American Airlines has updated its policies for service animals and emotional support animals, with the changes taking effect in April.
These revisions follow a broader policy update introduced last May aimed at balancing the needs of passengers who genuinely require animal assistance with the safety and comfort of all travelers and airline staff.
To inform the new rules, the carrier surveyed roughly 10,400 employees and 18,000 customers about service and emotional support animals. The findings from that outreach were submitted to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Under the revised policy, service animals may include dogs, cats, and in certain limited cases, miniature horses. Emotional support animals are restricted to dogs and cats only. Passengers are allowed to travel with no more than one animal per flight.
In addition, travelers must provide a completed Veterinary Health Form and proof of immunizations for emotional support animals; the required forms and details are available on American Airlines’ official website. Animals younger than four months will not be permitted to travel as service or support animals because they may not yet have completed necessary vaccinations.