Delta has a policy that they won't fly Pitbull breeds as they had an incident with an emotional support animal a few years ago. I really don't like ban breeds so this news didn't sit well with me at all and then when we researched the story we found out the rescue told a few news reporters that this trained service dog wasn't a Pitbull at all but a Boxer mix!
Let's unpack this story and get right to the meat.
Yahoo! News reported that Delta Airlines refused to allow a service dog onto a plane. The service dog was to be flown to a two-year-old suffering from seizures.
There is a lot of confusion around emotional service dogs and what certifications are allowed on flights. Clearly, though this is a fairly straight forward situation and this service dog, Daisy is a trained service dog.
Daisy was flying from Phoenix to California to live with her new family.
The child that Daisy will live with has both hydrocephalus and epilepsy. The family has been looking for a very specific service dog that can help their child.
"This dog is a miracle for us," Christin Lhautara, mother of two-year-old Mila, told FOX 10 Phoenix.
Daisy will detect Mila's seizures. Yahoo! News also confirmed that Delta's policy is a result of a previous incident.
"If she's a pit bull breed, we can't fly it because they had an ESA [emotional support animal] dog maul a stewardess," Biggerstaff told the station. The incident resulted in Delta updating their ESA policies in 2018.
The below Facebook posts from the pet parent and rescue both talk about their concerns. The owner points out that it's illegal to deny access to any task trained service dog.
The rescue, Help A Dog Out Rescue, also reinforces that Daisy the service dog is a bulldog/boxer mix.
Let's help her turn this into a big deal!
The dog is now flying Southwest Airlines.
Will there be legal issues brought against Delta Airlines? The fact that the boxer/bulldog mix isn't a Pittie seems like an oversight on Delta's part, right? I totally appreciate the extra layer of protection for passengers but a trained service animal should be cleared with no problem. It's a real ESA dog and a perfect match for this little girl!
If you feel like venting about how horrible this is, please leave a comment below.
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