You don't have to be a PETA member to feel horrified and heartbroken by news accounts of pets that have been lost, injured, or killed while flying. A Westminster show Whippet named Vivi vanished from JFK Airport in 2006 and was never seen again. More recently, in December 2008, a terrier named Leo was killed when he escaped the cargo hold of an Olympic Airlines plane and dashed out onto the runway at JFK.
Pets aren't luggage and deserve to be treated with care and courtesy. The new JetPaws program at JetBlue is a positive sign that the airline industry is at last prepared to pay special attention to furry jet-setters. Committed to providing pets and their human traveling companions with a smooth trip from start to finish, JetPaws is a free program. Benefits include a pet carrier bag tag and Travel Petiquette - a guide to traveling with your pet without making any social faux pas. Travelers will even earn two points each way. Custom pet travel products are also available for sale on the JetBlue site, including a pet carrier co-designed by Cindy Adams' Jazzy Park Avenue Dog.
Wendy Diamond, Editor of Animal Fair Magazine and her famous Maltese Lucky are very enthusiastic about JetPaws. "Readers of Animal Fair Magazine voted Jet Blue as the most pet friendly airline two years in a row. It's one of Lucky Diamond's favorite airlines as she loves watching Animal Planet during the flight!"
