Southwest Airlines Community

@honduh8 wrote:   Well the rules have changed since 2020. ESA's a no longer allowed.   You certainly have the right to fly with your service dog, and by your description of your situation you do need a service dog.   I hope you find a way to control your seizures, but if not you do have your 130 pound friend there to help out. A very good friend indeed.   All the best to you...   ... View more

Hi @jls2662. As you may know, we recently updated our Service Animal Policy (select Trained Service Animals in the left hand margin of the page for full details) to align with recent regulatory changes from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). For travel after March 1, Southwest will only accept service dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified person with a disability. We believe these changes improve the overall Safety of travel for our Customers and Employees and are in alignment with federal laws that no longer require airlines to recognize service animals other than service dogs as defined by the DOT.   As a peer-to-peer support forum, we are not equipped to assist you here, but if you have a specific suggestion or concern, I encourage you to Contact Customer Relations.   Thank you,   ... View more

Southwest-Stories/Service-Animal-Policy-Changes-Effective-September-17/ba-p/78566 Guidelines released by the Southwest Airlines relating to ESA need a slight modification. Obviously, a patient who loves a rabbit would have nothing to do with a dog or cat. Nor they could provide any mental solace as the patient has no interest in them. The right way is, whether a patient requires the company of cat, dog or rabbit should be left to the doctor. Prominent mental health specialists Steady Care Medical Clinic have recommended my grand aunt to keep an ES rabbit and that does not mean should never board a plane with the ESA.  ... View more