On a recent morning, Jackie, age 8, waited patiently in the security line of Terminal 6 at Los Angeles International Airport.
When it was his turn to walk through the metal detector, he did so quietly and without incident. And after he set off the alarm, he patiently allowed a Transportation Security Administration screener to pat him down. He hardly reacted.
Jackie is a dog. A Doberman to be specific.
He likes eating carrots, barking at squirrels and lounging in human laps.
He is also key to an ambitious plan to turn around an airport that historically receives some of the worst marks in passenger satisfaction surveys. (Travel + Leisure magazine called it America’s second-worst airport in 2012.) Beginning today, LAX will unveil its “Pets Unstressing Passengers” program, or PUP, to use the acronym preferred by airport officials. The goal: To keep waiting passengers calm.
So far, about 30 handlers have signed up. They’re all volunteers, and for two-hour shifts they’ll walk from gate to gate, introducing passengers to their dogs. For now, there might only be two or three dogs at the airport at any one time. But eventually, airport officials would like to have one in each terminal at all times. And petting is encouraged.
Airport officials say this is the most intense doggy rollout ever attempted, noting that the only other facility with a similar de-stressing program – Mineta San Jose International Airport – has fewer than a dozen dogs.
Don’t worry: The airport has cleared the program with its risk managers and with the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office. And each animal is certified by Therapy Dogs Inc., a national organization with more than 12,000 approved handler/dog teams.
“The dogs know they’re working,” Huebner said. “The volunteers are very good about making sure they go potty before. If a dog has to go, the owner is going to take it outside. ”
Led through the airport last week by owner Marwick Kane, Jackie appeared to be enjoying himself. During the trial run, he was patient – even when children tried to pull his tail. Dog and owner slowly walked through the Terminal 6 seating areas, engaging with passengers.
Kane motioned for a young girl to come close. Wearing a bright yellow top, a blue skirt and tiny brown shoes, the girl – 22-month-old Raewynn Wolf – hid behind her mother. She had been attacked by a pitbull as a baby, and she wanted no part of Jackie.
Kane was undeterred. He turned to Jackie. “Say hi,” he told the dog. “Jack, sit. ”
Then he turned to Raewynn. “This is Jackie. She’s a sweetheart. ”
Raewynn slowly moved toward the dog, and she began to pet Jackie. Afterward, her mom said the experienced helped calm her.
“She was happy to see a friendly dog,” said her mom, Keri Wolf, 32, of Bakersfield. “When we got here, she was a little afraid because of all the people. ”
Kane said the airport is a perfect outlet for Jackie, whom he rescued from a shelter. And he said he likes showing people that Dobermans – often portrayed in movies as aggressive – are actually friendly, intelligent dogs.
“He loves the attention,” said Kane, 47. “That’s why he’s a therapy dog. He’ll go home and he’ll want more attention. ”
Another dog, a shaggy field spaniel named CC, was a welcome sight for Laura Larson of West Hollywood. Larson had arrived at the airport just as her flight to Chicago was leaving. Her new flight was already delayed an hour.
“My life is, like, insane right now,” she said. “But I love petting dogs. It brings down your blood pressure. It’s so nice to pet a soft dog. ”
Lisanne Villa, an airline customer service agent, said she’s optimistic the dogs will make her job easier. This was a sunny morning, and most flights were leaving on time. But Villa said that even during regular operations, passengers were still on edge. “You’d be surprised,” she said.
“It takes their mind off everyone’s hustle and ‘go, go, go’ attitudes,” Villa said. “I think it will give them a moment to pause and take a deep breath. ”
Rick Pocrass, 72, the former chief executive of a chocolate company, said he agrees. He plans to bring CC – short for ‘Chocolate Chip’ – to LAX every Saturday morning.
The airport requires CC be on a leash at all times. That leash will just about always set off the metal detectors, but Pocrass said CC won’t mind extra attention from security screeners.
“She was a show dog,” Pocrass said. “The judges pattered her down all the time. She’s not fazed by that. ”
~ Courtesy of Daily Bulletin
Tags: airport dogs, dogs at airport, LAX, service dogs, Stress Dogs
