A passenger went viral after he brought his "emotional support" great dane aboard an airplane, leading to a heated discussion among internet users.
In the video shared to Instagram by @clearpath_coach, a man is seen boarding a plane holding the leash of the great dane in front of him. The dog sniffs around at the entrance of the plane, but does not wander into the rows in the clip.
"Have we taken this emotional support animal thing too far?" the user wrote in text on top of the video, which has since amassed more than 6 million views.
The size of the dog led to some users gawking at the situation, with many questioning whether or not the dog was actually an emotional support animal.
"I am a dog lover but this is getting absolutely ridiculous. I am all for trained service animals... this is not one of," one user commented. "Everyone is attached to their pet and in some way their pet provides them with comfort but that doesn't make them service animals," another wrote.
"As a person who had a Great Dane and viewing this one's classic body language, this is NOT an assisted therapy animal," another user commented. "Emotional support for one person, emotional distress for hundreds! This is ridiculous!" one user wrote under the video.
Several users also noted the flight attendant's reaction, who looks the dog up and down when it arrives on the plane. Although she does not say anything about the dog, she later says "ow" after the dog steps on her foot, leading to many users commenting about her reaction.
"The dog looks a lot nicer and pleasant than the flight attendant," one user commented. "You can tell the flight attendant is miserable," another wrote.
Meanwhile, others came to her defense. "The flight attendant didn't do anything wrong. Everyone is not a dog person. All due respect that's a huge difference between traveling with a small dog and larger dog," another user commented. "Y'all care about dogs more than humans. The flight attendant did nothing wrong," another wrote.
Others made jokes about how the dog was probably a better passenger than people. "I'd rather sit next to the sweet giant than another person," one user commented. "I'd rather this than a bunch of rude screaming kids. That dog can sit next to me anytime," another wrote.
The user who shared the video also shared an update, which clarified that the dog had gotten its own seat. The dog's head can be seen at about the same height as the heads of passengers as the video pans down the aisle.
While all airlines are required to allow psychiatric service dogs regardless of size, the same rules are not in place for emotional support animals (ESAs). Depending on the airline, ESAs can be subjected to size, weight and breed restrictions, according to ESA Doctors.
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