Narrative:

Five minutes before the door is to be closed for departure a passenger boarded with a large dog that appeared to be a pitbull on a leash that was not wearing a harness or mussel and had no identifying service vest showing it was a service animal. I did not question the passenger; but rather immediately asked a csr supervisor if this animal was an emotional support animal; therapy animal; or service animal. The csr supervisor on the jet bridge told me it was a service animal. I asked if they verified any paperwork on the animal since it was acting anxious and on a leash with no vest; harness; or mussel. For safety purposes I thought we might need to have to check for a health card or verified some sort of training such as a service animal certificate. The csr supervisor said 'no we asked the passenger for papers; but he stated it was on his laptop and he couldn't retrieve it without an internet connection;' so the csr supervisor said they are instructed per company policy and procedures to just take the passengers word that it was actually a service animal and that csr's are not required to view documentation on a service animal. At this point I looked in my in-flight manual and it stated that a letter from a licensed doctor is required for an emotional support animal; but it just stated emotional support animals. My handbook did not reflect what documents might be needed by the csr on a service animal which would have been so helpful if our manual reflected this or even stated if none was needed for that matter for clarity. This dog concerned me as it was acting anxious and nervous not at all like a normal service animal; so at that time I went to the captain and expressed my concerns and asked him to look in his manual for further clarification and call zone about documentation on service animals. The captain's manual stated simply that it is the csr's responsibility to check all documents on animals traveling in the cabin and it did not state whether they could just simply take a passengers word on it if the animal was a service animal or not. The captain called operations to find out if they knew of any other documentation being required on service animals that csrs typically check for such like if the dog had current vaccines; rabies shots; etc needed to protect public health and safety. Operations called back and stated they did not need to verify any paperwork per their policy and procedures; so when passengers don't have any service animal documents they just take their word for it end of story. This did not seem right to me as the dog did not act like a service animal; but I could not question the passenger about what type of service animal it was either per the standard operating procedures I could only discuss my concerns with the csrs. I told the captain I felt uncomfortable with this pitbull that appeared to be a large 60 plus pound that was loose on a leash on the flight as its mannerisms were very anxious and nervous. He asked me if I was okay going and I said I am not clear on the proper policies per my handbook; so to feel comfortable I asked for him to take 100% responsibility if there was some policy or procedures that was missed here and the captain agreed with captain's authority to board passenger with his large dog in no kennel and take 100% responsibility for any infractions. The captain stated he felt comfortable taking responsibility for the passenger and dog based on what two csr supervisors told him and operations had told him and that his handbook simply stated it was csr's responsibility. I did not get the names of two csr supervisors as this was very rushed about 5 minutes before closing the door.when we got in-flight I walked to the back of the cabin and noticed this large pitbull was laying across his owners lap with his backside on the guy next to him and his head was also lying on the other passenger. Both these passengers did not know this passenger or this dog. One passenger and the dog's owner were sleeping and the third passenger was awake with the dog's large head across his lap. The crew asked him if he was okay with the dogs head on his lap and he was very nice and polite and said he was fine. We had zero empty seats to relocate any passengers. I explained to him the dog has to be on the floor because it was too large to be on all three of their laps. He told me not to worry he was okay. I explained that although he was okay I had to talk to the owner and explain to him he was violating an in-flight standard operating procedure by not keeping his large dog on the floor. The owner got up and I asked to speak to him in the back galley and explained to him away from other passengers that his dog was larger than a two year old child and is not only laying on his lap; but also the passengers next to him and that he would have to make sure his dog laid on the floor. The owner replied she just won't stay on the floor I can't make her stay there. I told him he had to try and keep her on the floor due to her being too large for his lap and that he was violating an in-flight standard operating procedure and that all in-flight crew members would simply have to keep reminding him to put her on the floor throughout the flight. Despite the crew members instructions the dog remained on all three men's laps the entire flight and other passengers were getting up and taking video of the dog and pictures of this happening as many passengers felt uncomfortable with a pitbull out of a kennel in the aircraft loose as we had many small children on this flight. My flying partner asked the owner what his dog's name was while he was in the back galley. The owner said 'doggie' in a slurred voice...he appeared very disoriented. The dog was acting anxious and nervous in the back galley every time the bathroom door opened or a toilet flushed the dog jolted his head back and forth which made me nervous the dog might bite someone in a fearful state with passengers coming in and out of bathrooms as sometimes very sweet dogs bite when they are frightened or scared accidentally. My flying partner noticed the dog was nervous too and asked the owner how often he fly's with his dog. He said this was his and his dog's first flight. I then left the galley at that point and later found out he also shared with the crew members in the back that he was on some heavy pain medication which is probably why he was acting so disoriented and slurring his words. All flight crew members told the owner multiple times throughout the flight the dog must come off his lap and be placed on floor and he said the dog just won't stay there...he could not get the dog to stay on the floor or off another passengers laps to his right and left. I alerted the captain of the situation as I saw the owner was connecting to another flight and because the dog not staying on the floor was a violation of in-flight standard operating procedure that I would need a supervisor to meet the flight; so the next crew was properly advised of the difficulties we had getting the passenger's dog to stay on the floor.we landed and a csr supervisor met the flight I told him we could not get the dog to stay on the floor the entire flight which was a violation to in-flight standard operating procedure and the passenger was connecting on to another flight and to advise the crew. I also asked him what documents they checked on service animals; he said 'we don't ask; we take the passenger's word on emotional support animals and service animals if they don't have documents.' I told him my handbook does not indicated paperwork on service animals; but it does on emotional support animal. The immediate issue here is that this dog was too large to be on a person's lap and would not sit on the floor and this man was connecting to another flight and he took it from there.I then left to go to operations to talk to a company safety advocate about this entire incident. She said that there are documents that are checked by csrs on all animals onboard and to report the incident. I told her I would like to have the procedures clearly defined like the emotional support animal's documents are in our in-flight manuals as the inconsistency noted in policy and procedures between the different work groups cause a lot of confusion.my first question is that it seems to me that it is not violating any medical privacy acts to ask for a passenger to provide a certificate of training for an animal to be outside a kennel within a closed form of public transportation. You are not asking or requiring to know the medical disability is it being used for on the aircraft just paperwork showing it is in fact a certified trained service animal to protect public safety as anyone can say their potentially violent household pet is a service animal to try and get around a charged fee since it's free if they simply say its service and they need no documents per the csr's. Our company could simply make sure a animal is trained in a public transportation environment we don't need to see the medical reason at all this would properly protect all crew members passengers and all other disable passengers onboard whom entrust us with their safety everyday. It is the right thing to adopt policies that protect all passengers' safety in our standard operating policy and procedures?second question: I asked in csr before departure who would be responsible if the dog freaked out in-flight and attacked someone since no one viewed any documents on training and they said the passenger is only responsible. Is that true?third question: I would like to see policy and procedures clearly defined and matching in the captain's manual csr's policies manual and the flight attendant manuals for proper safety reinforcement. Is that possible? The captain's manual only states the csrs are responsible for all animals documents in-flight and that specifically falcon birds are okay in-flight. The flight attendant manual states nothing of falcons; but states snakes; monkeys; and miniature horses can board as emotional support animals. The captain said when he went down to talk more of this to a supervisor in the pilot's area at our arrival airport they provided him with further information that rodents such as rats; spiders; ferrets; and snakes can not be onboard. The flight attendant manual states snakes are okay and nothing about rodents not being okay. What is correct?lastly I am hoping that a horrible incident like a dog attacking a crew member or a child in-flight does not happen before we adapt a much needed clarification in company policy or worse yet a law suit. We need to be a leader in the safety industry and take action as a company and do the right thing. We have a responsibility to protect everyone's right to safety onboard including the disabled but not only the disabled. Can the air carrier association of america help make this happen or do we go to the FAA or can our company adopt these polices and procedure independently?

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A large dog which the owner claimed to be an 'emotional support animal' was allowed on a flight without documentation and would not lay on the floor with the passenger. The company manuals did not clearly specify how to process the passenger and dog for the flight.

Narrative: Five minutes before the door is to be closed for departure a passenger boarded with a large dog that appeared to be a pitbull on a leash that was not wearing a harness or mussel and had no identifying service vest showing it was a service animal. I did not question the passenger; but rather immediately asked a CSR Supervisor if this animal was an emotional support animal; therapy animal; or service animal. The CSR Supervisor on the jet bridge told me it was a service animal. I asked if they verified any paperwork on the animal since it was acting anxious and on a leash with no vest; harness; or mussel. For safety purposes I thought we might need to have to check for a health card or verified some sort of training such as a service animal certificate. The CSR Supervisor said 'no we asked the passenger for papers; but he stated it was on his laptop and he couldn't retrieve it without an internet connection;' so the CSR Supervisor said they are instructed per company policy and procedures to just take the passengers word that it was actually a service animal and that CSR's are not required to view documentation on a service animal. At this point I looked in my in-flight manual and it stated that a letter from a licensed doctor is required for an emotional support animal; but it just stated emotional support animals. My handbook did not reflect what documents might be needed by the CSR on a service animal which would have been so helpful if our manual reflected this or even stated if none was needed for that matter for clarity. This dog concerned me as it was acting anxious and nervous not at all like a normal service animal; so at that time I went to the Captain and expressed my concerns and asked him to look in his manual for further clarification and call zone about documentation on service animals. The Captain's manual stated simply that it is the CSR's responsibility to check all documents on animals traveling in the cabin and it did not state whether they could just simply take a passengers word on it if the animal was a service animal or not. The Captain called Operations to find out if they knew of any other documentation being required on service animals that CSRs typically check for such like if the dog had current vaccines; rabies shots; etc needed to protect public health and safety. Operations called back and stated they did not need to verify any paperwork per their policy and procedures; so when passengers don't have any service animal documents they just take their word for it end of story. This did not seem right to me as the dog did not act like a service animal; but I could not question the passenger about what type of service animal it was either per the standard operating procedures I could only discuss my concerns with the CSRs. I told the Captain I felt uncomfortable with this pitbull that appeared to be a large 60 plus pound that was loose on a leash on the flight as its mannerisms were very anxious and nervous. He asked me if I was okay going and I said I am not clear on the proper policies per my handbook; so to feel comfortable I asked for him to take 100% responsibility if there was some policy or procedures that was missed here and the Captain agreed with Captain's authority to board passenger with his large dog in no kennel and take 100% responsibility for any infractions. The Captain stated he felt comfortable taking responsibility for the passenger and dog based on what two CSR Supervisors told him and Operations had told him and that his handbook simply stated it was CSR's responsibility. I did not get the names of two CSR Supervisors as this was very rushed about 5 minutes before closing the door.When we got in-flight I walked to the back of the cabin and noticed this large pitbull was laying across his owners lap with his backside on the guy next to him and his head was also lying on the other passenger. Both these passengers did not know this passenger or this dog. One passenger and the dog's owner were sleeping and the third passenger was awake with the dog's large head across his lap. The crew asked him if he was okay with the dogs head on his lap and he was very nice and polite and said he was fine. We had zero empty seats to relocate any passengers. I explained to him the dog has to be on the floor because it was too large to be on all three of their laps. He told me not to worry he was okay. I explained that although he was okay I had to talk to the owner and explain to him he was violating an in-flight standard operating procedure by not keeping his large dog on the floor. The owner got up and I asked to speak to him in the back galley and explained to him away from other passengers that his dog was larger than a two year old child and is not only laying on his lap; but also the passengers next to him and that he would have to make sure his dog laid on the floor. The owner replied she just won't stay on the floor I can't make her stay there. I told him he had to try and keep her on the floor due to her being too large for his lap and that he was violating an in-flight standard operating procedure and that all in-flight crew members would simply have to keep reminding him to put her on the floor throughout the flight. Despite the crew members instructions the dog remained on all three men's laps the entire flight and other passengers were getting up and taking video of the dog and pictures of this happening as many passengers felt uncomfortable with a pitbull out of a kennel in the aircraft loose as we had many small children on this flight. My flying partner asked the owner what his dog's name was while he was in the back galley. The owner said 'Doggie' in a slurred voice...he appeared very disoriented. The dog was acting anxious and nervous in the back galley every time the bathroom door opened or a toilet flushed the dog jolted his head back and forth which made me nervous the dog might bite someone in a fearful state with passengers coming in and out of bathrooms as sometimes very sweet dogs bite when they are frightened or scared accidentally. My flying partner noticed the dog was nervous too and asked the owner how often he fly's with his dog. He said this was his and his dog's first flight. I then left the galley at that point and later found out he also shared with the crew members in the back that he was on some heavy pain medication which is probably why he was acting so disoriented and slurring his words. All flight crew members told the owner multiple times throughout the flight the dog must come off his lap and be placed on floor and he said the dog just won't stay there...he could not get the dog to stay on the floor or off another passengers laps to his right and left. I alerted the Captain of the situation as I saw the owner was connecting to another flight and because the dog not staying on the floor was a violation of in-flight standard operating procedure that I would need a Supervisor to meet the flight; so the next crew was properly advised of the difficulties we had getting the passenger's dog to stay on the floor.We landed and a CSR Supervisor met the flight I told him we could not get the dog to stay on the floor the entire flight which was a violation to in-flight standard operating procedure and the passenger was connecting on to another flight and to advise the crew. I also asked him what documents they checked on service animals; he said 'we don't ask; we take the passenger's word on emotional support animals and service animals if they don't have documents.' I told him my handbook does not indicated paperwork on service animals; but it does on emotional support animal. The immediate issue here is that this dog was too large to be on a person's lap and would not sit on the floor and this man was connecting to another flight and he took it from there.I then left to go to Operations to talk to a Company Safety Advocate about this entire incident. She said that there are documents that are checked by CSRs on all animals onboard and to report the incident. I told her I would like to have the procedures clearly defined like the emotional support animal's documents are in our in-flight manuals as the inconsistency noted in policy and procedures between the different work groups cause a lot of confusion.My first question is that it seems to me that it is not violating any medical privacy acts to ask for a passenger to provide a certificate of training for an animal to be outside a kennel within a closed form of public transportation. You are not asking or requiring to know the medical disability is it being used for on the aircraft just paperwork showing it is in fact a certified trained service animal to protect public safety as anyone can say their potentially violent household pet is a service animal to try and get around a charged fee since it's free if they simply say its service and they need no documents per the CSR's. Our Company could simply make sure a animal is trained in a public transportation environment we don't need to see the medical reason at all this would properly protect all crew members passengers and all other disable passengers onboard whom entrust us with their safety everyday. It is the right thing to adopt policies that protect all passengers' safety in our standard operating policy and procedures?Second question: I asked in CSR before departure who would be responsible if the dog freaked out in-flight and attacked someone since no one viewed any documents on training and they said the passenger is only responsible. Is that true?Third question: I would like to see policy and procedures clearly defined and matching in the Captain's manual CSR's policies manual and the Flight Attendant manuals for proper safety reinforcement. Is that possible? The Captain's manual only states the CSRs are responsible for all animals documents in-flight and that specifically falcon birds are okay in-flight. The Flight Attendant manual states nothing of falcons; but states snakes; monkeys; and miniature horses can board as emotional support animals. The Captain said when he went down to talk more of this to a Supervisor in the pilot's area at our arrival airport they provided him with further information that rodents such as rats; spiders; ferrets; and snakes can not be onboard. The Flight Attendant manual states snakes are okay and nothing about rodents not being okay. What is correct?Lastly I am hoping that a horrible incident like a dog attacking a crew member or a child in-flight does not happen before we adapt a much needed clarification in company policy or worse yet a law suit. We need to be a leader in the safety industry and take action as a company and do the right thing. We have a responsibility to protect everyone's right to safety onboard including the disabled but not only the disabled. Can the Air Carrier Association of America help make this happen or do we go to the FAA or can our Company adopt these polices and procedure independently?

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.