A very close acquaintance was moving to China. They have a daughter with Down syndrome. They also have an 85-pound golden retriever. In order to fly the dog in the cargo hold it was going to cost hundreds of dollars. By getting a "comfort animal" designation for the dog, the dog flew basically free. In order to get the designation, they indicated that their daughter needed this dog to be able to fly. This same daughter has flown all around the world many times with no animal assistance.

I'm sure the other passengers in their row loved having a large dog at their feet for 12 hours. I love these friends, but found these actions somewhat insensitive to the other passengers---all to save a few hundred bucks.