flight1352

From Southwest.com:

Effective for travel beginning September 17, 2018, Southwest is changing our policies for accepting emotional support animals (ESAs) on our flights. A Customer must still comply with all documentation requirements set forth by federal regulations. Additionally, Southwest is implementing the following changes:

• The ESA must be either a dog or a cat.
• Each Customer may bring only one ESA on the flight.
• The ESA must be in a carrier that can be stowed under the seat in front of the Customer or on a leash at all times while in the airport and onboard the aircraft.

Further information found here:

https://www.southwest.com/html/custo...ities-pol.html

Furthermore, the following changes are being made to in regard to trained service animals:

Effective for travel beginning September 17, 2018, Southwest is making changes to our existing policies for accommodating Customers with disabilities who seek to travel with a fully trained service animal in the cabin. Customers with disabilities seeking to travel with a trained service animal must still provide credible verbal assurance that the animal is a trained service animal. Additionally, note the following changes to our policy:

1. Southwest will only accept the following species of animals in our cabin as trained service animals – dogs, cats and miniature horses.
2. Southwest will accept fully trained psychiatric service animals as trained service animals

More information available here:

https://www.southwest.com/html/custo...ities-pol.html

kennycrudup

PAX62

My miniature horse had a pretzel allergy and only eats peanuts...what do I do now?

Often1

No teacup pigs?

geo979

I believe peanut allergies trump pretzel allergies in regards to dog service animals but not dog ESA's. It's the opposite for miniature horses naturally. One caveat, if the pretzel allergy of the traveler with an ESA exhibits or claims (falsely or otherwise) an exacerbated emotional condition associated with the pretzel allergy, pretzel will then trump peanut for all sevice animals and most, but not all, breeds of dog and cat as ESAs.

NoStressHere

Post of the day - okay, post of the month!

Love it.

THANK YOU SOUTHWEST FOR ADDRESSING THIS CRAP

ursine1

A move the right direction, but a baby step at best.

fotographer

and to think I was going to bring my emotional support peacock

rsteinmetz70112

The Americans with Disabilities Act recognizes only dogs and miniature horses. Why that is seems obscure. The reasons given are usually horses live longer and some Muslims consider dogs unclean, although that seems more a cultural thing than a religious one.

Who figured out how to train cats?

toomanybooks

ursine1

Southwest previously disallowed "exotic" ESAs. While it remains to be seen how enforcement protocols will play out (particularly with regards to Service Animal validation), again, this is a very minor change.

WillCAD

It's on USAToday's home page:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/trave...als/986458002/

kaller

I hope this empowers GAs to require presentation of documentation prior to boarding. The current status is most people are taking their pets aboard without a carrier, without documentation and without paying the pet fees.

pinniped

We find it highly offensive that Southwest is suggesting that cats can ever be fully trained. That's soooo beneath us.

Sincerely,
Cats

ursine1

Southwest has always required documentation for ESAs; nothing is changing there.

Carriers cannot require documentation for Service Animals. But this statement would seem to suggest that Southwest will increase efforts in validating them. It's a tricky area. I guess we'll see.