Relax everyone, you can still take your horse on the plane

A few months ago, I delivered the bad news. Those of you who wanted to take your emotional support tarantula on an airplane were in for a rude awakening. Airlines were trimming the list of acceptable support animals, and 8-legged bugs were not going to make the cut. “So,” you thought. “What will I do now? I can’t fly without some kind of odd companion!”

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The decision to take a horse on the plane was the obvious choice, but have you seen those things? They’re huge! Big horses would want too many complimentary pretzel bags, so you decided that going with a miniature horse would provide all the necessary support and be economical. Then you started to hear the rumors. Airlines didn’t want horses on their flights either. Well, relax. Starting September 17th, you won’t be able to fly with your Lippizzaner, but you will be able to board any Southwest flight with your miniature horse. Your fellow passengers may not be thrilled but, tally ho, “them’s the brakes.” From Fox5 NY:

Come September 17, people will be able to carry miniature horses onboard Southwest flights as trained service animals, according to airline officials. Officials announced the policy change, via a statement on its website on Tuesday. In the statement, officials name miniature horses, along with dogs and cats, as some of the most common service animals that will be accepted onboard. Passengers, however, will need to be able to provide credible verbal assurance that the animal is a trained service animal. In addition, the company announced other changes, such as formally accepting Psychiatric SupportAnimals (PSAs) as trained service animals, after accepting them informally as such in the past, and will also limit each passenger to one Emotional Support Animal.

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Having spent the first 16 years of my life around horses, I can tell you that they are …productive. Even the little ones require near-constant maintenance. The rules stipulate that each passenger can only bring one horse, and they have to carry documentation regarding its service status, but still. How, exactly, is the clean-up going to work? On a Southwest plane – where the average 6-foot human is already miserable – it seems unlikely that your flight is going to be enhanced by the guy next to you squeezing “Trigger” into your row.

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