According to an outraged mother, her 7-year-old boy, Giovanni was reduced to tears when airline passengers applauded as he was asked to board off a flight due to his allergies (he broke out in hives).
In a Facebook post, Christian Fabian wrote down her emotions that her son, Giovanni, was left tearfully apologizing to her and his terminally ill father after breaking out in hives aboard an Allegiant Airlines flight on Tuesday, she believes because of dogs onboard.
“We are not angry that we were deplaned. In fact, my husband and I appreciate that our son is safe. What crushed us was that our 7-year-old boy looked at us with tear-filled eyes and said, ‘I’m sorry that I put you through this. This is all my fault,’” she wrote.
It was the first time her son had had such a reaction, one that may have been triggered by the high amount of stress he has been under because of his father’s health, she explained.
Fabian slammed the passengers’ behavior in her Facebook post, calling it
“insulting, ignorant (and) insinuating,” but ultimately blamed the flight attendant for riling them up. Fabian says that when she asked the flight attendant for help, the woman “smirked,” telling her that there are dogs on every flight.
“Instead of defusing the situation, you added insult to injury and perpetuated the attitudes of the other passengers,” Fabian wrote.
The family caught the next available flight home the following day and said they don’t want anything more from the airline.
There are, however, steps allergic passengers can take.
If you know your child has allergies due to pets, make sure of the following:
Some airlines do not allow any pets to travel in the cabin. You can call the airline you are traveling on to find out if they allow pets in the passenger cabin.
First and foremost, learn that you cannot be sure that there will be no animals on my flight if an airline does not allow pets in the cabin. The Department of Transportation (DOT) has rules (14 CFR part 382) (PDF) that require airlines to allow passengers to fly with their service animals in the cabin on all U.S. airlines. Service animals are not pets. They are working animals that assist persons with disabilities. There is no limit to the number of service animals that can be on any flight. Service animals do not need any health certificates to travel and they do not need to be confined in a container or cage. You will still be exposed to pet dander on every flight, even without any pets in the passenger cabin. This is because most allergens are carried into the cabin on the clothes of other passengers.
However, you can find out what the specific policies and procedures are for each airline in several ways. You can call the airline’s reservations line and get information from the agent who takes your call. You can also look at an airline’s website to get information about their policies for traveling with pets.
If you absolutely need to fly, and have allergies to pet dander, then there are ways you can reduce the chance that there will be an animal in the cabin on your flight. You can fly on an airline that does not allow pets in the cabin. You can also ask the reservations agent for your airline if another passenger on the same flight has made reservations to travel with a pet. You should also check with your allergist or doctor before your trip to discuss travel related risks and ask if you should carry medications with you. If a reaction should occur during the flight, follow your doctor’s treatment instructions and ask a flight attendant for assistance.
So, then what can you do?
The Federal Aviation Administration advises affected passengers to inform their airline about their allergy in advance so they can learn whether an animal has been scheduled to board and to try to select an airline that does not allow pets in the cabin to reduce the odds that an animal will be onboard.
While the plight of this family is understandable, however, the airlines probably thought it was the best for the child at that moment.
