New rules on flying with "emotional support animals" (ESA's)

Rule will allow airlines to ban some animals

Julia Thompson
USA TODAY
The Department of Transportation announced Wednesday that it will revise rules on flying with emotional support animals and will no longer consider them to be service animals, which are required by law to be allowed to fly with passengers on commercial airlines. The revised Air Carrier Access Act rules define a service animal as “a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability.”
The DOT said it no longer considers an emotional support animal to be a service animal, paving the way for airlines to ban them. Policies will be set by individual airlines but must meet DOT rules, which will go into effect 30 days after the final ruling is published in the Federal Register.
The new DOT rule will allow airlines to require flyers with a service animal to fill out a form up to 48 hours in advance. They’ll also be allowed to require a service animal to fit within its


handler’s foot space on the plane, which could be problematic for larger service animals.
Contributing: Associated Press

I both agree and disagree with this decision.

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Originally Posted by Reptile$ 4 Life

I both agree and disagree with this decision.

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I pretty much agree with it, mainly because there have been some bad incidents (untrained & unrestrained dogs biting other people) & many who abused the privilege they were given. That's usually how it goes, a few ruin it for all the others.

I'd be fine with more leniency though, if "ESA's" were required to have training & be certified, so their behavior wouldn't ruin other people's lives. ;)

I totally agree with you about the training. I work at a service dog train facility and we train emotional support animals that also are service dogs. People who get a dog and then claim that they need it for emotional support, and don't get the dog any training, make the rest of the responsible people look bad. (Same thing happens all the time in the reptile world, so I am sure we can all relate) The thing I am having problems with is the animals having to fit into the foot space. A lot of people need larger dogs to help with stability. The spaces are so small and tight that I don't see how a large dog could fit into that space.

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Originally Posted by Reptile$ 4 Life

I totally agree with you about the training. I work at a service dog train facility and we train emotional support animals that also are service dogs. People who get a dog and then claim that they need it for emotional support, and don't get the dog any training, make the rest of the responsible people look bad. (Same thing happens all the time in the reptile world, so I am sure we can all relate) The thing I am having problems with is the animals having to fit into the foot space. A lot of people need larger dogs to help with stability. The spaces are so small and tight that I don't see how a large dog could fit into that space.

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Well, it sounds as if they'll need to buy another seat for a large dog- which seems fair, if that's the case? You can't very well have your dog squishing onto the person next to you on a plane, they do need space. Besides, cramming a dog in too little space, then with airplane noise & strangers too close, sounds like a real temperament test for sure. That's wonderful that you're training service dogs to be ESA's too. :gj:

Oops I misunderstood part of the article. I thought the dogs would have to fit there with no alternative. I agree buying another seat would be best for everyone.

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Originally Posted by Reptile$ 4 Life

Oops I misunderstood part of the article. I thought the dogs would have to fit there with no alternative. I agree buying another seat would be best for everyone.

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I thought I might have misunderstood it...either way, it wasn't clearly written. These days, airlines should be happy for any & all the seats they can sell, so hopefully that's what they're intending.

good


and while we're at it, can we ban flushing emotional support animals too???

Its about time that people start realizing "emotional support" animals are a joke.
I love my dogs and they help calm me down but only one of them is CGC with extensive training BUT still not a service animal.

Alaska Airlines to ban emotional support animals

Hannah Yasharoff
USA TODAY
Alaska Airlines will soon ban emotional support animals from flights, becoming the first major U.S. airline to do so after the Department of Transportation recently revised its regulations about what constitutes a service animal.
Beginning Jan. 11, Alaska will only allow service dogs, which it defined as dogs that are “specially trained to perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability,” including psychiatric service dogs, the airline said.
Passengers with emotional support animals with reservations booked prior to Jan. 11 will still be allowed to fly, but no exceptions will be made after Feb. 28.
The DOT announced Dec. 2 its revised Air Carrier Access Act would no longer classify emotional support animals as service animals, which are allowed to fly with passengers on commercial airlines under federal law.
Advocacy group Airlines for America, which represents major U.S. airlines, previously expressed support for the DOT’s revisions, though Alaska is the first major U.S. airline to formally announce it will enact them.
Alaska’s new policy allows up to two service dogs per guest, and those guests will be required to fill out a DOT form – available on the airline’s website beginning Jan. 11 – to confirm that the service dog is “trained and vaccinated and will behave appropriately during the journey.”
The changes are a departure from the previous DOT guidance issued last year, which said that airlines could not restrict passengers


from traveling with emotional support animals, nor could they ban a specific breed or species of support animal.
Airlines are currently prohibited from refusing service dogs based on their breed, and that prohibition will continue under the new rules.
Airlines have also questioned whether some passengers may be trying to pass off their pets as support animals – be they cats, rabbits or birds, among others – in order to avoid paying the associated fees.
Last year, more than 80 veterans and disability groups endorsed banning untrained emotional support animals in airline cabins. When DOT proposed the rule change in January, disability advocates and airline personnel were in favor.
Contributing: Julia Thompson and Curtis Tate