Air Canada believes Fluffy invites sneezy, dopey and docs

AIR CANADA this fall fired the latest volley in an aerial dogfight: It banned nearly all animals from aircraft cabins, saying they could trigger allergy attacks in susceptible passengers.

Pet lovers aren’t taking this lying down. They say the alternative, the cargo hold, is stressful and even deadly for dogs and cats, a view that airlines dispute.

Here’s a solution for all sides in this busy family-travel season: Don’t take pets on the plane. Go by car, board them or leave them at home with a trusted sitter.

Any of these options, experts say, may put less stress on your pets, and perhaps allergy-prone humans, than plane travel.

Most U.S. carriers accept animals in the passenger cabin if they are confined to a carrier small enough to fit under the seat, and also in the cargo hold.

Exceptions include Southwest Airlines, which doesn’t take pets, and US Airways and JetBlue Airways, which generally take pets in the cabin but not in the cargo hold. Like Air Canada, U.S. airlines make exceptions for service animals, such as guide dogs.

So far, the Canadian airline’s stance hasn’t inspired a rush of imitators.

But if Dr. Donald Stark, an allergist in Vancouver, Canada, who helped lobby for the ban, has his way, that will change.

“We have to give priority to human health over animal health,” Stark said.

Pet allergies are triggered by tiny flakes of skin called dander or, less commonly, by saliva. Human symptoms include itchy, watery eyes, sneezing and stuffy nose.

Several years ago, Stark did a study that detected peanut dust in cabin air filters and, he said, helped persuade a now-defunct Canadian carrier to stop serving peanuts, an allergen for some people. Some U.S. carriers also avoid serving peanuts.

Stark hasn’t studied animal allergens in air cabins. Although he has received e-mails from fliers who blamed allergy attacks on animals, he said, “we really don’t know” how often these happen.

Air Canada spokesman John Reber also had no figures on such complaints, but he said the airline did receive them. The goal of the animal ban is “to offer an allergy-free environment,” Reber said. “It’s a question of fairness for all customers.”

Not all doctors agree that animals in the cabin pose a significant risk.

“It’s not going to be a big issue as long as they’re in a container,” said Dr. Stephen Wasserman, a professor of medicine specializing in allergies and immunology at UC San Diego. “There shouldn’t be a lot of dander that gets in the plane.

“Most people are not that acutely sensitive. It’s not like a peanut or shrimp allergy, where people can die.”

Stark countered that although airlines require pets to stay in carriers, he has seen owners take them out, raising exposure levels for those nearby. Asthmatics especially could have serious attacks, he said.

But placing animals in the cargo hold also has its critics.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has said for years that annually, about 5,000 animals are lost, injured or killed while flying, citing an estimate by the Air Transport Assn. that 1% of 500,000 animals annually flown may be involved in such incidents.

ATA spokesman David Castelveter said the 1% figure came from a 1990 survey and did not reflect improvements in animal handling.

Reber said deaths and injuries of animals on Air Canada flights were “extremely rare,” but he declined to give figures.

In the U.S., 41 pets were lost, injured or killed while being transported by air in the first 10 months of this year, according to reports that airlines must file with the U.S. Department of Transportation. Of those, 23 animals, most elderly or with health problems, died.

U.S. airlines collectively fly hundreds of thousands of animals in cargo holds each year (Continental alone flies 110,000), although neither the ATA nor the Transportation Department has current totals.

Lisa Weisberg, the ASPCA’s senior vice president for government affairs and public policy, said the airlines’ reports to the federal agency did not reflect all losses because, by law, they included only family-owned pets, not those shipped commercially.

Weisberg also said some cargo holds where animals were kept were not temperature-controlled, but the ATA’s Castelveter and several airlines I contacted disputed this.

Even in the best of conditions, experts say, flying as cargo can be tough on pets, which are separated from owners, knocked off their routines and exposed to strange sights, sounds and people. These stresses, which also can occur in cabin travel, can traumatize a sensitive animal.

“The stress of travel may not kill it,” said Bernadine Cruz, a veterinarian in Laguna Hills, “but if it has a cardiac condition, it could make it worse.” And that could require a trip to an emergency clinic in an unfamiliar city.

For all these reasons, Cruz said, it’s best not to take your pet on the plane, especially if it’s elderly, in delicate health or is a short-nosed animal such as a Persian cat, Boston terrier, bulldog, boxer or pug.

Short-nosed animals are vulnerable to breathing problems under stress or in heat or cold, Cruz said, and many airlines restrict them as cargo. In the Transportation Department reports this year, these breeds accounted for most of the deaths.

Other travel tips:

* Visit a veterinarian for a pet physical. Underlying conditions can worsen aloft.

* Check your airline’s policies. Some won’t carry pets if outside temperatures are too high or too low, or they may have seasonal embargoes. Expect to pay fees.

* Don’t tranquilize your pet. Altitude amplifies the effect of sedatives, so it may overdose.

* Get your pet used to its kennel, and drive it for short distances. Put complete ID on the kennel, with contact phones.

* Fly nonstop. Request at check-in that you be notified, when on the plane, that your pet has been loaded.

The ATA also offers tips at www.airlines.org; search for “Air Travel for Your Pet.”

As for allergy-prone people, experts suggest you carry antihistamines, inhalers and other medications with you on the plane, even if you haven’t had an allergy attack in years. When first seated, look around for pets, and ask to be moved if you think they’re too close to you.

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