CAN YOU TRAVEL WITH YOUR EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMAL?

People who experience anxiety associated to travelling and those who have never travelled without an ESA fear travelling alone. People who are used to travelling with their ESA feel a newfound sense of freedom. Even if it is your first time travelling with a support animal, there is nothing to be shy or scared of. You are just using your legal right. Travelling with a pet can be extremely beneficial for people with aerophobia. Studies show that there are less chances of a person to feel anticipated and nervous when they are with their pets or support animals.

To travel with your emotional support animal, you must have an ESA letter by a Licensed Medical Health Professional. You show the ESA letter to the airline 48 hours in advance. The airlines cannot charge you any fees or deposit for travelling with your support animal. However, the ESA will only be allowed in the plane if he is calm and well behaved in public. He should have basic training like understanding hand and verbal signals. If your ESA does not comply with the rules and requirements of the airline, then despite having an official ESA letter you can’t travel with it. You and your ESA will sit in the cabin. But the animal will be kept in a pet carrier to restrict its movements in the cabin.

Your service or support animal does not count towards a carry on allotment. Airports have additional state and requirements for transporting these animals. The airline would refuse to transport the support or service animals if it engages in disruptive and aggressive behavior such as barking excessively, not in need of the passenger’s distress or need, growling, biting, relieving in the gate area or cabin, jumping on attendants and other passengers, eating off seat belts and tray tables.

There are no hard and fast rules to travel with your support animal. The rules and policies for transportation of animals vary for each airline. But it is necessary to have an ESA recommendation letter from your doctor that should state that due to certain health conditions you can’t be travelling without your ESA. The letter must have the licensed mental health professional’s qualification, license number, state that issued the license and it must be written on the LMHP’s letterhead. Some airlines require that the comfort animal prescription must be issued within the last twelve months, but a prescription is a misnomer for an ESA, it is rather a recommendation letter.

The body of the ESA letter must have the details about the diagnoses of the disability by the doctor according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM V). It must determine that according to the doctor, the support animal’s presence is necessary for the person to travel with ease. The patient is under the care of LMHP. The license number of the LMHP, state of license and date of issuance shall be up to date.

Some airlines may also ask you for an additional documents or call your therapist to confirm that the recommendation letter is a legitimate one. This prevents abuse by passengers who do not need mental support.