Will this emotional support dog attacking a passenger change anything?

The link didn’t work, but an “emotional support dog” that is trained will not attack anyone or anything. And the airline has a responsibility to not let dangerous animals on a plane.

Many people call their pets “emotional support” in error and the animal has no training.

@Zenvelo…myn phone. Please Google it. It’s very recent.
I think all “Emotional Support Dogs” should be muzzled.in public.

@yarnlady….it’s not “in error.” They just making shit up to get around the law.

@zenvelo That’s just the thing. There’s no training for an ESA. It’s a certification that someone can get for their pet due to their own mental issues, but the animal itself doesn’t undergo any training the way a service animal would.

Really @Demosthenes? That’s crazy…

That’s the distinction between an ESA and a service animal. A service animal is trained to do specific tasks; an ESA’s “task” is its presence (companionship). So unfortunately any pet can potentially receive the designation and you’ll wind up with issues like the one in the article.

That’s ridiculous. I actually enjoy seeing randim dogs at Walmart or wherever….but until now I thought they were “especially trained”. Well.

Luggage has to be secured and people have to be strapped in.. I’m surprised a dog was allowed on board with no restraint in place.

What makes it worse is that people (the dog owners) have rights relating to their disabilities, where they can’t be questioned as to why they need the dog or how the dog is trained or whatever type of cert the dog has, so anybody can really call anything an emotional support animal without question. What are the rights of everyone else?

Listen, sometimes the duties of an emotional support dog include exacting your vengeance and furious anger upon your enemies in your place.
Doggo was a good boy and deserves a treat.

I hope that this stops the support animal madness.

The owner of the dog should lose everything in a law suit. The airline will likely settle for a few $ million.

If a stinking support beast can’t fit in a small under the seat carrier then it stays home or goes with the other luggage.

I think the airlines will eventually all start requiring some sort of documentation. Emotional support dog to me means some doctor maybe wrote something about the owner. I call bullshit on that. Dogs trained to help owners who are epileptic, who are blind, or who have some other physical impairment is something totally different. If someone who needs an emotional support dog wants to go everywhere with their dog, then they need to pay for a dog who is specifically trained for people with disabilities. IMO.

Should we judge all animals, all service animals, all support animals, by the actions of one animal?

@kritiper It’s not just one for some of us. Like the dog in the grocery store that I encountered a couple of years ago. A woman behind me in line holding her very small dog that had a little vest saying emotional support dog, or something like that. The dog barked and barked and barked. Sorry, but service trained dogs don’t do that. It was not a bark that had a sound of warning or to protect her, just noisy, and there was no danger for her in that grocery line. Let me add, in the supermarket! I really take issue with bringing an untrained animal into a place where food is sold.

When I worked in Bloomingdales a dog took a crap in a dressing room and the owner left it there for salespeople to find.

I have other examples. None of these dogs are necessary for these owners. Give me a break.

I’m not completely against people traveling with their dogs, but precautions need to be taken. Owners need to quit being naive about how wonderful their dogs are that they will be behaved in every new situation. I know many owners are very responsible about this sort of thing, but too many aren’t.

Edit: I want to add that I think service trained animals are amazing, and I couldn’t agree more with making exception for them and their owners who rely on them.

This video is from a lawyer YouTuber who discusses some of the legalities of emotional support animals vs. an actual service animal. I learned some useful info from it.

I go back to my reaction when I first read about this.

What did the so-called victim do to antagonize the animal?

^We don’t know that the victim did anything.

As we all (should) know, sometimes dogs get upset at people for no valid reason at all, or a reason that may be valid to the dog but is not logical to the human, @elbanditoroso. One time recently, in the winter, I was outside with my parka on, with hood on my head. My neighbor’s dog was growling at me and showing his teeth. I think it must have been the hood. Thankfully he was on a leash, otherwise he may have attacked me, provoked (I’m guessing) by the hood. Something inconsequential to me, yet to the dog, maybe it looked threatening or weird.

@jca2

“As we all (should) know, sometimes dogs get upset at people for no valid reason at all, or a reason that may be valid to the dog but is not logical to the human….”

The report linked in @Dutchess_lll‘s details supports your point:

“While Mr. Jackson was securing his seatbelt, the animal began to growl at him, according to the lawsuit. The dog then bit Jackson several times.

According to the report, the defendant has yet to offer any mitigating circumstances for the attack:

“The Atlanta Journal-Constitution called and sent messages to Mundy and his family members but had not yet reached him for comment by Tuesday evening.”

@Brian1946. Yes.

@JLeslie I’m not saying you don’t have a point, but it’s the fault of the pet owner, not the pet.

@kritiper I agree.

I don’t think anyone would argue that point @kritiper.