flying with your dog posing as a service dog

[ryanj247]

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and if an airline can lose a VIP, best-of-breed show dog, i can't help but worry that they could possibly somehow lose mine.

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You did read your own article, right?

The dog bolted from its crate, it wasn't "lost" by any frigging airline. The airline that "lost" the dog isn't even mentioned in the article, all it says is the dog bolted from its crate at Kennedy.

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i just linked to the most recent headline on this very well-publicized case, and you're right, it doesn't focus enough on the part of the story that is most important:

the owners of that dog turned care of their dog over to the airline, and never saw their dog again.

obviously, if i have my dog with me on a leash for my entire trip, i won't have to worry about that happening to me, right?

[bunny fufu]

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What if your dog went apechit and pee'd all over and tried to hump the stewardess' leg??


Good luck on explaining that one.

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Yes sir, this is my service dog, it mauls small children who cry during the flight.

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Does anyone else think this has the makings of a good SNL skit?

[Conspir8or]

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Does anyone else think this has the makings of a good SNL skit?

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Was actually thinking it would make a painfully hilarious Curb Your Enthusiasm episode.

[Antti]

I am thinking of a prudent punishment for making a person allergic to dogs having to endure a long flight in the same small space with one for no good reason. Same amount of hours lying on the ground with a boulder on your chest maybe.

[octaveshift]

Yet another example of the "me-first" mentality so common these days.

You are probably the same douche that drives in the breakdown lane, only to cut back in at the front of the line.

No class.

[00Snitch]

my gf worked in the complaints department of virgin airlines in australia. she says that there is a vest that assistance dogs wear and if your dog has one of them on, it will most likely be a no questions asked deal.

There is a national (in australia) registry of some sort for assistance dogs, but the airline staff of course have no direct access to it.

[00Snitch]

PS. please do a trip report

[ryanj247]

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PS. please do a trip report

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ok, so i bought this vest at activedogs.com. right when i put it on i thought the whole plan had a chance. in the vest, she looked at least like she could be a service dog.



we went up to the counter to check in, and my plan was to just say as little as possible. the guy asked "so that is a service dog?" i said "yes", and that was it. no one questioned me about it for the rest of the trip (until the very end, more on that later).

i got through security, again with no problems whatsoever. i went to go up the escalator, and my "service dog" stopped cold. there was no way in hell she was going on that thing lol. i had to stop and turn around and go up the stairs instead. i looked around and there were a few people watching this like "wtf?".

the first leg of my flight was a short trip on a prop jet. so we walked out onto the tarmac and i had to basically drag her up a very narrow ramp and onto the plane. we had just a regular seat, and i got her down on the floor under the seat in front a bit, and everything was cool. she was obviously nervous and started shaking during takeoff, but i just did my best to calm her down and she was OK. i was sitting next to a hottie who loved the dog and kept offering to share her foot space with the dog, but really she didn't need any extra space.

after a short layover, the next leg of the flight was a bit longer. they had arranged for us to sit in the bulkhead, and luckily we had the row to ourselves. so she had plenty of space and again she did great. the entire trip she was calm, quiet, and just did everything i wanted her to do. if she got restless, i could basically just look at her and give her a little finger snap, and she would lie down and be calm.



we had a long layover in san francisco, and i found the "animal relief area", a nice little fenced area with gravel, water, and doggie bags. we hung out there for a while and played some tug. when she plays, she looks kinda vicious, even in her vest lol.



the last leg of the trip was the longest, and again we had a bulkhead row all to ourselves. by now she was getting used to flying, and she slept so well that i was even able to leave her and go to the back for a piss.



when we landed in cancun, we got off the plane and had to wait in line for immigrations for well over an hour. during that time a couple of immigrations officers came up to me asking about the dog in spanish, but i couldn't really understand what they were saying. one was asking "where is the crate for the dog?". i just played dumb and pointed to the vest, and then a nice girl came along and told him in spanish that the dog was "servicio" lol. my dog was really tired while we were waiting, and she would plop down on the tile floor every time the line stopped moving, which everyone thought was funny & cute.

i wasn't sure how to proceed after immigration, and i asked a guy, who told me just to go through the customs screening area. i got a green light and i thought i was on my way, but another officer stopped me and i had to go into an office. he didn't really understand why i had a service dog, but i just kept saying she "helped me with a disability", and finally he was just like "OK". i showed him her health certificate and proof of rabies vaccination, and he spent about 45 minutes trying to print out some kind of customs authorization for the dog. there were two guys there, and not only were they clueless, but the software program they were trying to use kept crashing lol. finally they got it to print though and i got out of the airport over 2 hours after we landed. a short while later i was here in playa del carmen, on the beach with a corona and my "perro servicio".

[Case Closed]

You did all this to take your dog on vacation?

[im a model]

A+. what a good dog.