I will never fly United again.
There is legislation being introduced tomorrow in the Senate that will prohibit airlines from putting animals in overhead bins.
Nice to see action being taken so quickly after this incident.
Really? We need a law about this? Sure, itās a bad idea to put animals in the overhead, but the proliferation of federal laws is good for no one.
/rant, itās just grandstanding of the type that we have all come to expect and sometimes demand.
^ But think of the puppies!!.
The sponsor of the bill - Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said, āpets are family.ā
I thought Emily was kidding. She is not!
āāThis pattern of animal deaths and injuries is simply inexcusable,ā Kennedy wrote in the letter. āFor many people, pets are members of the family. They should not be treated like insignificant cargo. Frankly, they shouldnāt be placed in the cargo hold much less an overhead bin.āā
Sorry. It is common sense. You donāt put a pet in the overhead bin. Donāt. They can chew othersā luggage. They can pee on the heads of folks sitting below. And they will die. Why do we need a law about this?!
Someone gifted me a game called āDumb Laws.ā This will add another one to it.
I would have stood up to the bully too, of course. Thatās crazy to demand a pet to be put in the overhead bin. What is wrong with people? If it is true that the flight attendant knowingly demanded the puppy to be put in the overhead bin, he or she should be fired. End of story. I donāt want someone that stupid being responsible for evacuations and passenger safety.
However, they arenāt going to throw you and your children off a flight once youāre enroute. Itās a long ways down B-)
Even if I was naive and accepted the FA putting my puppy up there, I canāt imagine leaving it there for the flight, it would be down and in my lap for the rest of the flight under a blanket. Even if I had my hands full with kids. Been there, done that for four three hour legs on a trip. The little girl just laid on our laps the entire time with her nose barely peeking out, the FAās didnāt even know she was there.
And yes, pets ARE family. We like them better than family sometimes. 
The irony that the legislative proposal is made on the day students walked out to demand change for their safety should not be overlooked.
Butā¦ butā¦ jym. The danger of overhead bins to our four legged family members is so imminent it needs to be dealt with quickly!
Makes me think about that movie, Wag the Dog. A girl running from bombshells?.. Nahā¦ not heartbreaking enough. We need a kitten! A calico kitten!
(Just fire the FA as @busdriver11 said. I would not feel safe with an idiot in charge of my inflight safety).
I read on Flyer talker that the dog sent to Japan was flown back on a private chartered flight and the dog that should have gone to Japan was flown in the last row of first class cabin with an attendent. So at least it looks like United stepped up to make sure these dogs were well cared for while getting them back to where they should be. If anything more had happened to these two dogs in light of recent events it would been VERY bad for United.
Wasnāt it United that also had that guy dragged off the plane by airport police a while ago?
Is this any way to run an airline? 
^^^^ Yes.
Ah, yes, @BunsenBurner , you re so right! Pet/animal safety is such a high priority for our country that the legislation should be submitted and acted upon IMMEDIATELY. before another hamster is flushed. Maybe there were 17 pets/animals transported unsuccessfully for which we should all walk out. Only the pets deserve such immediate legislative action! @-)
^^^^Thatās why the women traveling with her baby and young daughter likely didnāt want to stand up to the FA that insisted she put her dog in the over head compartment. United was also the airline where the big bunny died and they had him cremated before the actual owners could investigate but they settled with the shipper (that no longer owned the rabbit) instead. Oh, and who can ever forget United Breaks Guitars https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo I donāt understand how this airline is still in business!
Frankly, although I can understand why the woman knuckled under in order to avoid being physically dragged off the flight with her children, once they were in the air and the puppy was obviously in distress I really canāt imagine not acting. Thatās when I would have stepped in.
She probably didnāt think it would die. I am sure she would have acted had she known the danger.
Really, a third United pet āmistakeā this week?!
https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/16/us/united-airlines-pet-wrong-plane/index.html
I think they handled it well but really, itās time for them to get there act together!
I donāt think itās a good idea to divert a flight because of a pet mixup, thatās ridiculous. They wouldnāt do that for a passenger, even a child. If the pet is safe, that is a massive waste of fuel to divert. Think of all the people that were inconvenienced, some possibly missing important events in their lives.
They would have better keeping it quiet and just getting the pet there ASAP.
I think soon airlines will just stop transporting pets. It just isnāt worth it.
In light of their recent bad press I think itās the only way they could have handled it. I just donāt understand how they can keep on messing up pet transport over and over again. I agree that United should just stop transporting pets becuase they have so many problems, other airlines not so much.