Almost a year after the US Department of Transportation (DOT) first proposed a policy that would give airlines the option of banning emotional support animals on flights – as opposed to trained service dogs, which are protected by the US Law. Americans with Disabilities (ADA) – the new restrictions on animals will take effect from Monday.
Those who use emotional support animals are speaking out about policy changes, leading to an increase in reversal petitions. One of these petitions was initiated by Leana Rendon, a 24-year-old from Orlando, Florida, who seeks to have emotionally supportive animals like her two-and-a-half-year-old German shepherd, Charlie, protected by the ADA.
“I have extreme anxiety that increases in different situations, including social ones,” Rendon, whose petition has received more than 400 signatures so far, told Yahoo Life. “My anxiety has been so severe for so long that I also have chronic stomach problems. When we are in public, [Charlie] you know I need him to be in tune with me. When he feels any kind of anxiety or stress coming from me, that’s the cue. He immediately starts rubbing his head on my legs relentlessly until I caress him, which then releases all my ‘wellness’ hormones. “
Last month, DOT approved a revision of the Air Carrier Access Act, which states that emotional support animals will now be considered pets, rather than service animals, and can only fly in the cargo hold or in a kennel stored under the cabin seat, for an extra fee determined by the airline. The review also defines service animals, which can fly free, without strings, in the cabin, as a “dog, regardless of breed or type, who is individually trained to work or perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual or other mental disability. ”Eligible passengers are now also limited to boarding with only two service animals and must complete the paperwork confirming their status and training.
This comes after concerns that passengers were “fraudulently representing their pets” (including snakes, squirrels and peacocks), aided by a craft service industry that offered medical certificates and emotional support certificates for animals, as DOT noted in your review. The DOT also cited an increase in “bad behavior” and “interruptions” caused by untrained animals, as well as complaints from disabled passengers, many of whom travel with their own service dogs.
The crackdown has been implemented by American, Delta, United, JetBlue and Alaska Airlines, which will no longer accept reservations for emotional support animals as of Monday, although there will be a grace period for passengers traveling with emotional support animals with reservations of existing flights for the next few weeks.
Rendon says she will not be traveling under the current ban, as Charlie is too big to fit in a kennel under his seat and would have to go in the cargo hold. “I’m not going to put the animal that saved my life in the cargo – it must be by my side at all times,” she says.
Rendon says he understands the frustrations within the disabled community about having untrained or disturbing animals on board, as well as attempts by some passengers to fly with, for example, an “emotional support horse”. But she feels that reforms are the answer, rather than general bans.
“The rules and regulations for emotional support animals must change to be stricter,” she says. “Emotionally supported animals must have basic obedience training and must have certificates. Mental health is a very serious problem and with these prohibitions, many feel discriminated against, especially those who are not taking advantage and have well-behaved dogs. Even when I go to places with Charlie (where we currently have permission), it is difficult for him to concentrate if other dogs are not being controlled by their owners. I can’t imagine how much more stressful and inconvenient this would be for someone with a disability ”.
Joy G., who lives in the Bay Area of California and asked not to reveal her surname, told Yahoo Life that she is also anxious about “the thought of having to leave my little boy behind.” This “little boy” is Max, the 3.5-pound Yorkshire terrier that she believes has helped her overcome the bouts of depression in the five years she has had it. Under the new restrictions, she could no longer travel with him as an emotional support animal. Having him in the cargo hold makes her uncomfortable, although she hasn’t ruled out the kennel option in the cabin.
“Although we don’t travel much today because of COVID, it’s still alarming that when it’s time to travel, I’ll have to leave my best friend behind,” she says, adding: “I know some people may think it’s totally weird bond with an animal, but when humans let you down, animals never give up on you. “
She adds: “I understand that everything changes and that nothing is permanent, but this is one of those things that I wish they really had left out”.
Jazmine Valencia, who runs a music marketing agency in Los Angeles, is also disappointed by the new policies that will prevent her from traveling with her French bulldog, Sir Daxton, as an emotional support animal. Valencia, who regularly travels on business, told Yahoo Life that he bought the dog last year after feeling overwhelmed and anxious as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. After obtaining the approval of a doctor, she certified him as an emotional support animal, instead of a hand-held pet that would have to stay on a carrier under his seat, after considering the last experience “really horrible”.
“The flight attendants were not very accommodating and were very rude about it, although he is very small,” she says of traveling with Sir Daxton as a standard pet.
With her usual airline, Delta, joining others in the fight against emotional support animals, she now wants Sir Daxton to be trained and certified as a service dog.
These reactions to new bans on those who depend on emotional support animals are understandable, says Margaret Cochran, a transpersonal psychotherapist and clinical social worker who uses emotional support animals in her therapeutic practice.
“Emotionally supportive animals have powerful and positive effects on people’s lives,” she told Yahoo Life. “They can help to reduce anxiety and increase social interactions.”
But she says the lack of regulation of animals on board flights “to protect everyone involved” has allowed the situation to get out of hand, pointing to cases of animals dying or being injured in transit. By taking action against emotional support animals, instead of reforming airline standards and safety protocols, “deserving people have been denied access to an important source of love, empowerment and emotional well-being,” says Cochran.
Meanwhile, service dog trainer and behaviorist Russel Hartstein told Yahoo Life that he has mixed feelings about the new restrictions, that he hopes to “improve the experience” for airline employees and other passengers (including those with disabilities and dogs) at the same time, depriving those who depend on having their pets around when they fly.
“Yes, many people were (and are) abusing the rules, taking their untrained pets on flights and calling them emotional support dogs and service dogs,” he says. “So I understand that most emotional support animals are untrained and misbehaving, which is why airlines and passengers are fed up.
“On the other hand, many people need their legitimately trained emotional support animals to fly with them and, for them, it is not fair,” he adds. “Many people who previously classified their dogs as emotional support dogs do not qualify for service dogs because, according to the ADA, they may not have a disability.”
The point, he explains, is that there is a distinction between having an emotional disability and having a psychiatric disability that falls under the ADA’s legal protections, and between emotional support dogs and psychiatric service dogs.
“An emotional support dog, although it is extremely valuable to many people and improves the quality of life for many, is not considered a service dog,” he explains. “There is a difference between an emotional support dog that makes a person feel better, safer, more comfortable, confident, socially engaging, etc., and a psychiatric service dog that performs specific tasks to mitigate a disability. Without the psychiatric service dog, a person with a disability would not be able to function and perform minimal life activities. “
This did not stop some dog owners from trying to find an alternative solution as the new restrictions came into force.
“While the new laws are unfortunate for people who need emotional support, I get dozens of calls a day from people who are now trying to get their dogs ‘certified’ as service dogs,” he says, adding that some owners are also “Trying to claim that they are unable to get a psychiatric service dog”, even if they do not qualify.
“People call me like I can change the law,” he says. “I can not. The law is the law. If they qualify for a psychiatric service dog, work with them to train your service dog. If they do not qualify for a psychiatric service dog or any other type of service dog, unfortunately they will no longer be able to fly with their pets, regardless of emotional need. There are no number of certificates or letters from doctors that can circumvent the law, unless the person is disabled. “
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