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Authored by Ross Cusrtis

Airline requirements for traveling with your ESA - 2021 Guide

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         The emotional support animals are given certain rights under the auspices of two federal laws whereby the owners are entitled to keep their animals within the residential apartment, and can also take their animals with them on board in a flight without paying extra money. Recently, the department of trade (DOT) has made a change in the Aerial services for the Emotional Support Cat that potentially alter the concepts of free flight access to these animals. However, there are certain requirements that you should fulfill before taking your emotional support animal to the airport. This article provides key information on those requirements; therefore, you should pay heed to the following paragraphs. Otherwise, taking your emotional support animal to the airport without fulfilling the requirement may put you in a bit of trouble, and it may refrain you from keeping your animal with you onboard. You must read all the requirements and subsequently fulfill all the mandatory requirements before deciding to take your animal on a flight.

 

 

 

         First of all, you should contact the travel service 48 hours prior to the flight and follow their instructions. In doing so, you would be able to register your animal for a particular flight whereby you are supposed to travel. In this regard, you should show complete compliance with the documentation procedure. You have to share all the details about your ESA. It could be the vaccination report, or it could be a report about the social behavior of your animal by a recognized veterinary doctor, and so on. Never forget to contact the airline 48 hours before the flight. By making contact, the staff members of the airline will provide you with the compulsory guidelines.

 

 

         Apart from the documentary requirements, there are other requirements that you should fulfill while traveling with your ESA through a flight. For instance, your ESA must be clean and should sustain aggregate social behavior. You can't take a dirty or stinking emotional support animal with you to the flight. It could create great dissatisfaction for the fellow passengers. Therefore, always take a clean ESA animal with you. Likewise, your ESA should be aware of public behavior, and it should not indulge itself in odd behaviors like barking, getting angry, or biting people. Such behavior could potentially harm the crew members or other passengers and could create chaos in the flight. For example, your emotional support dog letter should be well-behaved and possess the potentials to stay cool and calm during the flight.

 

 

         In the second step, you should provide the detail about yourself. For instance, you have to show the airline that you hold a valid ESA letter that entitles you to carry the animal with you. Accurately display the letter and your identity to the service provider. The airlines could demand it prior to the flight for confirmation. You should be able to fulfill these two requirements before reaching the airport.

 

 

         Your ESA must be of the size that fits at your feet, under the seat, or on your lap. Free ESA access depends upon these conditions. You are not entitled to keep your animals at the exit row or other sections of the plane. In this regard, bear in mind that your ESA fulfills the size and weight criteria whereby free access to ESA is given by average airlines. Remember one thing, there are certain criteria, rules, and regulations you have to follow while traveling with your animal. The possession of an esa letter doesn't mean that you are entitled to do everything. There are certain limitations when it comes to airline privileges.

 

 

         In the same manner, if your flight is long enough that it could take more than eight hours, then you have to fulfill extra documentary requirements. In this regard, you need to fill another form that is called “the animal sanitation form.” You can obtain the form from any online service or the portals of the airline. You should fulfill this form before the flight to show complete compliance with the laws and procedures. The aerial privileges are a bit complex as compared to the residential privileges. In the latter case, keeping an emotional support animal letter can resolve many problems related to ESA within your residential area.  But in the former case, it is a bit clumsy. You have to obey many regulations and fulfill many procedures before making a claim based on an ESA letter.

 

 

         You should note that in a surprising development, the department of trade (DOP) has nullified the mandatory free flight access to ESA from the beginning of 2021. As per the decision, the airlines are no more bound to provide free access to Emotional Support Dog. However, there are several airlines that are providing the services on a voluntary basis. You should check the details of the airlines and services before opting for a flight in this regard. Otherwise, you will face difficulties and the process will consume your valuable time and dollars.

 

 

         In a nutshell, you have to fulfill the eligibility criteria for an ESA and you need to follow all the rules and regulations whereby free access to ESA is granted. In this regard, do contact the airline 48 hours before your flight. You need to register your animal with the airline prior to the flight. Provide all the required details about your ESA. It could be about the vaccination, social behavior, and other reports of the animal. Finally, you must guarantee the airline that the esa letter for housing should sustain the required behavior throughout the flight.

 

Useful Resources:

 

World's most common ESA animals and their key characteristics - 2021 GUide

 

Why do we need to keep an ESA dog at home? - 2021 Guide

 

List of best emotional support animals in the world - 2021 Guide

 

Key characteristics of an ESA dog - 2021 Guide

 

Build A Quality ESA Canine House – 2021 Guide

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