Uber Will Soon Allow You to Bring Pets Along for the Ride in Denver

If you’re a Denver pet parent who brings your domesticated sidekick everywhere you go, this one’s for you. Starting on October 16, Denver Uber riders will be able to bring any kind of animal companion along for their ride for a $4 surcharge using the app’s newest feature, Uber Pet.

The pilot feature—also being tested in Austin, Nashville, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Tampa Bay—allows riders to select the option in advance to bring a pet along, alerting the driver beforehand and adding the charge to the standard price of the trip.

“It could be a bird, a lizard, a dog, a cat, a hamster—any animal that they want,” says Uber communications manager Stephanie Sedlak, mentioning it will obviously have to be within reason (no horses, people).

The unwanted surprise of picking up riders with a fellow pet passenger was creating some issues with unwilling Uber drivers, and Sedlak says Uber wanted to offer an option for riders to bring their animal friends on their trip with peace of mind knowing that their pickup won’t be canceled.

Drivers will also be able to opt in or out of picking up passengers with pets, and they will receive a cut of the surcharge if they do decide to escort a rider with their furry friend. Though Uber hasn’t announced exactly what percent of the surcharge drivers will receive for taxiing a furry friend, Sedlak says she knows it will be a large chunk of that fee.

Riders with service animals can still ride without an additional fee and are not expected nor required to use Uber Pet, keeping in line with the company’s established service animal policy.

Though the company doesn’t have a defined timeline for the pilot or expansion of the feature to more cities, Sedlak says their goal is to make this option available to as many passengers as possible in the future—so you can always bring Fido along for the ride.