Pet therapy peacocks on commercial flights are going to be a thing of the past.
On Dec. 2, the Department of Transportation ruled in favor of dogs as the only service animals allowed on airplanes. The bill also means no longer can any animal fly as a supposed “emotional support animal,” a decision applauded by Ponte Vedra-based nonprofit K9s for Warriors, who played a big role in the passage of the bill.
“We drafted several proposed rules and gave a lot of ideas to different senators and members of the House,” K9s for Warriors CEO Rory Diamond said. “We did everything we could to build a coalition to help get this passed.”
K9s for Warriors rescues and trains shelter dogs to be paired as service dogs for warriors with service-connected post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injury and/or military sexual trauma. Diamond said because of the lax rules of the airlines regarding service animals, many warriors were uncomfortable flying.
“We do everything we can to help our warriors get back out into the world again and travel, and unfortunately, there are so many fake, poorly trained service dogs and emotional-support animals like kangaroos, peacocks, that they stop traveling because of the stress of all that,” Diamond said. “We found that unacceptable.”
Diamond, who also serves as a Jacksonville city councilman, also helped get a similar rule passed in Jacksonville. The Fake Service Dog bill makes it a misdemeanor to lie about a pet and falsely claim it as a service dog. The penalty for breaking the law would be a maximum of 30 hours of community service.
“It’s part of the same effort to get fake and poorly trained service dogs out of the public way so that people with real service dogs and need them can have an easier life,” Diamond said.
