I know some of you are getting tired of my frequent stories about service dogs on commercial airline flights, but I cannot ignore them. Today I want to address a recent incident on a United Airlines flight and discuss whether a dog who can barely even walk can be a bonafide service animal – are “service humans” a thing?
A “Service Human” For A Dog On United Airlines?
I don’t arrive at this discussion with any preconceived notions about this particular incident. But a friend shared the picture above with me along with the following:
Boarding my flight to Dallas and this dog cannot even walk! The owner had to carry it on the plane after it was unable to drag itself down the jetbridge! So now dogs need a “service human” to help them through the airport?!
It is an interesting dilemma, isn’t it? I’d imagine that this dog is a dearly beloved member of the family. I also would not necessarily rule out that it was trained at some point to be a service dog. Furthermore, I also am willing to stipulate that a dog need not be able to walk to perform service (such as barking if an insulin crash occurs).
But isn’t this a bit much? Isn’t this cruel to take a crippled animal on a plane because you cannot be separated from it? If your dog can no longer walk, perhaps it is best to leave it at home?
I am putting this out for discussion…I am willing to listen.
People truly misunderstand my position on dogs, so I want to clarify that here. It’s easy to simply dismiss me as a nosy dog hater, but that is not the case. I love dogs and I recognize what comfort they can bring.
I’ll be spending time with a dear greyhound named “Sweetie Pie” today and look back with a deep love for my departed collie “Lassie” and faithful “Pablo” who is pictured above with my son Augustine.
But while I don’t denigrate the comfort that dogs can provide, I do wonder why the US is unique in the world in that dogs enjoy such privileged access onboard airplanes. Being an outlier does not necessarily mean the US gets it wrong, but any time you are an outlier you need to think about why you are one…it might not be because you are just smarter than everyone else…
I won’t gripe that we’ve become a nation of softies, but I do see rampant abuse and I also see dogs on just about every flight now. It was not like this even just a couple of years ago.
I will continue to take an interest in this issue because of the cheapskates and the fraudsters who bring their pets onboard to dodge pet fees or those who think they cannot be separated from their dog in the same way a little child thinks he will die if he doesn’t have an ice cream cone. This ruins it for those who may truly need it…and I don’t want to see that happen, but the onboard menageries are really a little much.
This is the society that the snowflake left has created.
It is ridiculous how people have to take their dogs with them on flights. There needs to be stricter rules regarding dogs on planes. I am highly allergic ( anaphylaxis) to any dog . Once, my flight almost diverted because I had an allergic reaction to a dog whose owner let him jump up and down from the seat to the aisle and floor. I cannot have a peanut on a plane but unfortunately there are dogs.
@Matt … +1 . And Brandon wants to make into snowflake laws .
-1
What a dumb and incorrect comment.
Snowflake left? I think this is 100% attorneys and splitting hairs. That’s where the boldness comes in.
This is irresponsible reporting! Neither your article, nor any of the 16 comments posted so far, bother to ask the question whether this dog was travelling as a service animal (free) or as a pet (paid seat).
You ASSUME the dog was travelling as a service animal, and then riff into clever nonsense about the dog needing a service human.
Just to be clear, United Airlines DOES permit dogs and cats to travel in the cabin as pets. They are NOT required to be service animals to qualify, but they ARE required to have paid seats. The dog and owner you ridicule in this article may very well be legitimately taking advantage of United’s standard pet policy, making all the “service human” outrage you spout, meaningless and irresponsible nonsense.
If a pet, it would have to be in a pet carrier!
This is not accurate.
Of course it is accurate – why else do people cheat the system?
“While there are no weight or breed limitations for pets, they must travel in either a hard-sided or soft-sided carrier. This carrier must fit under the seat in front of you or you cannot fly with your pet. The only animals allowed on planes without a pet carrier are service animals.”
https://www.united.com/en/us/fly/travel/traveling-with-pets.html
PETS MUST BE IN A CARRIER AT ALL TIMES ONBOARD, FULL STOP.
Wrong.
It’s called American exceptionalism.
Same goes with the US being about the only country where children in school must constantly go through “active shooter” drills, since the likelihood of it happening in real life is so incredibly high.
Ha.
10 years ago we took our 20 lb. dog on United Airlines we paid for a extra seat for the dog but they said he was not allowed out of the cage, so they expected him to stay in a cage that wasn’t big enough to sit up for 20 hours from San Francisco to Thailand. No peeing allowed either. But we were in the back of the plane next to the rest rooms so I did take him out for 5 minutes to let him stretch and I did take him to the bathroom to pee on his pee pads. But the women flight attendant was very mean to us and threatened us to force us off the plane. She also said she would put the dog in the cargo area which would had killed him because in those days the cargo area was too cold for animals. We got to Thailand at 1 am in the morning no one in the airport took a taxi to our home. But I wrote a letter to the Viet. At the airport and send a copy of the rules of flying with a dog to United Airlines district office, 2 weeks later I received a apology from them about the rules that were broken by this women flight attendant. And a voucher for free airfare for 2 people anywhere United Flies. But after that day we never flew United again. Gave that voucher to a family member.
This is not a snowflake issue, it’s I’m too cheap to pay issue.
These (non-service) dogs should not be on planes. And, to be a service dog should take more than a dog jacket you can buy on Amazon.
Keep raising this issue!
To be clear Matt is not me (the author).
Yes, the US does get it wrong. This nonsense just isn’t tolerated in normal countries. Yet another example of how America has just gone mad.
Yes because in other countries they eat dogs.
I think maybe just not comment as you never know the situation,
Doesn’t seem like someone scamming us all for perks, seems like someone who doesn’t want to leave their dog but has to travel (I’ve been there) , if so, it’s a minor aspect in the scope of this world. Let it be.
You seem to have missed the point re legitimate service animals.
I support your “service” dog articles by clicking on them 🙂
Same here 🙂
I am going to feed my emotional support bird while I read this article. I am trying to get him signed up for Global Entry. Will see how that goes.
@Santastico … Your parrot is too large to bring onto an aircraft . Your parrot weighs 62 pounds .
Does Birdie have status?
Maybe this dog was actually taking it’s last flight. It’s owner could have been taking it home yo her family where it will be euthanized. Or perhaps the dog was being flown with it’s owner to a specialty vet. And yes service animals can also get injured
Service dogs do indeed age and slow down.
Often they travel with their owner/handlers until they are officially “retired”.
They are not easily “replaced” once they are matched and trained to the owner.
If the dog is quiet, responsive to the owner commands and travels well without disturbing others, let them be.
It’s more than I can say for some human travelers anymore.
If they were legal, i have no problem with them at all. even if 50% of the people had them. But they have to be legit, fake service animals ruins it for society…..white lies are still lies.
You and I will never see eye to eye on the service animal thing, and that’s OK. In this specific case, it seems the animal made it to its destination without incident, so in other words, nothing happened. However, if the US needed to look at every situation in which we are outliers, we may as well just throw society out the window because nothing we do is normal. In the grand scheme of things America needs to address, I’d rank service animals pretty low.
The level of human stupidity obviously has no boundaries.
I never understood America’s love for dogs. and the world’s love of them in fact.
As a retired airline capt I know that putting an animal in a baggage compartment is (in my estimation) cruel and unusual punishment. If the dog poses no threat to other passengers, let them on board with their owner. However, if the dog cant walk or take care of themselves without owner interaction then they should’nt be allowed on board as it becomes a safety issue in situations of emergency evacuations.
All the dogs’ biting and chasing might sink the life raft .
Can we stop pretending that safety in an emergency evacuation matters? The chances of an airplane being in a situation where anything about the emergency evacuation makes a difference in the outcome is so close to 0 as to not be worth considering.
If there’s one person with a nut allergy, all nuts are banned from the plane (with good reason). People allergic to dog dander are second class citizens.
I’m not sure that other cultures are less permissive. Dogs are commonplace in public places in France and Great Britain. I think the difference is that Americans have an inherently individualistic approach to public areas. Dogs are seen as a “right,” and Americans are obsessed with rules. It creates conflict around something that should be benign.
United tells its staff to use the benefit of the doubt, which I think makes a great deal of sense. A loud or bitey dog is another story. (English lacks the fantastic German word, “bissige.”)
From a service animal perspective, everyone knows that there are both legitimate and more questionable service animal designations. There is no such thing as an ESAN or “emotional support animal” in the USA anymore, so that joke has seen its end.
My advice is not to let a pup ruin your flight. If it’s a kind animal, the owner is at peace (medically or mentally), it’s not worth stressing over.
The most painful aspect of SVAN abuse is “side eye.” I do have a service dog; I’ve had two after getting sick in 2013. I spent a fortune training with him. He is with me wherever I go: to work, to hotels, on airplanes and trains. He does his job with duty and affection, and he almost never makes noise. When I hear comments, it’s usually “What’s his name?” and “Can I pet him?” But I’ll hear a murmur once in a while about “blah blah, everyone and their dog.” It’s judgmental if not bitter. You don’t know my medical history, why I need a dog to help me, so just take a seat and breathe.
The airlines have almost alway been great. They recognise that I need the help, that I always have my paperwork in perfect order, and that my dog knows the drill. The only exception has ever been Southwest, where I suspect that they must have more SVAN “abuse.” The gems at American and Delta have said things like, “I see that you have a service animal. Is there anything else we can do to help you?”
For my part, I’m a sport. My dog is well-trained, I’m friendly(ish), and usually well-behaved myself. And I will always pay for extra legroom or a premium cabin. There will thus be room for me, my dog, and my belongings. In some cases, I’ll pay for “Five Star,” “Signature,” or concierge services to get through the airport seamlessly. I am privileged to do so, but it will make life easier as I travel over the upcoming holidays.
The bottom line: there are far greater problems in the skies. And I don’t think Americans are the only dog-friendly people; Americans just tend to make it a lot more complicated.
Matt, I hope that some time my dog and I will run into you amid our travels.
I read this posting and Gov. Kristi Noem came to mind.
You need to do some reading on the value of service dogs to the individuals who need them. Highlighting this particular event makes using a service dog more difficult for those of us who need them. I think that fellow air travelers should be able to tolerate being near service animals – for the short time of their inconvenience. An individual who has the benefit of a service dog to aid them in their daily life is often working with challenges you can’t imagine. Get a little empathy or maybe just be a grownup.
That may be true. But some of us are allergic to dogs. I am allergic to the dander and saliva. Where is my right to travel without getting an allergic reaction. I need to take shots, use an inhaler, and take pills for my allergies.
Annnnnd….. crickets.
Jennifer, I can tell you that as far as I’m concerned, your rights trump the service animal owners. This whole service animal thing has gotten way out of hand.
Well said, Jane. Thank you for your thoughtful reply.
I think it’s wisest to invoke compassion first; defer scepticism.
As for allergies, I am sympathetic. I am incredibly allergic to cats. But I also need to have a service dog.
I have no problem changing seats to accommodate someone with an allergy. As long as the request is polite (and not a downgrade), I am happy to oblige.
What is the story about Pablo? Just to be fair and balanced you should have an essay about the cat in Vermont granted a doctorate degree by an accredited university.
My husband has asthma and is allergic to dogs and cats. I fear someday we will be removed from a flight because someone doesn’t want to leave fluffy home. I think we are enabling dependents on the animals as emotional crutches rather encouraging people to grow up and depend on themselves.
WELL SAID!
How ridiculous.
The problem is that you don’t understand SDs at all. You mention “comfort”. Does a wheelchair provide “comfort”? Does a pacemaker provide “comfort”? Do cochlear implants provide “comfort”?
Service dogs are not emotional support or therapy animals. They provide a service. Medication retrieval, weight, balance, medical alerts of low blood glucose or impending seizure.
During my work for a state agency, I worked with a trainer of dogs who could detect cancers in blood samples. They were incredible. They also weren’t service dogs, but it just shows you that SDs don’t provide comfort.
And that’s where you and your poorly trained dogs are at. You can love them as much as the granny loves her poorly trained yappy chihuahua and that’s great. But that’s definitely not the same thing as a dog that ALLOWS PEOPLE TO LIVE SEMI-NORMAL LIVES.
How crappy would your world be if you couldn’t drive? How effective at your job would you be if you fell over and knocked your head every couple of weeks? How happy would you be if you couldn’t walk outside to put out the trash or pick up the mail because you were blind?
Would you be able to have a career peddling travel credit cards if you had seizures on multiple airplanes and had to divert many times? Likely not.
It’s not that you’re anti-dog. It’s that you lack understanding and empathy for people who require a trained SD to function in society.
Let’s take this dog. To me, it may be a fake, or it may be real. Who knows. If it’s real, how do you know if this person has tried and failed to get another dog to work for her diabetes or seizure disorder? Her current dog still has the ability to alert perhaps. Do you tell her to sit at home until she gets one that is young? Then maybe you’ll complain that the dog isn’t perfect because it’s young. SDITs aren’t covered as far as I know – so then she’s waiting 2 years until it’s fully matured and trained.
It’s like you put people in front of a keyboard and they’ll start spewing ignorant crap because there’s no repercussions. You don’t know her situation.
And all this talk of regulating SDs will leave people without a choice, with dogs that are far more expensive (50k instead of 20k), there will be breed restrictions, likely down to 3-4 breeds that won’t work for everyone, and then the government will decide who needs one or who doesn’t.
That’s what you want because you want “comfort”.
I’ve been reading these “articles” for a while now. Never truly caring enough to post. But I’m done. This ignorance should be challenged.
And I do appreciate your comment. I know it comes from genuine care.
I have zero issue paying any fees for my two dogs to fly, none whatsoever. However, both of my dogs weigh under 5 lb each full grown. It is not safe for any animal to be in the underbelly of a plane, much less teeny tiny dogs. Therefore, I do not fly with them.
Misbehaving adults and children cause far more problems and annoyance on flights. I am sure all of us have had more flights ruined by crying loud children than a dog. Forcing loud children and annoying adults to travel in the cargo hold would be a much more effective way to improve the flying experience, so let’s start there first?
PS used to love your blog but ridiculous anti-pet clickbait content is getting old fast…
Thank god we don’t have to deal with this kind of nonsense literally anywhere else in the world.
I love the US and Americans in general, but it does make you wonder why this is ONLY an issue on US airlines and why everyone else manages to leave their dog at home.
I am totally on your side in this discussion and tired of having the space that I paid for being invaded by pets pretending to be service animals. Keep shining a light on this BS……oh, and the Jesus flights too!!! Another complete BS situation.
I don’t get how the dogs fit onboard in coach. Sure, small dogs should fit between the legs of a small human, but how do the big dogs fit? Do they just lie in the other passengers’ legroom? And this is okay with US airlines and the other passengers? (asking as a 6,5” man with size 14 feet who only books premium cabins to be able to fit and still finds it cramped)
There are very real dog allergy concerns . But it also seems unreal that you can’t put your small bag in the aisle during takeoff or landing but a large dog that may panic or in this case can’t walk, hey , no problem. We are a society afraid to apply any reasonable standard because of fear of lawsuits. America, the first country that litigated itself to death.
Here are some things you may not have considered.
A task trained service dog is considered similar to a medical device. It can be a life saver just like a CPAP or wheelchair.
A task trained dog can cost 10-20K to train. Not covered by insurance and difficult to replace.
Most disabilities are invisible and most tasks a dog performs can be difficult to detect (many involve smell). Judging based on what is visible is simply reflective of ignorance or bias.
Transition planning is a real thing for service dogs (as it is for all of us). Retiring a service dog has MANY factors including how to humanly make decisions such as does the dog stay with the owner, can they stay with the owner, is there someone or someplace willing to help with the care, etc. etc. None of these are easy decisions – especially if your service dog has saved your life and served you well for 10 or more years.
Are their fake service dogs – of course – but they are a small fraction of the animals you see. But, let us keep in mind that people engage in all kinds of deceptive behavior in life and in travel.
Keep in mind that a person with a disability is navigating challenges that you may not even know about or understand. They may have to do this 24/7/365. When you make it more difficult for them – you just add another barrier.
I say all this as the husband of person with an invisible disability, who travels with a task trained service dog whose skills are invisible. We travel about once a month by plane with a dog who is now getting older, and we have begun the difficult conversations about her transition to retirement.
These type of opinion pieces would serve the public better if they were more informed by information and data – maybe interview some people in the industry to really understand the situation.
Mostly good points you raise, but I’m not sure about this one:
Are their fake service dogs – of course – but they are a small fraction of the animals you see.
On what basis do you make that claim?
1. As stated elsewhere, maybe the dog has a paid seat. The dog being in a backpack carrier does not necessarily mean the dog cannot walk. Airports are busy places and the owner should concentrate on the task at hand, namely getting through the process and boarding the plane. They shouldn’t have to worry about a dog taking its sweet time getting across the terminal, or worse yet, being very skittish and being a flight risk. And even if the dog is old and disabled, maybe the owner was unable to find a reliable sitter and that is why they’re taking the dog with them. That is exactly what I would do with one of my senior dogs right now. Furthermore, you have no idea what the purpose of the flight is. Maybe the owner is relocating. Maybe they are returning the dog to another family member who had to surrender the dog for a while. There are so many assumptions that the picture alone cannot address.
2. As for this not happening anywhere else in the world, speaking as a former European traveler here: You are right. Europeans are not nearly as wigged out about pets being with their owners in public places. Many of the comments in this section exactly proves my point. Pets are generally not welcome.
Some European carriers do not require dogs to be in hard sided carriers. They can be in bags. I’m not sure if the one in the picture qualifies but there are other options besides carriers.
Furthermore throughout Europe dogs are welcome on trains and other forms of public transportation. This is generally not allowed in the US, such as Amtrak. If Americans would allow dogs on public transportation then there would be other options for pet owners. If there were more flexible flying rules, people would not have to resort to lying.
I’ve been involved in rescue for almost 40 years, the last 20 of them in the United States. I am shocked by the number of requests we get by families have to surrender their pets because they cannot take them with them when they relocate often due to transportation issues. Shame on America.
3. If the dog is not a nuisance, and if the seat has been purchased for the dog if it’s not a true servce animal, what is the issue here exactly?
It doesn’t matter if you buy the whole row…the dog must stay in the cage if it is not a service animal.
If you’ve really been involved in rescue for almost 40 years, the last 20 of them in the United States, you should know that.
I had a friend (now deceased) who had a small dog who was her constant companion and wore a service animal vest/harness. I don’t know that “Elvis” was formally trained, but I do know that he was so well behaved that in restaurants, other patrons were not even aware of his presence. U.S. medical privacy laws prevent restaurants, airlines, etc. from asking what medical conditional the service animal is assisting with.
So how about this: have the person and their service animal be identified, by name, with either the owner’s doctor or a government agency? No reason given for why the animal is require, but listed would be the type of animal, breed (if applicable), name, etc. This would pair an identified service animal and its owner. I think this would cut way down on the fraud that is becoming far too common while still protecting the rights of those with legitimate service animals.
My God you are all snowflakes, on the left and right! I doubt that dog made your tickets any more or less expensive! If you didn’t have to carry it or clean up after it it’s not your business! We have become a country of snowflakes who thinks it’s your right intrude on everyone else’s business but your own! It’s not even about the dog! It’s about a society the sits at their keyboard musters up that good old keyboard courage and criticizes every damn thing!! Get on your flight don’t get on your flight but please mind your own f@%&ing business!!
Stop being snowflake haters. Love your life and let others be
Your ability to judge without knowing the whole story is appalling. You just write crap about people you don’t know. I believe all that travelling you do has turned you into a sour grumpy individual. Mind your own business.
It is sad what people put their dogs thru with travel! Very selfish….
The problem arose back in 2011 with “Jack the Cat” who died at JFK airport because a baggage handler dropped his carrier and the cat got lost in the secure area and starved to death. It was a tragedy and the owner made a huge stink about it. Airlines started to get leery about the cargo hold program as a liability hence people were forced to ride with them in the main cabin.
Sadly, that’s how things often work in that instead of just fixing things to improve them:
1) Put tracking collars on the pets in case they get loose from the carrier.
2) Improve procedures for handling animals in the cargo hold.
Just cancel the whole thing altogether.
Enough is enough, dogs don’t belong on planes unless they are actual service animals.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/22/science/pets-health-behavior.html?unlocked_article_code=1.2E0.OtIc.eOau-5c-bdFd&smid=url-share