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Disappointed

angarza_9805
Explorer C

I have a registed ESA (emotional support animal) that I was going to fly with due to panic attacks when I fly. She was sleeping by the window the whole 2 hours while we were waiting to board the plane and once it was time to board we got up and waited near the early boarding sign. Now my dog is very friendly when it comes to people and barks when she wants to play and is being held back and this was going to be her first time flying (she's 7 months old). So while we were waiting to board some people were walking by and she let out a bark because she wanted to go greet them and say hi but I wasn't letting her since we would be boarding soon. I noticed the supervisor was watching us and I offered to put her muzzle on so it can stop her from barking, but all the supervisor said was that it wasn't going to change his mind. Then he walked up to us and the way he did was not settling well with my puppy because she growled at him feeling threatened. After that he denied her access to fly to the point and I had to call someone to come get her. This in turn made me miss my flight. He had written a note to keep on file saying that he had given me mutliple warnings with her, but I did not recieve one warning from him. I ended up flying on another flight by myself feeling absolutly terrified and I'll have to fly back feeling the exact same way with fear. 

1 REPLY 1

Re: Disappointed

dfwskier
Aviator A

@angarza_9805 wrote:

I have a registed ESA (emotional support animal) that I was going to fly with due to panic attacks when I fly. She was sleeping by the window the whole 2 hours while we were waiting to board the plane and once it was time to board we got up and waited near the early boarding sign. Now my dog is very friendly when it comes to people and barks when she wants to play and is being held back and this was going to be her first time flying (she's 7 months old). So while we were waiting to board some people were walking by and she let out a bark because she wanted to go greet them and say hi but I wasn't letting her since we would be boarding soon. I noticed the supervisor was watching us and I offered to put her muzzle on so it can stop her from barking, but all the supervisor said was that it wasn't going to change his mind. Then he walked up to us and the way he did was not settling well with my puppy because she growled at him feeling threatened. After that he denied her access to fly to the point and I had to call someone to come get her. This in turn made me miss my flight. He had written a note to keep on file saying that he had given me mutliple warnings with her, but I did not recieve one warning from him. I ended up flying on another flight by myself feeling absolutly terrified and I'll have to fly back feeling the exact same way with fear. 

 

Sorry to hear about your e problems traveling with your pup. Hope the flights weren't too terrifying.

 

The airline has to worry about the safety of passengers on board the aircraft. That's why it has a staated policy about animals that travel on the plane"

 

".

An animal must be trained to behave properly in a public setting and under the control of the handler at all times. An animal that engages in disruptive behavior may be denied boarding. Examples of disruptive behavior include (but are not limited to):

  • Scratching, excessive whining or barking
  • Growling, biting, lunging
  • Urinating or defecating in the cabin or gate area"

https://www.southwest.com/html/customer-service/unique-travel-needs/customers-with-disabilities-pol....

 

So when your pup barked, and when you had to hold her back when she wanted to greet the other passengers, she got the attention of the employee. Then when she growled at the employee, that was probably the straw the broke the proverbial camel's back. He had no way of knowing whether or not she'd keep doing it on the plane.

 

As far as the employee stating he's given several warning, when you say he did not. I don't know what to make of it.  If you want to do so, you could discuss the matter further with Southwest's customer service department. Details on how to reach them are on the top left of the company's contact us webpage.

 

https://www.southwest.com/contact-us/contact-us.html?clk=GFOOTER-CUSTOMER-CONTACT-US

 

I hope your future travel is better for you than the last trip apparently was.