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A not-so-gentle reminder to anyone flying with their pets: Your crated dog may be just as easily delayed as your check-in luggage. A Queens dog breeder sent a baby bulldog to its new owner in Montana - only for Delta to lose the dog along the way. Okay, lose is a strong word, but the poor pup was delayed in Salt Lake City and got to Montana a day later! Delta says the flight from NYC missed the connection to Montana and that the dog was taken care of, but how does anyone know that? Sure, you can deal wtihout your extra clothes, but will airlines really walk and feed the dog? (Actually, it's probably in the best interest of the airline to at least walk the dog.). Breeder Robin Schulder told the Daily News that Delta offered to refund her the $176 for shipping the puppy, but she says she'll never use Delta again, as the dog seemed to be dehydrated and hungry. Maybe direct flights are the way to go!
Do you have any tips for flying with your pets? We know that vets can give you medication to help ease your pets into a calmer state in order to deal with travel. Here are a few websites devoted to pet travel: Pets Welcome, Pets on the Go, and Travel Dog, plus the American Veterinary Medical Association's pet travel tips.
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Any word on the lost whippet at JFK??
I was at Newark waiting for a flight to come in and wandering around. I saw a dog crate that was bashed up and bloody. It had numerous stickers on it that said "Do not touch. Investigation and lawsuit pending." It made me frightened and sad. What did they do to this dog?? It was in the NWA terminal.
Also, sometimes you don't have the option of a direct flight.
direct = same flight number with stops (ex flt 34 LGA-SEA with 1 stop in ORD)
non-stop = same flight number (obv) with NO stops
FYI
I think somebody is not telling the whole truth on that Whippet- I think somebody has found it by now.
cute picture
Good point, jash - I wonder if that confused the breeder. And there isn't any word on the Whippet - do those microchips include GPS tracking yet?
- Travel with the pet whenever possible. I don't know that I would ever ship an animal without a chaperone. That's asking for trouble. Unlike a child, an animal is stuck in cargo, often ignored, and can't ask for help.
- Carry your pet in the cabin if it's small enough and the airline allows it (many of them do). I flew with my cat from Romania to Chicago and it took us +12 hours longer than scheduled (don't ask). We couldn't have known that going in. There were many animals in cargo and I don't know how they fared since they were prepped for much less time alone, whereas I was able to feed/water and walk my cat around a bit between flights and make sure she was ok.
- Do NOT knock your animal out. Most vets won't recommend it. When your animal is in that unconscious state it loses the ability to care for itself. For instance, if the temperature in cargo is too hot or too cold the animal won't know it, won't shiver or sweat, etc. It's also REALLY traumatic for them - especially if they wake up too early.
- Don't feed/water the cat too much during travel. You don't want to starve/dehydrate them, but you also don't want them peeing in their cage. A tip for long flights is to buy a new sponge, soak it in water and freeze it. Right before you leave for your flight put the frozen sponge in a dish in the cage. As it melts the animal can get some water, but not a lot at once. Also, they can't spill it b/c the sponge will continue to hold most of it.
- Throw a tshirt of yours or familiar toys in the cage with them. Animals rely on smell a lot to be comfortable in foreign situations. If their cage smells like home, they may not be as nervous.
Can airlines really allow pets in the cabin like that? No offense to you or your cat, Jo, but what about folks with severe allergies? I know a fellow whose asthma kicks up if he looks at a cat wrong. Do they inform the passengers beforehand?
A direct flight to Montana? That's hysterical!
Kay,
Most airlines do allow pets in the cabin, so long as the carrier it's kept in complies with carry-on regulations (can fit under the seat). See this page. Folks with severe allergies can ask for a seat change.
Responsible cat breeders use services like Northwest Priority for shipping cats to customers unaccompanied, where the carrier is kept in the cabin, not the cargo hold. (They would prefer you picked up your kitten in person, though, both for safety reasons and to make sure you will be a responsible owner.) They don't feed or water the cat for a few hours beforehand and do include a litter box inside the carrier in case the cat does need to go. A bag of dry food is taped outside the carrier in case the flight is somehow delayed.
Be careful with that sponge trick...30 years ago, I had a dog that died from eating a sponge. It was a sad day for a little girl, I still miss him.