I’m not a pet owner and not really interested in being one, but I do understand the affection many have for their “children” and I had to chuckle at how well a fish was looked after on a recent American Airlines flight…was this an emotional support fish?
An Emotional Support Fish On American Airlines? In Any Case, A Clever Means Of Transport
A video posted to Passenger Shaming, one of my favorite Instagram accounts, showcases what at first glance may look like a catheter bottle wedged into a seatback pocket on an American Airlines Airbus A321…
View this post on Instagram
But pay attention for a moment and you’ll see something swimming in it…a fish! I’m not sure what apparatus was used to push air into the water bottle, but clearly, the little fish seemed to be doing okay at 38,000 feet.
Which of course raises the question: was this an emotional support fish? Technically speaking, U.S. carriers no longer must accommodate emotional support animals in passenger cabins (there is a mile-wide loophole for dogs). The days of ponies and peacocks onboard are now (thankfully) relics of the past.
But an emotional support fish could still slip by and even enter the cabin without a pet fee.
There’s still the open question of how the fish got through a security checkpoint when TSA does not allow liquids through (crew members are exempted). However, that is an easy enough mystery to solve…empty bottles are permitted so the passenger probably had the fish in a bag whose volume was less than 300mL (3.5 oz) and then transferred the fish (carefully…) into the water bottle after security.
No shame in transporting a fish across the country. That’s one of the few creatures I would feel comfortable with on a plane, provided it is small and stays in its water bottle.
CONCLUSION
You have to wonder what was on the first class menu on the flight, right? Hopefully not fresh fish…
I’m really not for dogs on airplanes, but there’s nothing fishy about a fish onboard.
That’s pretty innocuous. Doesn’t bother me.
Agreed. An emotional support animal we can all agree on.
I seem to remember something about pet fish & transferring into other water after tank cleaning. Temperature, minerals etc can kill at least some of them. Not my problem anymore. And hey the fish doesn’t stink, bark or heaven forbid need out of it’s cage!
What if someone brought aboard a couple of emotional support cockroaches? lol
Looks like a common aerator device. Easy to get a battery powered one for a bait bucket– I use the “marine metal bubble box”. They’re super cheap, easily found online, and work well.
These are great fun with young kids if you put one in a small pail of water and add dish soap– you get an overflowing bunch of foamy bubbles. Set it outside and the kids will enjoy.
They’re also great for bait too.
No, I don’t get a commission if you buy one. I discovered these about 10 years ago and wish I had known about them earlier.
I once brought a non-emotional support fish (a regular goldfish) on United.
When will someone claim their child is an emotional support animal? After all, kidnap the kid and the parent will get emotional. Free airfare for kids, then? Or free if they stay in the footwell and don’t occupy a seat?
Biden voter 100%
So that means they are considerate of others.
Probably support pedophiles.
Pedophile like Lauren bobo’s husband that seduced her by exposing himself to her and her friends when she was in grade school, or pedophile like Trump that told a bunch of ten year olds he would be dating them in a few years?
I have a better view of pedophiles than I do of Republicans. There’s a reason we in Chicago made them illegal in 1931.
You would have to treat any tap water to remove chlorine after TSA so maybe FIJI water 🙂 It really seems stupid to me but I guess if you are moving across the country and can’t drive it.
I flew with my beta fish cross country several years ago when moving. I emptied a small rice container and filled with treated water. You can take a fish with water through TSA – they just need to test the water and the fish must be alive. Now the airlines don’t necessarily permit but I kept my fish (“sushi”) in the overhead bin and checked often including opening the lid slightly to get some air replenished. This was much safer (cheaper) than trying to ship. Sushi had a wonderful flight in UA’s old dorm style J and went on to live several years.
Why don’t we just train flight attendants to become emotional support for us? We may just have fewer angry passengers and calmer happier passengers…
It’s not a horrible thought.
They are primarily here for our safety
“I’m not a pet owner and not really interested in being one”… you seem super curmudgeonly on so many topics. Maybe you should get a dog. A beagle or something. It’d be good for you and the kids would love it.
If you watch the passenger’s video it would explain the entire situation.