Last summer, five guard dogs being shipped from Atlanta to South Carolina for training died from heat-related stress after thunderstorms kept their Delta Air Lines flight grounded on a steamy Hartsfield runway for more than an hour. The deaths prompted Delta to ban animals from its cargo holds on U.S. passenger flights until the fall. And late last year, following the escape of a dog from an American Airlines plane at New York's JFK airport, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals issued a warning that animals may not be safe in cargo holds of airplanes. Animal advocates claim the compartments expose animals to extreme heat, cold and deprive them of oxygen. They're pushing for tougher laws on animal transport.
Some travelers believe pets have every right to fly with their owners.
Anthony Bresenhan Kaye travels with his dog several times a year and has never had an incident. In many cases, the vast majority of the other passengers never knew that there was a puppy on the plane. While I certainly can understand that some pets are well-mannered, it's also obvious that many others aren't. The frightened creatures force their way out of their kennels and exacerbate an already unpleasant travel experience for most of us. Most pets clearly don't belong in the passenger cabin.