[nagdu] Flying with my guide dog

[Tracy Carcione]

Hi Craig.
My advice about flying is to not get stressed yourself, which will help your 
dog stay calm, too.  I'm pretty sure all my dogs have thought of airplanes 
as buses that go up and down big hills.
They may try to put you in a bulkhead seat. My experience is that often my 
dog and I have less space there, and my dog and I are better off in another 
seat where he can slide under the seat in front of me.  I always take his 
harness off in the plane.  I'm always afraid the harness would get stuck on 
something under the seat.  I usually try to get a window seat, and put the 
harness between the seat and the wall.  If I don't get a window, I put the 
harness under my seat.
I don't count on finding a relieving spot at the airport.  I take the dog 
before we go, and I give him another chance before we go inside the airport, 
then give him the earliest opportunity I can when we emerge at the end of 
our trip.

My advice about introducing your dog to another dog is to do it outside, so 
the other dog isn't feeling like a stranger is busting into his territory. 
Ask your son to bring his dog outside on leash, and let them sniff and get 
acquainted in a neutral space, like the sidewalk.  It might be wise to keep 
your dog on leash inside for a while, just to be sure there are no problems.
HTH.
Tracy

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Craig Heaps" <craig.heaps at comcast.net>
To: <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, October 11, 2013 11:16 PM
Subject: [nagdu] Flying with my guide dog


> My guide dog, Chase, and I graduated from GDB on July 13th.  We will take 
> our first airline flight together Thanksgiving week when we go from San 
> Francisco to Milwaukee to see my son and his wife.  They have a medium 
> sized female mixed breed dog.  Any advice for the flight and for 
> introducing the two dogs?  My son lives in a downtown loft, and we will 
> likely stay in a nearby hotel.  Is anyone familiar with the relieving 
> areas at SFO or in Milwaukee?  We're flying on Southwest.
>
> Craig Heaps
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