Are you an anxious flyer? You’re not alone — the unpredictable nature of air travel means that it can be stressful for even the most frequent jet-setters. Many airports around the country have turned to a novel solution to minimize traveler anxiety: therapy animals. Because even if your flight is delayed, there’s a good chance that petting a fluffy dog or two while you wait will (at least temporarily) take your mind off a stressful situation. Find out more about airport therapy animals and where to find them.
Which U.S. Airports Have Therapy Animals?
The first airport to introduce therapy animals was San Jose Mineta International Airport in the Bay Area. In the weeks following 9/11, the airport’s volunteer chaplain asked to bring in her trained therapy dog, a boxer and Great Dane mix named Orion, to help calm passengers’ nerves about traveling again after the terror attacks. The idea was an immediate hit with passengers, and today the airport has more than 50 certified therapy animals in the SJC Happy Tails program.
You can now find therapy animals — primarily dogs — roaming the terminals at approximately 30 airports across the U.S. The list includes busy hubs such as Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in Texas, Los Angeles International Airport in California, Miami International Airport in Florida, and Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina.
The phenomenon of therapy animals isn’t unique to the U.S., either. Many airports in Canada have similar programs, and Istanbul’s new airport in Turkey launched a therapy dog program in 2024.
If you’re interested in learning more, many airports offer dedicated pages on their websites about the programs (along with adorable photos). For instance, Denver International Airport’s CATS (Canine Airport Therapy Squad) has more than 90 canine members and one cat. Among them: Amelia, a dachshund who joined in 2017 and whose favorite activity is described as “watching for squirrels,” and Budge, an English bulldog who joined in 2022 and enjoys “snoozing in the sun.”
As Denver’s program notes, all animals are trained and certified as therapy animals and registered with the Alliance of Therapy Dogs or similar organizations. It’s also important to note the distinction between therapy dogs and service dogs — therapy dogs are there for any passenger to pet, while service dogs are there to help individual passengers with disabilities and shouldn’t be interacted with.
Airports With More Unusual Therapy Animals
While dogs make up the vast majority of therapy animals you’ll find in airports, a few airports have taken a more unique approach. Portland International Airport recently made headlines for introducing Beni the llama and Captain Jack the alpaca to greet passengers. The adorable, soft animals live on a nearby farm and, to the delight of Portland passengers, visit the airport every few weeks.
In a statement shared with NPR, airport spokesperson Allison Ferre said, “Being in nature is a stress reliever. The therapy animals that come in is just one way we kind of deliver on that for the traveler experience.”
If you’re traveling through San Francisco International Airport, you may be lucky enough to encounter LiLou — the world’s first airport therapy pig, introduced in 2016. LiLou visits the airport about once a month to greet passengers and provide a welcome distraction from an environment that many people find stressful.
Elsewhere, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport offers miniature horses, who regularly visit the terminal to bring a smile to passengers’ faces, and San Jose’s airport — the one that started it all — has a therapy rabbit in its program.
Other Tips for Taking the Stress Out of Flying
If you’re an animal lover, you’ll probably welcome the chance to interact with a fluffy creature while waiting for your flight. However, there are many other ways to reduce the stress of a travel day.
For many passengers, one of the most stressful parts of the airport is passing through security, so we’ve compiled a few essential tips straight from TSA officers, including common mistakes travelers make and what common items are permitted (and not permitted) in your carry-on luggage.
Speaking of packing, we also gathered a few helpful tips that business travelers swear by — like how to dress and what programs to sign up for to speed through security — to help take the stress out of traveling through the airport. Worried about delays? There are a few tips and tricks you can use to choose flights with the least chance of being late.
And if you’re anxious about what happens when you finally depart the airport and take to the skies, check out our piece on how the viral Jell-O theory is helping to calm passengers’ nerves.
Featured image credit: Jane Tyska/Digital First Media/ East Bay Times via Getty Images
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