It seems in recent years, more and more people were claiming their pets as emotional support animals in order to get them onto airplanes with them. While at first this lead to more dogs on airplanes, eventually some very strange animals ended up seated next to travelers. Now, American Airlines has decided to no longer allow emotional support animals on flights, starting next week.
The surprise move by American Airlines comes as the Department of Transportation announced new regulations stating airlines aren't required to treat emotional support animals as service animals. According to the DOT, a service animal is a dog "trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability." The new rules will go into effect on January 11.
Viral videos of animals such as turtles, pigs and birds making it onto airplanes will soon be a thing of the past. While many are disappointed by this decision, no one wants to be sat next to an animal that isn’t theirs. Hopefully travelers find another source of comfort while in the air.
Via CNN