Here is the current guidance on service animals:
Flying with Service Animals | Southwest Airlines
This older thread is the only place I've ever seen mention about buying an extra seat for the floorspace.
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Keep in mind that it will be no better -- and possibly worse -- on "someone else." No carrier allows transferability on regular tickets. In fact, many charge fees to even re-use funds from a ticket by the original passenger. In the future, you can either buy a fully-refundable fare (and make no changes to the itinerary, just cancel for a full refund) or book flights for others using Rapid Reward points, which will be redeposited into your account upon cancellation, regardless of passenger name. There is a way you can recover some of your lost funds. Once those funds expire (one year from date of purchase), contact Customer Relations and request reissue as a voucher. The fee for this is $100. You have six months from the date of expiration in which to make the request, and the voucher will be valid for 6 months from the date of issue. The voucher is usable by anyone, but only for air travel (not any taxes or fees). Note that everything about this "unpublished policy" is subject to change at any time, including the amount of the fee. Good luck.
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05-25-2017
10:25 AM
05-25-2017
10:25 AM
Hi @sleeper692,
Before responding to this question, I reached out to our Customer Advocacy Department, which is a specialized group of folks who handle questions, concerns, and information surrounding disabilities. The information above was supplied by a Representative from that group. Since a kennel is not a medical assistive device, it is subject to standard bag regulations. Of course, if you have any follow up questions, I'm glad to help!
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