A woman tried to make my dog leave the plane, and then the unexpected happened.
I had just settled into my seat on the plane, ready to visit my mother, and Max was comfortably lying next to me. He’s a service dog, trained to help me manage anxiety and post-traumatic stress. He has all the necessary certification.
Suddenly, a woman approached my seat. As soon as she saw Max, she shook her head as if she had just seen something disgusting.
“I refuse to sit next to a dog. I won’t be able to stand that for hours,” she said coldly.
I stayed calm, but my heart started to race. I knew she was trying to draw attention to herself. The flight attendant came over to check my documents, and she confirmed that Max was indeed allowed to be there.
But that didn’t calm her down. She crossed her arms and said with a superior look: “Really? Are you serious? There are other ways to help someone than having a dog walking around everywhere. This is completely ridiculous!”
She raised her voice so that everyone could hear: “Why don’t you just take a private flight if you absolutely must have this dog with you?”
I felt humiliated and unsettled. It was as if she had no consideration for what I was going through, nor for the help Max provides me every day.
The flight attendant kindly explained that Max was authorized to be on the plane, but even after that, the woman didn’t calm down, muttering under her breath: “Seriously, some people really have no education…”
Then, a man behind us stood up, and what he said made the woman fall silent.
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The man behind us stood up abruptly, and in a firm but calm voice, he addressed the woman: “If you have such a hard time dealing with the presence of this dog, I suggest you take my seat.”
He pointed to his seat, a little further down the aisle. “I’d be happy to sit next to the lady, and you can enjoy my seat, next to the most pleasant person on the plane.”
The man continued, with a slightly ironic smile: “You really seem bothered by this dog, but he’s here to help, not to disturb others.”
The flight attendant, slightly flustered but grateful, nodded her head.
The woman, suddenly caught off guard, mumbled something unintelligible, then sat down, red with embarrassment.
Max, unfazed, turned his head toward me as if to say he didn’t need this scene to know that he was exactly where he needed to be.