Animals on AMTRAK

[Ted Bell]

Mr ALC,

I'll just order one and you can have it. My compliments. Then you can buy me a beer. Deal? I'm thinking of traveling next week. You in?

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

Mr ALC,

I'll just order one and you can have it. My compliments. Then you can buy me a beer. Deal? I'm thinking of traveling next week. You in?

No.

 

[Ted Bell]

OK then, maybe next time. Good night all. I'm taking the train (light rail, not Amtrak - you're in luck) to the bar.

 

[Sam in CT]

The issue is not love vs. cruelty, it's the notion that anything goes even in the confined, almost claustrophobic confines of a train car or an airliner cabin. Our dog is a Lab Shepard mix and weighs ~ 80 pounds. He's a great pet, well behaved and never makes a mess. That said, I would never consider inflicting his presence on other people in a public transport who might not share our affection for him. It's rude and narcissistic to think that we can do as we like in public. Where is the common sense of decency these days?

 

[Peter KG6LSE]

NO one has any clue how hard it is to be unable to drive .

Ill bet 90% of you have a car and have the cash to drive Mr Kitty If you move .

I dont . ...

NOw tell me what is fair .

 

[Shortline]

Meh. Deleted. I'm not getting sucked up into this one. Carry on.

 

[Ted Bell]

Hello Mr. Peter,

I'm not sure what your point is, whether people have cars or cash to take their animals or not. I have a car, but I choose to take public transit and amtrak every chance I get. I may have a small amount of cash, but I don't choose to own an animal. May I still participate in your question?

 

[George Harris]

Somehow the issue of what do you do for an extended trip or move was touched on but never carried through. Let's get real people. When you are going from "A" to "B" one way what do you do? Walk with the animal? Drive? Think of Peter's statement. Driving is not an option for everybody. For that matter not practical or even possible for some moves. We made the move from Taipei to San Francisco in 2007, complete with dog. What do we do? Give her to someone else after she had spent the entire 17 years of her life with us? Otherwise, it was the dog cage for a 13 hour flight. We went for the trip. It took her a few weeks to forgive us, but ultimately she did. It also meant that we rented a car for trips we would have made by public transportation if we did not have the dog. Of course there was the other alternative which we did not even consider for an aging but healthy dog, have her put down.

Let's say this one more time clearly. Regardless of what some may think there are times that there is not practical alternative to caging the pet for travel.

 

[Peter KG6LSE]

Thank you Mr harris you hit the nail on the head .

Ted Iam disabled and Ill never drive a car , best I can do legally is a segway , so I have to use the public system to survive .

Why should I be at a disavantege to the 90% of you in the US .

Yes a normal person can just drive Mr puss from home to home , take all of the breaks the cat and "master ". may want... not all of us have the means to do that.

Lets see what the status quo wants me to do .......

I have loved this cat for Years and he is 12 ish . no one would want him and He is what keeps me sane .

You try dealing with PTSD after many years of abuse and tell me I dont need a friend .

 

[the_traveler]

I've tried to stay out of this debate, but I have to agree with Peter and George. (I'm posting as an AU member only.)

I do not drive. If I move from RI to say DC or Virginia, I could move my stuff by train or by moving van. I could move myself by train. But how am I supposed to move my dog or cat? :huh: By mail, UPS or how? :huh:

Wait - they would have to "packaged" for more than a few hours if I did that?

And I would certainly compare having and caring for a pet with slavery! Do you also compare having and caring for A CHILD with slavery? :huh:

As for the statement about "... which side of the Mason-Dixon Line you're on ..." is also false. Rhode Island is far north of the M/D line. Are you aware that the official name of the state is "The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations!

 

[Ted Bell]

No sir. I would never compare raising a child with owning an animal. I believe the purpose of raising children is to prepare them for their futures. Help them acquire the tools and skills that will allow them to participate in society and contribute to the community.

 

[the_traveler]

Well, the same could be said about many people's pets also. If some did not have a cat or dog to care for or keep them company, the people may be alone in their home for most of the 24 hours each day. And I would consider that a community of one!

In fact, even though I never met most of the members of AU, I consider this a worldwide community! We may not all get along together all the time, but name me one community that all residents get along 100% of the time? Let alone a single family that gets along 100% of the time!

 

[cassie225]

I came from the topic Rude and Insensitive people to this one because I wanted to know about cats and slave owners.lol My cat is pampered,spoiled and catered to. Sometimes he gets out place and bites me. I don't lash him with a whip or sell him off. I don't nor have I ever taken advantage of him like some slave owners did to slaves. Slaves were property and viewed as such.Bought and sold for business . Now that being said- I think service dogs are allowed on public transportation-it is against the law to not allow them. I would have to sedate my cat to put him in a car,on a train or in a plane.We choose to travel with him in a car,but if I had to I would travel by plane with him in a carrier next to me. It is faster. When I do the train It is to relax and enjoy the ride and with my cat on a short ride that might be possible, because he likes to have his way. If someone has a well behaved,clean animal I wouldn't mind being on a train with them. Just not in the diner when I come to eat. Hope I did not offend, like Ted Bell (lol) just my own opinion.

 

[amamba]

As for the statement about "... which side of the Mason-Dixon Line you're on ..." is also false. Rhode Island is far north of the M/D line. Are you aware that the official name of the state is "The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations!

The "plantations" in the official state name of RI is not really tied to slavery. The term "plantation" was somewhat synonymous with "settlement" or "colony" when "Providence Plantation" was established as a colony in 1636.

That being said, RI was HEAVILY involved in the slave trade, so it's also not really fair to suggest that the northern colonies had clean hands when it came to slavery.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

And, if this old brain of mine is remembering correctly, the Civil War was not about slavery but was because of the differences between the industrial north and the agricultural south.

 

[NW cannonball]

Meh. Deleted. I'm not getting sucked up into this one. Carry on.

But it gets better and better

Farther and farther :excl:

 

[tp49]

After all this time here I thought that that little thing called the 13th Amendment made the slavery debate moot.

I thought from the title of this thread that it was going to be another thread about lounge lizards...

 

[pennyk]

Please try to keep comments on topic: Animals on Amtrak.

Thank you.