Dogs on planes

wondercollie

I know of someone who flew across the US with his full sized Lassie type Collie in the cabin. The airline screwed up the dog's prebooked hold space. The airline to make up for it then declared the dog a service dog and permitted it to fly in the cabin.

I have seen in several US airports dog rest areas. Yes, dog toilets, complete with a fire hydrant, fake grass, hoses to wash down waste and poop bag dispensers.

My dogs have flown in the hold and I must say for the price we paid for the crate fees, those animals should have had prime rib steaks for snack.

And yes, my dogs are well behaved and quieter than most kids that I've had the misfortune to fly with. And yes, British family flying out of CDG to Malaga, I mean you. Five free range children screaming, playing in the aisles, seat kicking and a cabin crew that refused to deal with it.

zagfles

FBaby wrote: »

How does a dog in a carrying box (the lady told me she couldn't take him out) on one's lap any different to a 2 year old on its parent's lap?

As for allergies, that's an interesting one. I guess it would be declared and the person would be moved?

In a box isn't so bad, I though we were talking about loose dogs.

zagfles

Doshwaster wrote: »

Just a shame small children can't be sedated. At least adults have G&T to knock us out on a long flight.

Hot milk and avoid tanking them up on sugar seemed to work quite well for ours.

zagfles

IAmWales wrote: »

Dogs have been flying in the cabin for decades. I'm not aware of one case where a dog has impeded an emergency situation.

They've forced emergency landings...

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/pictured-truffles-dog-who-caused-3630390

However badly behaved children are - they don't tend to !!!! in the ailse

uknick

Sorry for a long rant, but this is a big issue for us when we travel, both for flights and hotels. My other half is allergic to cats and dogs; they trigger her asthma by just being in the same area as her.

We only fly airlines that let us change our non flexible tickets at no cost if an animal is booked on the flight after we book.

We asked BA about this and they told us the dog always takes preference over the asthma sufferer. So, if a dog was booked on after us, we'd have to pay the normal change of flights costs. As you can imagine, BA does not get our business.

Whilst UK departing/arriving flights tend to only allow "genuine" service dogs, in the USA they allow all sorts of dogs on the internal flights. This has led to the fraud dog issue; owners register their dog as a service animal, or more usually emotional support dog, to avoid the fees airlines charge for normal pets to fly in the cabin.

Unfortunately this "fraud" dog issue has now spread to hotels. To avoid dogs we pay a premium to book hotels that only allow service animals. All have to allow service animals under the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). However, this act specifically states emotional support dogs are excluded from this part of the ADA.

But, owners now register their dog as a service animal on the internet, pay about $200 for a pack which gives them a letter which says it is a service animal and book into hotels using this paperwork. Why do they do this? It saves them about $50 a stay, so the $200 is recovered pretty quickly.

Over the last couple of years we've experienced non service dogs in about half the hotels we've stayed in. When we ask the hotel why they've let a pet say, they try to quote the ADA which says they can only ask if it is a service dog. If the owner says it is, the hotel can't do anything about it. The hotels are all wrong when they tell us this.

The ADA allows the hotel to ask two questions; first is it a service dog and second what is it trained to do? What they can't ask is what the owner's disability is. By not asking the second question the hotel is in breach of their hotel's pet policy if there is some doubt as to the validity of the owners claim.

As an example, last week we were staying in Cape Cod. A late middle age couple from New York checked in with a lapdog wearing a yellow tutu. During the time we were there we saw the couple a few times without the dog. To my mind this was a pet so we questioned it with the hotel. They said the owners had service dog paperwork for it, so the hotel had not bothered to ask what it was trained to do. The fact we saw the owners without the dog undermines the claim it was a service dog, which under the rules should be with the owner at all times.

Mind you, this couple also had a disabled badge for their car despite them both showing no sign of a mobility issue. I saw this when they both took the luggage from their car and carried it into reception without asking for assistance. No doubt they had obtained it under the mental incapacity clause allowed under US rules. And before you think I was stalking them, I just happened to be sat in the reception area having a coffee when they arrived.

Later on in the week another dog arrived, again a small lapdog. This one wore a jacket with "support animal" on it. Because it had the jacket on the hotel let it stay.

What can we do about this? Not a lot as the dog lobby in the USA is very strong. Complaining to the hotels achieves nothing. In the future we're going to book short stays at hotels; a coupe of nights and then change hotel to another in the area. Hopefully, this'll reduce the stress my other half feels when she knows a pet is in the hotel. Not very convenient, but as the hotels have no intention of enforcing the ADA I can't see any other option.

The irony of all this is that I love dogs, as a child we had them as pets, and would love to have one again. But, my partner's allergic issues negates this.

And, before any on here tell me service animals are trained in many diverse functions, I'm aware of this. In the USA I've seen dogs trained to detect an impending insulin coma, to help when the owner has a seizure as well as the usual guide dog. It is obvious these are genuine service dogs by their behaviour. They're always with their owner and take an interest in nothing but than their owner. It's the fraud dogs I have the issue with, as do many of the genuine service dog owners.

Hermione_Granger

zagfles wrote: »

They've forced emergency landings...

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/pictured-truffles-dog-who-caused-3630390

However badly behaved children are - they don't tend to !!!! in the ailse

One example from well over 3 years ago doesn't help prove a point.
How many flights have been diverted because of people being drunk, abusive or fighting on an aircraft?

zagfles

Hermione_Granger wrote: »

One example from well over 3 years ago doesn't help prove a point.

Err.. the PP was not aware of "one case". OK it didn't impede an emergency situation - it caused one!

How many flights have been diverted because of people being drunk, abusive or fighting on an aircraft?

In proportion to flights taken by people and flights taken by dogs in the cabin? I don't know - why don't you google it if your that interested.

zagfles

uknick wrote: »

What can we do about this?

Holiday in Korea instead Maybe wait till things calm down a bit though!

Not a lot as the dog lobby in the USA is very strong.

Like their gun lobby. I'm surprised there isn't an amendment covering it.

uknick

One thing I did think about doing is to write to President Trump c/o The Whitehouse.

I thought I'd ask him to ban fraud dogs with an executive order. And then go on to say it's something Obama failed to do in his 8 years. It does seem Trump wants to better Obama in everyway, so this might be a red flag to a bull :rotfl:

mattyprice4004

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

I can think of at least two things that could be worse.

Groups of drunks going off for a hen/stag party or football match,
&
obnoxious and loud 7/8/9 year olds running up and down the aisles screaming and shouting and knocking into everyone in an aisle seat.

Tactical 'careless' foot in the aisle sorts that one out quickly :rotfl: