[Njagdu] Bravo to Delta for new guide dog rules

[Ginger Kutsch]

Bravo to Delta for new guide dog rules

Miami Herald Editorial

Written by the president of the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind & Visually
Impaired 

http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/editorials/article196982974.html

January 26, 2018 08:42 PM  

 

Re the Jan. 19 article, "Good dog, bad dog.Delta wants to know before you
board," Delta Air Lines should be applauded for taking the lead on
addressing the growing problem of unqualified animals being passed off as
"service animals" on airplanes. 

 

I have been a service-animal user for 17 years. The three guide dogs with
whom I have had the privilege of working were trained and credentialed at
Guiding Eyes for the Blind in Yorktown Heights, N.Y. Dogs from accredited
training centers are bred for service to the blind. 

 

They receive at least two years of intensive training to qualify as service
animals. 

 

Every untrained animal that lacks the proper credentials to be on an
airplane is a clear and present danger to my guide dog and me. 

 

Delta Air Lines has taken an enormous step toward doing the right thing, but
so much more is needed. Requiring proof of animal health, vaccination
records, and assurance from the owner that a given animal will behave
appropriately does not address the question of whether that animal is
qualified to be on an aircraft. 

 

Fraudulent certifications for "service animals" can be purchased with a few
clicks and for a few dollars online, and are rampant. Travelers download
bogus certifications that enable them to travel with their pets in the cabin
of the aircraft. 

 

The airlines should require proof of service animal certification from a
list of federally vetted or acceptable accredited training sites of service
animals for specific disabilities. 

 

Anything short of this denies people with disabilities the safety and
security to which they are entitled.

 

Virginia A. Jacko,

president, 

chief executive officer,

Miami Lighthouse for the Blind & Visually Impaired

 

 

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