you) women smuggling tiny dogs onto the plane in their purses. Is this an "approved carrier?" I've seen them go to the bathroom on the plane while the owner giggles "it's just a little" and seen them go to the bathroom in the terminal.

In fact last week in Memphis, my wife saw one of these people "walking" their dog in the bathroom and encouraging it to "go." Once the dog had peed under the sink near the feet of people who were trying to wash their hands, she put the dog back in the rolling carrier and left without cleaning it up, while several patrons shouted "you going to clean that up?" while she sprinted away.

Flight attendants should not have to deal with pet waste - the are serving FOOD. Airport janitorial staff should not have to deal with it either.

So here's my opinion. If you can't stand to take a vacation without your pet, drive.

And if you are moving, get a carrier and put the pet in the luggage, just like those of us with big pets do. It doesn't kill the big pets and the little ones won't die either.

Finally, I would support a total ban on any non-service animal in the cabin. So for now, the higher the fees, the happier I am. Hopefully cheapness will keep most of the pets out of the cabin.

So flame away people!

As a physician who has worked with people with real disabilities (spinal cord injuries, strokes, CP, spasticity from multiple sclerosis) I don't know if I should laugh hysterically or be outraged that you are trying to pull out the ADA for your pet allergies.

Leaning towards the latter. Calm down.

Sorry, I was reacting to the attitude displayed in your previous post how the GA treated the pet owner like they were doing something wrong having the pet, forced to board, sit at the very back and wait til everyone deplaned. It doesn't make sense for the pet to preboard if going all the way to the back b/c that, in effect, 'contaminates' the whole plane. They should probably sit front and board last.

No, not being denied a right, however, we do pay to bring our pet on board and it is considered one of our carryons. I typically use the underseat for my feet since I need to stretch my leg. Since the example you cited previously, it does not sound like the pet passenger was treated very respectfully by the GA.

If I were the woman on your flight with my dog (say you're allergic to dogs), I would certainly do everything I can to avoid harming your allergies. I'm just saying that there need to be procedures in place. I don't believe your right to fly trumps mine. Coming to a mutual beneficial compromise, of course, is best, but there are also people on the allergic end who would be unreasonable.

It would be interesting since I could also use the ADA (and it's not only the ADA that governs air travel, but the ACAA or something like that) to argue bringing my pet on board and not being moved seats. I have a prosthetic.

I have never had a problem anytime I have flown with him. We have a non-shedding breed and everyone who notices him coos, oooohs and ahhhhs over him. He doesn't cause any scenes, bark or cry. He is a bit clingy and has to be able to see his mom out of his carrier.

There's also no guarantee there will not be pet allergens on a plane since many passengers have some sort of pet hair on them if they have a dog or cat at home.

If one is so allergic to pets and they need to fly, then wouldn't the onus be on the allergic one to call ahead to ask if a pet is on board the flight? Then the whole situation can be avoided. A person with a pet cannot very well call and ask if there will be anyone with allergies on board.

Wow... jump to conclusions much? As I stated previously and in my subsequent response to your post, I said I am a respectful pet owner and would go to great lengths to compromise. I simply said I didn't think the pet owner was treated fairly or respectfully by the GA.

Thank you. As someone with a prosthetic device, I thought the same thing. It is actually not the ADA that governs airlines anyway. The sense of entitlement displayed by the PP is astounding.

I'm sorry you think my no being able to breathe because my throat swells shut (has happened twice - tube down throat in emergency room) is not a serious condition, but I happen to think that trumps an artificial leg. You won't die from yours, now, will you? Last I checked, having ones breathing passages cut off results in terminal suffocation. Besides, it is possible to accomodate everyone's issues. Unfortunately, when one person is unwilling to, let's say, move a seat, that's unreasonable.

And, yes, as of about a year ago, the ADA does in fact cover airlines. You can read about it here: http://handicapableperu.wordpress.co...abilities-act/

I have never pushed this issue, and most people handle themselves and their pets honorably, but the attitude of "I pay so I get" just misses the fact that flying with a pet is not a right, it's a courtesy extended by this airline. The courtesy costs money, but many other airlines deny pets boarding in all circumstances. But now that the poster pointed out the potential issue, I'm ready just in case someone thinks their cat is entitled to sit wherever it wants. Better safe than sorry.