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Pets on Planes: Emotional Support or Sham?
WebMd ^ | December 21, 2017 | Brenda Goodman, MA

Posted on 12/23/2017 2:38:53 PM PST by Kaslin

More and more people are flying with pets they call necessary for emotional support.

Sharon Giovinazzo goes so far as to call them something else: four-legged terrorists.

That may seem harsh. But Giovinazzo, who is visually impaired and travels at least once a week in her job as president and CEO of World Services for the Blind, says she was recently walking through an airport with her service dog Watson when a small dog came running out of a gate waiting area and lunged at them, biting Watson under the chin.

Luckily, the bite wasn’t serious.

But Giovinazzo says she was horrified and rattled.

She talked to the dog’s owner, who quickly apologized. “I said ‘Apology accepted, but your dog should have been secured.’ ”

“The owner said ‘but this is my service dog.’ And I said ‘No, no, no. That’s your dog that you don’t want to put in a kennel and you went out and bought the equipment you need off Amazon, and you’re getting away with it.

Giovinazzo suspects there was a big difference between Watson -- bred and trained to be a service dog that performs a task for someone with a disability -- and the dog that attacked him.

Airlines report more and more people are taking pets on planes by calling them emotional support animals. Such animals don’t have to perform any tasks or services for their owners. Instead, a licensed therapist writes a letter certifying that the person traveling with the animal has a mental illness -- like PTSD or anxiety -- that the animal soothes by its presence.

n 2015, one major airline carried more than 24,000 emotional support animals, compared with about 14,000 service animals, according to the International Air Travel Association.

(Excerpt) Read more at webmd.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: sham; webmdhealthnews
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1 posted on 12/23/2017 2:38:53 PM PST by Kaslin
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To: All

Sham.


2 posted on 12/23/2017 2:40:19 PM PST by gibsonguy
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To: Kaslin

Beyond shamful


3 posted on 12/23/2017 2:43:03 PM PST by UB355 (Slower traffic keep right)
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To: Kaslin

I’ve got a little dog. Love her to pieces. She’s ridden in my lap as we drove all across America. But she’s getting a ticket like everyone else if we ever travel by plane.


4 posted on 12/23/2017 2:43:29 PM PST by Ciaphas Cain (Liberalism, as with all else evil, can never create. It can only corrupt.)
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To: UB355

Was Sam the Sham really a sham?


5 posted on 12/23/2017 2:44:00 PM PST by DIRTYSECRET (urope. Why do they put up with this.)
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To: Kaslin

Love me
Love my pig


6 posted on 12/23/2017 2:44:12 PM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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To: Kaslin

95% cases are sham, and they are going to make things difficult for the people that are real.


7 posted on 12/23/2017 2:45:53 PM PST by Sixgun Symphony (uie)
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To: Kaslin

SHAM!!! And needs to stop. People are dragging dogs everywhere. Leave them home!!!


8 posted on 12/23/2017 2:46:32 PM PST by Reno89519 (PRESIDENT TRUMP, KEEP YOUR PROMISES! NO AMNESTY AND BUILD THAT WALL.)
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To: Kaslin

...“A big red light should go off the minute someone says their service dog is registered,” Zemaitis says. “There are also websites that promise a doctor’s note with no need to actually see the doctor..."

9 posted on 12/23/2017 2:47:02 PM PST by BlessedBeGod (To restore all things in Christ~~Appeasing evil is cowardice~~Francis is temporary. Hell is forever.)
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To: gibsonguy

yep. sham. x 2.


10 posted on 12/23/2017 2:47:37 PM PST by ronniesgal (still winning !!)
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To: billorites

Bacon!!!


11 posted on 12/23/2017 2:47:49 PM PST by Reno89519 (PRESIDENT TRUMP, KEEP YOUR PROMISES! NO AMNESTY AND BUILD THAT WALL.)
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To: Kaslin

Sham


12 posted on 12/23/2017 2:49:29 PM PST by glorgau
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To: Reno89519

When my son was in the ICU this fall I frequently saw dogs in the waiting room. WTF?????


13 posted on 12/23/2017 2:49:42 PM PST by shelterguy
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To: billorites

I want an emotional support Honey Badger.

14 posted on 12/23/2017 2:50:14 PM PST by Tijeras_Slim
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To: Tijeras_Slim

Yes!


15 posted on 12/23/2017 2:51:34 PM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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To: shelterguy

Medicine is as subject to fads as any other business.


16 posted on 12/23/2017 2:52:36 PM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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To: billorites

You’d never get stuck in the middle seat between 2 fatties with that little guy.


17 posted on 12/23/2017 2:53:02 PM PST by Tijeras_Slim
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To: Tijeras_Slim

honey badge don’t give a ****n!


18 posted on 12/23/2017 2:53:32 PM PST by longtermmemmory (VOTE! http://www.senate.tand http://www.house.gov)
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To: Kaslin

If my Sainted Mother ( God Rest her Soul) had to get on a plane with a dog or cat on it, there would be a medical emergency in twenty minutes.
some asthmatics with allergies become critical, quickly.


19 posted on 12/23/2017 2:53:39 PM PST by acapesket (all happy now?)
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To: Tijeras_Slim

Pretty sure that’s a black and white picture of Trump!


20 posted on 12/23/2017 2:58:03 PM PST by aMorePerfectUnion
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