Which Dog Breeds Are Accepted And Banned?

Are you ripping your hair out trying to navigate airlines’ various, yet complex, pet policies?

To help you navigate this unruly maze, we’ve put together a list of which dog breeds are accepted and banned on major U.S. airlines. We will also cover pet service fees tied to each airline and how these restrictions might affect service animals.

Alaska

Alaska Airlines doesn’t have any restrictions for what dog breeds can fly in the cabin. Conversely, short-nosed (brachycephalic) dogs aren’t allowed in the cargo bays.

Due to a lack of heated cargo space with Alaska’s Airbus fleet, they can’t safely transport pets. Because of this, if you’re on one of these planes, you can’t have any pets in the First Class cabin. These restrictions also include sending pets as excess baggage.

The following breeds of dogs can only travel in the cabin (carry-on) with flyers:

American Pit Bull and Staffordshire Terrier
Boston Terrier
Boxer
Brussels Griffon
Bull Mastiff and Terrier
Bulldog
Chow Chow
Dutch Pug
English Bulldog and Toy Spaniel
French Bulldog
Japanese Boxer, Pug, and Spaniel
Pekingese
Pug
Shih Tzu
Staffordshire Bull Terrier

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American

For similar reasons to Alaska Air, American Airlines doesn’t allow short-nosed breeds into its cargo. These precautions are in place because it’s harder for breeds with shorter noses to breathe in the cargo holds while in the sky.

American Airlines doesn’t allow the following snub-nosed canines as checked luggage:

Affenpinscher
American Staffordshire Terrier
Boston Terrier
Boxer (all breeds)
Brussels Griffon
Bulldog (all breeds)
Cane Corso
Chow Chow
Dogue De Bordeaux
English Toy Spaniel
Japanese Chin
Lhasa Apso
Mastiff (all breeds)
Pekingese
Pit Bull
Presa Canario
Pug (all breeds)
Shar Pei
Shih Tzu
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Tibetan Spaniel

Delta

For a fee—varies by where you’re going—you can bring any small dog into the cabin with you when flying. However, if you’re flying to one of the following areas, no matter how big your dog is, it must stay in cargo:

Australia
Barbados
Dakar
Dubai
Hong Kong
Iceland
Jamaica
New Zealand
Republic of Ireland
South Africa
United Kingdom
United Arab Emirates

While Delta doesn’t restrict any particular dog breeds from flying in cargo, they request that you call in advance to arrange your pet’s flight.

In regard to service animals, Delta has limited it to one support animal per flyer per flight. Moreover, they don’t accept Pit Bulls as support or service animals.

Frontier

Due to the possible conditions of their cargo, Frontier doesn’t allow passengers to check in pets through checked baggage. Only carry-on.

Frontier charges a one-way directional pet fee of $99. Your dog must be small enough to remain comfortable in a carrier with the following dimensions: 18 x 14 x 8 inches—Frontier’s pet carrier guidelines. Because of this, you can’t bring any larger breeds on board.

The airlines stopped accepting bookings from passengers who will travel with service or emotional support animals.

JetBlue

If you’re flying to Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago, you can’t bring any pets on your flight. Conversely, they do accept pets on all domestic and other international flights. However, there’s a catch.

JetBlue charges a $125 one-directional pet fee and doesn’t allow you to check in pets into cargo or as checked luggage. If you decide to fly with JetBlue, you can’t bring any big breed dogs, because they have a crate restriction of 17 x 12.5 x 8.5 inches. Moreover, the weight of the crate and your pet can’t exceed 20 lbs (9 kg).

Spirit

Because Spirit’s cargo holds aren’t suitable for animal transport, they don’t allow any dogs as checked luggage.

You can check small dogs in as carry-on luggage, though. However, the carrier and the dog’s combined weight must fall under 40 lbs (18 kg). Spirit also doesn’t allow any dogs on international flights or those to or from Puerto Rico or St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.

United

United allows you to bring almost any small dog breed on your flight if you can fit them beneath the seat in front of you. However, if you’re en route to or through Hawaii and select cities, you can’t have pets in the cabin. Also, United doesn’t allow Pit Bull breeds into the cabin.

This airline also charges a $125 pet fee for one way and an additional $125 for a layover lasting over four hours—inside the U.S. If you’re stuck in a layover lasting over 24 hours internationally, you also have to pay this fee.

Due to heat, between May 1st and September 30th of the same year, United won’t fly pets in cargo to the following airports: McCarran, Tucson, Palm Springs, and Phoenix Sky Harbor International.

During the rest of the year, United Air bans the following breeds from flying in cargo:

Affenpinscher
American Bully, Pit Bull Terrier/Pit Bull, and Staffordshire Terrier (AmStaff)
Belgian Malinois
Boston Terrier
Boxer
Brussels Griffon
American-, English-, French-, Old English-, Shorty-, and Spanish- Bulldogs
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Chow Chow
English Toy Spaniel/Prince Charles Spaniel
Japanese Chin and Spaniel
Lhasa Apso
American-, South African-, Mallorquin-, Italian-, Argentinian-, French-, English-, Brazilian-, Indian-, Turkish-, Pakastani-, Pyrenean-, Canary-, Spanish-, Tibetan-, and Japanese Mastiffs
Pekingese
Dutch- and Japanese Pugs
Shar-Pei/Chinese Shar-Pei
Shih-Tzu
Staffordshire Bull Terrier (Staffys)
Tibetan Spaniel

Service and emotional support dogs

If you need your emotional dog for support on your long journey, you’re in luck. If you can provide the documentation, you can avoid many pet fees and size restrictions. Keep in mind that your support dog still must fit in the cabin under your feet.

However, airlines have cracked down on their support for service and emotional dogs.

If an airline outright bans dogs from staying in the cabins during international flights, we recommend contacting their customer service to get their input.

Final Word

When flying through most of these carriers, if you have bigger breeds, you’re not in luck. However, if you’re flying domestically, can shell out money for the fees, and have smaller dogs, it’ll be easier for you to fly your dog around.

Whether you’re flying domestically or overseas, we can take the stress out of relocating your dog.

Flying with a Dog: Which Dog Breeds Are Accepted And Banned?