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When Pigs Fly For Real . . .
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by Caren Cowan, Exec. Director, New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Assn.
ne of former Governor Gary Johnson’s (now Libertarian presidential candidate) favorite sayings when faced with pressure to be less than fiscal was “when pigs fly.” If he happens to get elected he is going to have to come up with a new one. Pot-bellied pigs must be granted passage on airplanes if they are used for “emotional support” by their owners, states the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) draft manual on equity for the disabled in air travel, according to a web report by cnsnews.com. The DOT published its “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Air Travel: Draft Technical Assistance Manual” in the Federal Register on July 5, providing guidance that allows swine on airplanes if they are determined to be service animals. The
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manual is designed to “help carriers and indirect carriers and their employees/contractors that provide services or facilities to passengers with disabilities, assist those passengers in accordance with” the Air Carrier Access Act. The manual is open for public comments until October 3. Under the “Service Animal” section, the department lays out a scenario for airline carriers entitled “Example 1.” The manual states: “A passenger arrives at the gate accompanied by a pot-bellied pig. She claims that the pot-bellied pig is her service animal. What should you do?” “Generally, you must permit a passenger with a disability to be accompanied by a service animal,” reads the manual. “However, if you have a reasonable basis for questioning whether the animal is a service animal, you may ask for some veri-
fication.” The manual instructs airline carriers and their employees to begin by asking questions about the animal, such as, “What tasks or functions does your animal perform for you?” or “What has its training been?” “If you are not satisfied with the credibility of the answers to these questions or if the service animal is an emotional support or psychiatric service animal, you may request further verification,” the guidebook states. “You should also call a CRO [Complaints Resolution Official] if there is any further doubt as to whether the pot-bellied pig is the passenger’s service animal.” If the answers are satisfactory, pot-belcontinued on page 151
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