I spoke with United Airlines last Sunday, and they said the new rules, promulgated by the Mexican Government on May 1 for immediate effect, are that
no in-cabin dogs OTHER than service dogs are permitted on flights into or out of Mexico. And, the credentials that United insists on for the dog to
travel are a letter from a mental health professional that has all the following info (this is a draft of the letter to be faxed to and verified by UA
that the agent dictated to me, mas o menos):
"[passenger name] has a mental health disability related to the DSM IV, and the [weight of animal] well behaved [breed or description of animal]
named [name of animal on papers] that accompanies [passenger name] is necessary for [passenger's name] mental health and treatment. I am a licensed
mental health professional and [passenger name] is under my care. I hold the [mental health credential name] credential from the [issuing authority].
My professional license number is [license number], and was issued [issue date]."
I wonder if this regulation and the new one from a year ago requiring parasite and other tests before our dog can fly (which tests are somewhat
expensive to get in the US) are the work of some animal hating bureaucrat who has come to a position of power in the D.F. Or, perhaps airlines have
been having problems with totally inappropriate animals being carried in the cabin.
Now, the goofy part of all this is that Alaska, whose flight to LAX we took yesterday from La Paz, with massive amounts of paper at the ready, didn't
seem to care about any of this at the airport, and the agent I spoke to on the phone had never heard of the new rule, as they have no policy to
collect, verify, and file such letters. His measured response was 'Huh?' So the moral of this story may be to take Alaska/Horizon from La Paz, or take
the bus. Best of British Luck to you all. - Tom Gafford. |
