I believe the answer here is "you will be not be allowed to board the train with your cat, and you will be removed from the train at the first station after your cat is discovered if you sneak him on board", unless you luck into all of: a very forgiving conductor and car attendant, who are both willing to bend the rules on the risk of severe penalties from Amtrak potentially including losing their jobs; and a carload of passengers none of whom are allergic to or otherwise object to your cat--a single complaint would probably get you removed from the train regardless of how willing an Amtrak employee may have been to "look the other way" in the absence of an actual complaint.
No, you can bring pets on New Jersey Transit ("Small pets are allowed in carry-on travel cages."), the NYC Subway ("Dogs in kennels or bags are allowed on the City's subways and buses"), the Long Island Railroad, PATH (same link as for MTA), and on most railroads in Western Europe. Probably many others in other parts of America, too. But not Amtrak.
Back in the day my wife and I, and three kids, were making a cross country camping trip. On the way back from CO we finally caved in and took a motel room in Salina Kansas. At 3 AM two of the kids had asthma attacks due to animals having been in the room at some point. (pets welcome was not posted anywhere) We left immediately, and within an hour the kids were OK. It's not quite that easy to get off an Amtrak train at 3 AM, especially if it's moving.
I don't think the policy is unfortunate at all. Service animals notwithstanding, those who feel the need to have their dogs, cats (mine's name is Intruder), parrots, monkeys, or wildebeests accompany them should use private methods of transportation, e.g. driving, or look into booking a seat on a circus train. Ringling Bros., Barnum & Bailey may have seats available, if you don't mind riding with midgets and clowns.
I've got to stop laughing so I can put this thought together. :lol:
) are necessary for some individuals. Seriously --- is there any provision for a specially designated sleeper for people with service animals? I'm not allergic, but my kids are.I would hope that the attendant would take the time to do a thorough cleaning of the room after they disembarked (ok, I tried for the pun).Service animals (like a "seeing eye" wildebeest
Excellent shot with the pun.I would hope that the attendant would take the time to do a thorough cleaning of the room after they disembarked (ok, I tried for the pun).Service animals (like a "seeing eye" wildebeest
That is quite different from allowing everyone/anyone to have an animal, which would, obviously, require the entire train to be thoroughly cleaned after each stop.
But I think you're barking up the wrong tree.I was getting at, that I would expect the sleeping car attendant would know that there was a service dog in roomette 7, or bedroom B, and go thru some specific cleaning processes afterward before the next passenger used that room.
I called Amtrak to find out. After checking (20 minutes) with her service staff the agent told me that after each change of passengers, each sleeper is cleaned, using a "filtrated" bag, (whatever that is) when the sleeper had contained a service animal. She went on to say that nobody could define "down to how many microns" the filters worked, and that I should keep that in mind if I was allergic to animal dander.I was getting at, that I would expect the sleeping car attendant would know that there was a service dog in roomette 7, or bedroom B, and go thru some specific cleaning processes afterward before the next passenger used that room.
BTW, does the sleeping car attendant have a vacuum? In all these years, I have never once seen them using one.
From the Amtrak page about service animals:I was getting at, that I would expect the sleeping car attendant would know that there was a service dog in roomette 7, or bedroom B, and go thru some specific cleaning processes afterward before the next passenger used that room.
BTW, does the sleeping car attendant have a vacuum? In all these years, I have never once seen them using one.
Will the circus be in LA October 10-12? If not, how will we get on a train? :huh: :lol:
I don't think that someone who needs a service animal will really wonder thru every single car of a train. I am not disabled, and I don't wonder the entire train. It is much more likely they will stick to one or two places; coach seat and bathroom; roomette and dining car. Plus these animals are very well trained. They would stick to the floor, and not be jumping up on seats and beds. IMHO, that would greatly limit the areas of the train which need to be cleaned afterward.
You know, I can't believe we've been overlooking this: wolverines and mules are an exception to the rule of "no animals on Amtrak"
If you consider the amount of assistance that Amtrak crews provide to mobility impaired passengers, it's a little hard for me to believe that there's really much a dog could do for a blind passenger that the Amtrak crew couldn't while a blind passenger is on the train. I also can think of at least two blind people who as far as I know survive just fine without a dog. On the other hand, I can also see where a blind passenger who is used to being with their dog might be most comfortable having their service animal with them for the trip, and a blind passenger might well want their service animal at their destination.
Well you wouldn't have to sit right next to a service dog in coach, as Amtrak automatically tickets for the dog. That means that the owner gets one seat and the dog, even though they don't actually use the seat, get's the other.
No, no, no, and again NO. Trains are not rolling kennels, nor should they be. Among the relaxing features of Amtrak travel is relief from the neighbors' dogs barking at all hours.
Is the bark of a dog in some other car of a train actually louder than the train horn?
A few month back, I was awaken at 5am on a Sunday morning to the sound of several dogs barking, at a hotel (Hampton Inn) which did not allow pets. I waited to see if the barking soon stopped, but eventually decided it wasn't. I got a hold of the front desk, only to find out that there was nothing they can do, as the dog owner had already (just) checked out.
