United Airlines Refuses Peacock Emotional Support Animal

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Summary: The United Airlines refused a traveler trying to bring their emotional support peacock on a flight from Newark.

There are a range of emotional support animals out there now – dogs, cats, turtles, and even miniature horses, but there is a good chance that no one has ever heard of an emotional support peacock. United Airlines learned of this new emotional support animal when a woman tried to board a plane leaving Newark Liberty International Airport with her peacock, according to Fox News.

  

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Live and Let Fly first broke the story of the unidentified woman and her peacock last week. The woman had bought an additional ticket for the animal, but the airline still denied her request to bring the animal on board.

A United spokesperson told Fox News that the woman had been explained of the refusal multiple times before even arriving at the airport. United stated, “This animal did not meet guidelines for a number of reasons, including its weight and size. We explained this to the customers on three separate occasions before they arrived at the airport.”

Seeing a peacock traveling around the airport was hard to miss, so photos of the animal sitting on the luggage cart appeared all over Facebook. Travel talk show, The Jet Set, as well as footage of the animal arriving at the airport and around the terminal. Facebook users used the feature to discuss their support and condemnation for the incident. One user wrote, “Unbelievable, this has to stop now!!”

Critics of emotional support animals have been questioning the use of the animals, feeling that people are abusing the ability to have emotional support animals. Delta Airlines felt the same way, announcing new restrictions on emotional support and service animals. The airline’s January 19 announcement noted an 84 percent increase in bad animal behavior of defecating, biting, urinating and attacking those on board their flights.

Delta’s new rules go into effect March 1. They will require those traveling with emotional support or psychiatric service animals to bring a veterinarian health form and immunization record within 48-hours’ notice. During boarding, travelers will also be required to show a doctor’s note, signed veterinarian health form and proof of animal training. Exotic emotional support animals such as insects, spiders, ferrets, goats, or animals with hooves or tusks will not be allowed to fly.

United told Fox News that they are also reevaluating their policy as well. “United is dedicated to providing convenient and comfortable service to all of our customers. We know that some customers require an emotional support animal to assist them through their journey. In order to ensure we provide the best service to everyone onboard our flights, consistent with government rules we currently require these customers to provide documentation from a medical professional and at least 48 hours advance notice. In our effort to better balance protecting our employees and customers while accommodating passengers with disabilities, we are reviewing our existing policy and plan to share more soon.”

Do you think emotional support animals should be allowed in places like airplanes, restaurants, etc.? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.

To learn more about emotional support and service animals, read these articles:

• Colorado Wildlife Sanctuary Files Lawsuit for Custody of Cute California Bear
• Bowen School of Law Embraces Therapy Animals for Relieving Stress
• UCLA Law School Unveils New Mental Counseling Program

Cover Photo: liveandletsfly.boardingarea.com

Photo: winknews.com