When you fly with your pet dog on a commercial flight, you are instructed to leave it in a pet carrier for a very good reason. As passengers found out on an American Airlines flight, an unleashed dog who was let out of its carrier rambled down the aisle, leaving “presents” for passengers along the way…
Unleashed Dog Leaves Mess In Aisle On American Airlines Flight To LaLa Land
Onboard AA2308 from Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), a dog was pulled out of its carrier so that it could stretch. But instead, it trotted down the aisle, leaving droppings along the way.
@AmericanAir come on … how & why is it okay for a dog to roam around on a flight.. #highlyallergic #dogownersdobetter #customerservice #aa2308 #13a does the dog belong to anyone? pic.twitter.com/QLtWCFAgoU
— Kassandra Lennox (@addicted2u05) May 1, 2024
The owner should receive a clean-up bill for the mess and should be banned from bringing dogs on any future American Airlines flight.
I’ve long lamented the abuse of service dogs (anyone can buy a “service animal” vest and stick it on their dog to avoid in-cabin pet fees or having to keep their dog in a carrier), but this does not appear to be a service dog situation. Instead, one of the passengers mentioned that the dog was in a pet carrier. Service animals need not be placed in one.
But I really don’t like the response from American Airlines. First, why assume it was a service animal? Second, even service animals should not be allowed to ramble down the aisle of a plane…if they are performing a service they should be seated quietly at the feet of their people.
Came in a carrier and not a service dog. Didn’t have the harness or labeling of a service dog
— Kassandra Lennox (@addicted2u05) May 1, 2024
I will continue to document these incidents of abuse and look forward to the day when one brave airline cracks down on what has become a ridiculous system of pet transport unique to this country. I laud companies like Bark Air for trying to offer a product specifically tailored to dog owners and see that as the viable future of travel with pets, not on commercial airplanes in which many passengers have pet and dander allergies.
> Read More: BARK Air – A New Airline Geared Toward Dogs
CONCLUSION
Another reminder: if you fly with your pet, keep it in its cage. If you don’t want to do that, you can walk or drive. Here, a dog left several “treats” on the aisle of a flight to Los Angeles when it never should have been allowed out in the first place.
image: @addicted2u05 / X // hat tip: View From The Wing