Some plane passengers can be a nightmare to share a journey with – from a man who wedged his socks in the window shutter to the woman who dried her knickers using the overhead air vent.

The latest bizarre photo from on board a flight has left people shocked for a different reason altogether, leading to some saying things were ‘getting out of hand’.

The snap appears to show a miniature horse in the economy cabin of an American plane, standing in front of two seated passengers, as reported by the Express.

It was shared on the popular Passenger Shaming Instagram page with the caption: “Note: This is a legitimate, highly-trained service animal used for the blind etc. It is NOT an emotional support animal. They aren’t one in the same. Just an FYI. ”

The post racked up more than 800 comments and divided opinion – while others questioned if the image was genuine.

Completely ignoring the message that the horse was not an emotional support animal, one user raged: “This ‘support animal’ thing is truly getting out of hand. What happened to dogs and cats???

“I’ll be damned if I am going to pay the prices they’re now charging to fly only to be sitting next to a freaking pony!!! Mind you, I love horses but enough is enough.”

Another said: “If you need to have a miniature horse by your side in order to fly on a commercial airline, perhaps another mode of travel will better suit you – not to mention the rest of the community of people your needs impact.”

Although there was some scepticism over whether the photo was real or not, another user pointed out that in 2019 American aircraft guidelines changed to allow passengers to take designated service animals on board.

And people had concerns.

One wrote: “I get it but my concern is how a pony is going to effect the ability to evacuate the aircraft in the event of an emergency?

“Can that thing go down the emergency slide without hesitation? I honestly don’t know but everyone else shouldn’t shoulder that burden so one person can be comfortable.”

A second said: “I get it if it’s a service animal but where do they go potty?”

Another replied: “So we can’t eat nuts on a plane in case of allergies but we can take ponies on?!!?!?”

Others were far more positive about the possibility of sharing a flight with a miniature horse, as one wrote: “I would pay extra to sit next to a well behaved, clean service animal on a plane rather than a human.

“Service animals are highly trained and have better manners than most humans…”

Another said: “It would make my day if I encountered a miniature horse on my flight!”