Readers bark out at pets on the CTA

Do you support the CTA's policy to allow some pets onboard buses and the "L"? Or are you sneezing from allergies, irritated by carriers on seats and generally against pets on public transit? "Going Public's" Kyra Kyles explored the prickly pet issue in Tuesday's column. Riders were all over the mass transit map with their opinions.

Restrict pets, please
Non-service animals should not be allowed on the CTA, period. Some people have phobias, some are allergic. You should not be subject to this on public transportation. And they should certainly not take up a seat. Take a cab if it's that important.
Jennifer Ramirez, 28, Bridgeport

What about pesky people?
After reading "Pets and the CTA," it upsets me how some people just love to complain. A carrier occupying a seat? Well, is having four baby carriers (Northbound Pulaski bus on Friday) on a crowded bus warranted because babies, a.k.a. humans, are occupying not one [seat], but the entire reserved seating and obstructing passengers from getting on and off the bus? Drivers don't bother telling the parents to wait for another bus. I don't drive. I have a phobia after a freak accident. I also have two cats, one with chronic health problems. I have to take three buses to get to his vet. How would I do that without [the] CTA? Dumb people can question it all they want. If anything, we, as people, are the nuisance.
Diana Cervantes, 21, Little Village

Blame crowding, not critters
This is a response to the lady who complained about someone bringing a dog in a carrier aboard the bus and taking up an extra seat. The issue here is not the dog in the carrier, but the bus being crowded. I've heard passengers get irate about strollers, shopping carts, luggage, passengers with backpacks, anything that gets in the way. If the woman with the dog had moved the carrier and some moron jumped into the seat before you could sit down, would you have been happy?
Felicia Johnson, 58, Ravenswood

Give pet owners a break
I guess Kimberly Daniel woke up on the wrong side of the bed the other morning, as her grouchy complaint about a dog (in a carrier) on the bus ["Hey, CTA!" Aug. 20 ]. She complains that the bus driver would allow a pet on her bus. I've taken my cat to the vet on the bus--also in a carrier--several times and can't see how it is any different than taking on a shopping bag from the store or a backpack. Certainly it is less intrusive than some of the huge strollers riders take on all the time. And I bet the dog was more well-behaved than most of the kids I see on the bus. Give pet owners a break. As long as the animal is behaving, there is no reason whatsoever they can't ride along with their owners as long as they remain in a proper carrier.
Will Thimes, 40, Lincoln Park

Get over it
The thing people need to remember is that the CTA is public transportation, not their own private ride. Like it or not, you have to share that space with other people, and sometimes those other people need to take their pets places. And since the rules allow for it, we're not doing anything wrong. For the people that have a problem with pets being on the CTA, get over it. You may not like the rules, but that's the reality of using shared transportation. If you want everything your way, get your own ride.
Tracey Wall, 30, Lincoln Square

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