Change to airline's support dog policy mid-trip had Windsor, Ont. family scrambling to get home
It was supposed to be an enjoyable trip to Alberta but “these kind of changes in the plans are totally unfair,” said Don Brunelle.
He and his wife Brenda travelled WestJet to Calgary on June 30 with Rascal, who is registered as an emotional support animal.
They were having a nice visit until they received a call at lunch time on Aug. 4.
“Advising me that our return trip that's booked for the 21st of August, Rascal would have to return home kenneled,” Brenda explained.
On July 15, WestJet announced on their website emotional support dogs would no longer be permitted in the cabin of a plane beginning Aug. 5.
Rascal has been an important part of the Brunelle family for 11 years.
“Me kinda taking care of him takes my mind off all the other things that are creating that anxiety so I do have to travel with him,” Don said.
The Brunelles aren't against policy change, but they feel WestJet could have done a better job of communicating that change in a timely fashion.
“If they change that policy they should really have given maybe a month’s grace or something so that people could adapt to the new way of doing business,” Don said.
“How do you strand people mid trip and then try and tell them 'well sorry that's the way the policy is and it comes into effect tomorrow,'” Brenda added.
Not wanting to be separated from Rascal, the Brunelle's are taking a train home to Windsor.
“We now have to get a ride from Calgary to Edmonton and Via Rail only leaves Edmonton to Toronto on Tuesdays so that's making us stay here an added week,” Brenda said.
Instead of being home in three or four hours the Brunelle's say it could take days, with added costs.
They are frustrated and feel they and others like them are being discriminated against.
“They're discriminating against a very serious, very real and a very well documented illness,” Brenda said.
Brenda says the airline has offered to refund their airfare but she and her husband hope the company rethinks their policy.
“It just allows those of us who require that kind of assistance to have to look elsewhere to make their travel plans,” Don said.
In a statement emailed to CTV News, a WestJet Spokesperson writes "On August 5, 2021, WestJet announced that we would no longer accept emotional support dogs in the cabin, on any flight operated by the WestJet Group. WestJet continues to accept service dogs who meet the outlined criteria for training and behaviour and who support those with disabilities.
It goes on to say, "This policy change provides consistency and clarity across our network, for all of our guests, while ensuring we meet all regulatory requirements for the jurisdictions which we operate in."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.