[jimworcs]

Justme,
We are going round in circles. I have not suggested that you ban animals from aircraft..and I would much rather they travelled in the hold than the cabin frankly. I said that Delta has a duty to take reasonable care and I think you will find this is (not withstanding your T&C's) a legal duty. In my opinion, this would also mean taking reasonable precautions to protect customers belongings from being urinated on, OR at the minimum offering some remedy if you can't.

Leatherboy:

Thanks jim you do to, the UK isnot the perfect place so before you start bellyaching about things here in the US suggest you look in your own yard first

Do you know how much damage to the environment here on the Gulf Coast BP has done? not to mention how many jobs have been lost due to the damage, small comparison to the things on here

My point exactly. You seemed to be suggesting that because I am British I should stop criticising US companies...I don't think that is a valid point and the catastrophic effects of what BP has done illustrates my point as to why that kind of petty, nationalistic approach to debate is pointless. I can, and will, bellyache about US companies regardless of what you think.. and you can feel free to do the same about BP... I would join you. (I might also, just to avoid any charges of hypocrisy, criticise the destruction of the Niger Delta by Exxon, which doesn't seem to upset American's nearly as much: Perhaps because it doesn't count when it happens in Africa).

[rerere]

The OP is wrong PERIOD. Dogs are living, and while they really should travel in cargo (no cloths over the crate) they can't help when they have to go. You're lucky the dog didn't pee on you. Alaska, along with every other airline in the world, is NOT responsible for that, it's just natural. So, I'd start sucking it up, you cleaned it up anyway, and stop living in the past. PS, did you here about RENTING a car seat genius?

[spoom6]

Cry About It.

[Gromit801]

Could the kennel be placed further away from luggage in the cargo bay? Maybe. A lot depends on weight and balance, and the luggage jockeys (a company called Menzies in this case) are told what bays to load and NOT to load. So it stands to reason that pets might be near luggage.

This one goes down as an unfortunate accident. If you were given the opportunity to place your luggage where you wanted, completely away from pets, and someone's toiletries leaked all over your luggage, who then to blame?

Sometimes, stuff happens. And FWIW, the child seat should have sure as heck been in a plastic bag, free for the asking at any Alaska counter.

[stevicus]

Just out of curiosity, how much room do they actually have in those luggage compartments? I think the OP's main argument here was that they could have stored the pets or her car seat in some other location so that her property would not be damaged. Was this not possible due to lack of space?

Also, why shouldn't cleaning costs be considered damages? Don't the airlines charge an extra fee for pets precisely because they know they're going to be cleaning up the expected extra mess? Under the circumstances, shouldn't the passenger with soiled baggage be entitled to some form of compensation, since the airlines are already getting extra money for the pet mess anyway?

[Gromit801]

The cargo bays are divided into sections, with aircraft framework usually parking the divisions. They're called "bays." As I understand it, luggage has to be placed properly to maintain the weight and balance of the aircraft. Other factors include the number of passengers, and fuel load. There could be times when they need all the cargo in a certain place to maintain the weight and balance.

I can see reimbursing the passenger for soiled luggage if the airline soiled it, but should the person with the child seat somehow track down the dog owner? After all, it's the dog that soiled the luggage, not the airline.

[stevicus]

Yes, it would seem that the dog's owner would be liable, but if there were multiple passengers with dogs, how would they know which dog did it?

I'm an avid dog lover myself, and I think that any dog owner clearly knows that dogs make messes. That's something that happens with almost absolute certainty, unlike a bottle of wine or perfume which probably won't break 9 times out of 10.

With dogs, however, we know that there's going to be a mess if they're kept in close quarters for several hours. That's something that anyone should be able to anticipate and prepare for. (We can expect that with dogs, but not with humans, which is another story altogether.)

Personally, if I absolutely had to take my pet with me, I would most likely drive instead of fly. That way, I can just have the pet with me in the car and not have to worry about what might happen in the cargo bay on an airplane. I just don't have the heart to subject my dog or cat to that. There are rest areas every couple of hours, and many hotels will accept pets. I'd rather do that and keep my pet with me than having him sit in terror in some box in a cargo bay where he has no idea what's going on.

[playmaker]

If a dog was on your bag be happy that your bag made the flight. Sometimes the bags get bumbed due to not enough room in the belly of the plane for all the bags. Sometimes fish boxes or animals are loading last due to showing up last to the aircraft. Sometimes this happens. The airline employees try not to load all the bags on top of the dog kenal cause it can crush the animal. Just be happy that you got your bag. Just wash it with soap!