Flying Reptile

September 23, 2007

To Whom it May Concern,

Pets are an important part of any family that wishes to keep them. For many people, their animals are like their children. They are loving companions that travel with their owners wherever they go. In recent years, reptiles, such as lizards, snakes, and turtles, have become increasingly popular as household pets. As reptile owners and enthusiasts, we put much time, effort, and care into raising and keeping these fascinating creatures.

It is unfortunate that we find that there is a prejudice against our beloved pets. When compared to cats and dogs, reptile lovers are few and far between. This prejudice stems from an irrational fear of a creature that is simply misunderstood. This fear is most pronounced with snakes, but is not unfound with lizards and turtles as well. They are seen as dangerous, venomous monsters when most of them are completely harmless. The truth is that there are relatively few people who keep dangerous reptiles as pets and those that do, do not parade them around in public.

Now, the matter at hand is that we find it very difficult to travel with the reptilian members of our families. Being cold blooded, reptiles need to be maintained at certain temperatures to survive. While most need to bask in high heat for long periods of the day, they can still survive comfortably at room temperatures for many hours. However, problems occur in colder temperatures and many reptiles will die in extreme cold. It is due to this that reptiles may not survive while traveling in the cargo hold of an airplane where temperatures are not regulated. This petition is to allow for reptiles to be brought as carry on items in the cabin of commercial airline flights.

As far as we know as of yet, there are no commercial airlines that allow reptiles in the cabin, however there are many airlines that allow cats and dogs. We see this as another prejudice against reptiles and their owners. In fact, it is actually safer to have reptiles on board than it is to have cats and dogs. There are many people allergic to dander produced by cats and dogs who would suffer through a flight with those animals in the cabin. Reptiles are hypoallergenic. It is nearly impossible to be allergic to a reptile. We do admit, that with any reptile there is a small risk of Salmonella, but this can only be contracted by actually touching the animal and can be easily prevented by washing ones hands afterwards.

We reptile owners believe that we should be offered the same rights to travel with our pets in the cabin as any cat or dog owner. The FAA has no policy, law, or regulation against having reptiles in the cabin of a commercial flight as long as the carrying cage meets the standard regulation for carry on luggage. The FAA leaves the decision on reptiles to the individual airlines.

We now ask that this ban on reptiles be lifted. In doing so, we would agree to comply with certain regulations on reptiles. Said reptiles would not be poisonous, venomous, harmful or dangerous in any way. Reptiles will be small enough to be housed in a standard size carry on pet carrier, such as the ones already used for cats and small dogs with special precautions taken if necessary to ensure the animal cannot escape. Reptiles may be required to have a recent certificate of health from a qualified veterinarian to ensure it is free of parasites or disease. We ask that this reptile ban be lifted for interstate travel in the continental United States, with the possibility of expansion to include international flights in the future.

We thank you very much for your time and consideration on this matter and we hope for your support and compliance.