Jenine Stanley can't see at all, so her 55-pound golden retriever goes with her everywhere — at home, at the supermarket and on airplanes when she flies.
Flying is the biggest hassle even though the guide dog quietly sits at her feet during flights and is a veteran of the skies. Stanley must show paperwork to prove she has a disability and the dog is a trained service animal.
It’s worse for her husband, who is half blind and has a guide dog of his own. On a recent trip to Washington, D.C., he was inundated with questions about him and his dog, including how much he could really see.
Not many people object to a well-behaved guide dog on a plane.
Now, though, an increasing number of people are getting on planes with pigs, turkeys and monkeys who they say should be permitted to fly just like dogs, under the category of "emotional support."
Jenine and her husband were headed to Washington for a committee meeting with the the Department of Transportation, which is considering new rules for service animals on planes. On Wednesday, representatives from the airline, medical and service animal industries will meet for the sixth and final time before the department proposes clearer rules about what is and isn’t allowed in an airplane cabin.
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