Flight Attendant Current
Distraction; Situational Awareness; Confusion; Communication Breakdown; Training / Qualification
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Passenger Misconduct
Flight Crew Became Reoriented; General Flight Cancelled / Delayed; General Release Refused / Aircraft Not Accepted
Company Policy; Human Factors; Procedure
During boarding I was not informed that we had an emotional support animal. During the flight I realized there was a crate under a passenger seat. I then asked the C flight attendant if she was aware about the animal. Her answer was 'no'. I then took a look at the paperwork that was given to me and I realized there was a code 'ESAN' which we figured out meant emotional support animal. We were not aware of what kind of animal but since it was listed we figured the proper procedures had been reviewed prior to boarding. Which is normal protocol for any animal that boards our aircraft. When we landed in Mexico City and going through customs we then realized it was a monkey in the crate. The C flights attendant asked the owner if monkeys were allowed in Mexico to which the owner responded yes. That she has traveled with the monkey before and it's never been a problem. The following morning we arrived at our gate for our departure and we see the family at the gate. They had been detained in Mexico because of the monkey. After arriving we had some ground time. Before our next flight we were notified that our arriving aircraft had been quarantined because of the monkey. As you can see this was a huge inconvenience not only for the family but for us as crew and the airline. The lack of communication and knowledge has caused major problems and I this situation should have never happened. Either this airport needs more training or they need to put agents that have the knowledge regarding international laws.More communication from ground operations. I know we were running late and the rush to board the flight was their first priority but communication and knowledge regarding international laws should be a top priority as well.
[Report narrative contained no additional information.]
Air carrier flight attendants; with a Mexico City destination; reported an emotional service monkey on board the aircraft which caused the plane to be quarantined.