Sylvie

i'm bringing my four year old fox terrier runt dog with me to italy for six months. my dilemma is whether to attempt to bring her in the cabin with me or have her ride with the other dogs back in cargo. the cost is the same either way and i'm sure she'll be nervous either way. the bummer about bringing her in the cabin is that the measurement requirements for the carrier are 21 x 16 x only 8! she'd have to lay (or is it lie?) down the entire trip. the cargo area for the animals is lit and heated. i'm flying out of san francisco to florence and the flight has a stop in germany. that's a fairly long flight for a pooch and then let's not forget the two hour before flight check-in. does anyone have any experience with this? thanks!

Mel

I don't have any answers for ya, but how much is your dog's ticket out of curiousity? <BR>

Valerie

Don't they say that flying an animal in cargo is really under horrible conditions? I have seen news reports through the years about animals dying from the heat in cargo to getting loose on the runway believe it or not. That happened to a puppy not too long ago and I think it was at a New York airport. From my understanding the animal cargo area is quite bad. Anyone else who have heard those stories? I would definately vote for the cabin. At least you are there for her with a reassuring voice.

Kelly

I would check with your vet about the appropriate size carrier for her. If she has to lay down that long, I think that is too small. How much does she weigh? Some airlines are as low as 9 pounds with the carrier to qualify as carry-on pets. I understand your situation about not wanting to her to fly as baggage, as I will soon be transporting my cat and dog to Paris and the dog will have to ride in the cargo. Also know that there can be temperture restrictions about your pet flying in cargo, they say it can't be less than 45F or higher than 85F. It is always risky, but I think the airlines have gotten better in recent years over this. <BR> <BR>Check out this site: <BR>http://www.takeyourpet.com/ <BR> <BR>They have a lot of good advice about preparing your pet for the trip!

woof!

I'm surprised no one has weighed in with this yet (this topic tends to bring out the flame throwers) but there are a lot of human passengers out there who are violently allergic to dogs and for whom a long flight in an enclosed area with one could be fatal. My relatives breed dogs and send them all over the world on a regular basis, always in cargo, and (knock wood) nothing bad has ever happened to them. Pets have been flying in cargo for years and the airlines make changes when necessary for their safety and comfort. My vote would be for cargo -- but I'd check out the airline and the type of plane just to make sure there were no past tragedies, just to ease my mind.

Julie

FYI - you don't have a choice on this one. If the dog can't stand and turn around in the carrier then he (or she) can't ride in the cabin. We use a cloth carrier for our Pekinese and she fits just fine. We also take her out of the carrier after the seat belt sign is off and have no problems what so ever. We fly with her quite frequently and have never had any problems.

Helena

Your dog will be fine in cargo, and Julie's right, you can't bring a dog into the cabin that can't fit under the seat! Please don't even consider drugging the dog to get it to lie down the whole way. Check with your vet for recommendations, talk to your airline, get a big kennel, and don't worry.

mm

I would like to share my experience in shipping dogs. I shipped three of my dogs April, 1999. All three were over 60 lbs. I was lucky I got a lot of help from Northwest staff but you may not always do so. I was advised not to get the biggest kennel as dogs can get slammed around in the kennel if there is a bad case of turbulence. As I was told, the dogs don't have seat belts to keep them down. Therefore, the kennel you get should give the dog space to stand and turn around. It won't be much space but I rather they didn't get slammed. If your dog is travelling in the cargo hold, ask the airline if there is enough space to accommodate the size of your kennel. Some animal cargo holds can only carry so many animals or can contain only limited kennel sizes. Fortunately, when I was purchasing the kennels from Northwest at the LaGuardia airport, one of the staff asked if I was sure that all the planes I would be on could take all three dogs in the hold. After checking, she found out that on one of the legs of my trip, the dimensions of plane I and the dogs were ticketed for could not do so. She then checked around for flights whose planes would carry all three and still make all the connecting flights in my itinerary. (I think this may be one of the few times that your itinerary can be changed without penalties.) The baggage crew at LaGuardia were nice enough to delay loading the dogs as long as they could. Since I had a window seat on the first leg, I was able to see the dogs loaded and unloaded. Each time, the crew handled the kennels with care and even talked to the dogs. You can leave instructions on the kennel if you want your dog to be fed and given water. I asked for water only and I know they were given water as I found Northwest cups in their kennels. At each change of plane, the flight crew either handed me or left on my seat, a ticket indicating that the dogs were loaded on the same plane I was on. Since my trip was almost 24 hours including airport delays I was very anxious to see how the dogs fared. Except for being thirsty, they did very well. I did not sedate them (in any case, most vets argue against sedation). I did walk them around the airport parking area (there were some grassy areas) and delayed pet check-in for as long as possible. The airline has to review your paper work (vet certification as to health) and to visually inspect your kennel as to travel worthiness and to make the sure the dogs look healthy enough to fly. I had asked about seeing the dogs whenever there was a change of planes but the airline staff recommended against it as the dogs would get excited again just when they would have calmed down from all the commotion. In addition, this would require my checking in all over again - something I would not want to do especially in Japan where I was changing planes for the last leg of my trip. If your dog's kennel can fit under the seat then I recommend you do bring the dog into the cabin as it would make you and your dog less anxious and you could have her "stretch" her legs a little in Germany. But if your kennel doesn't fit, I'm afraid you will have to check her in. I don't know what time of the year your're travelling, but I specifically picked April as it would neither be too cold nor too warm while travelling. (The place I was going to is tropical which necessitated giving daily "rinses" to keep them cool until they acclimated, but I digress.) <BR>I know this posting is very long but I hope it helps you. Good luck. <BR>P.S. to Mel - I paid $150.00 per dog.

Julie

PS also to Mel - the ticket for our Pekinese to fly in the cabin is $50.00.

dr jack K.

Why not just put him down and be done with it?

allergic

Another thing to consider - if you take your dog in the cabin with you, what do you plan to do if the person sitting beside / behind / in front of you (heck, anywhere in that enclosed space for such a long period of time) is severely (or even fatally) allergic?? (No, handing out benadryl tablets is not going to help). My uncle is a pilot for a major airline (first captain for several international routes - I don't think italy is one of them but I must check ...) and is also severely allergic to dogs ... I'm picturing the plane going down as the head steward announces that the pilot has lost control because he has gone into anaphylactic shock (yes, I realize its unlikely since the pilots are in the cockpit which is closed off from the cabin, plus there are 2 other pilots in the cockpit with him, but considering that he is so allergic that his children - not just himself - can't even visit places that have animals because having his children in the house after they have visited a home with animals is enough for him to have an allergic reaction ... so a flight attendant or someone could potentially wind up bringing the dander into the cockpit. Yes allergic people often carry epi pens and such with them but those only work up to a certain severity/type of reaction - if a really bad reaction, the epi pen might only keep the person going for the 1/2 hr or so it would ordinarily take to get to a hospital). Anyway, I'm rambling, but my point is, yes it may be a fairly long flight for a pooch in cargo but an entire lifetime lost for a person and their family if somebody in that airplane with you goes into anaphylactic shock over the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

merriem

Amen! Let's get the cats and dogs off the airplanes. They belong in the cargo area. Sorry, but I love dogs, but cannot breath around a cat! One flight on NW airlines, as I was checking in, I saw this little lady with her kitty in a carry on. I asked if this cat would be with me on the plane. I told them I had asthma, and the lady and her kitty were put on a different flight. Oh, where do these animals go to the bathroom on those LONG overseas flights?

Nissa

We flew from North Carolina to Okinawa, Japan with two cats in Cabin. We later flew from Okinawa, Japan to Frankfurt, Germany with five cats in cargo. Long flights. I fear that your doggie would be embarrased and uncomfortable if she had an "accident" in cabin but might feel more free to let go in cargo. Additionaly she would be able to move around. We all like to stretch on a long flight. When we flew with cats in cabin, one cat just held it all the way there, the other went with me to the lavatory with a portable litter box. She used it. I don't think you can arrange that with your doggie. Make sure to get her health certificate in the correct time window. Give that dog a pep talk before you separate at the airport. Sound like you are as brave about it as you want her to be. Northwest's Priority Pet Program worked very very well for us. I believe we paid about $200. per cat for the Japan to Germany event. We thought it reasonable. The cats had a savings account! I can refer you to pet travel web pages if you like. Best wishes!

bwoodhouse

Nissa, dogs don't get to stretch in cargo--they aren't allowed out of their crates. <BR>Dogs are not capable of feeling embarrassment. They won't, however, want to let go if they're in their crates because they don't want to soil their "caves." <BR>There's a thread on "Smart Travel Tips" about nuts allergies and American Airlines. Most people seem convinced that airlines should remove nuts beause of the risk to allergic passengers. I wish they felt the same about pets in the cabin, especially because that problem is more easily addressed (people may carry on their own nuts; it's hard to smuggle in a terrier).

broekann

I flew my two cats from Atlanta, Georgia to Honolulu, Hawaii. The total flight time, plus the pre-flight time was something like 20 hours. They had to go in cargo because you can not fly animals in the passenger area into Hawaii due to quarentine. Anyhow, the animals were fine. This was on Delta and they were very helpful, fed the cats, and advised me on packing frozen water so that it would last during the trip. Most airlines have a spcific service for dealing with their animal passengers and your vet can give you advise too.

Richard

My only experience with a pet was flying from Albany, NY back to Dallas. The agent was so busy talking to her friend she put a baggage tag for DTW instead of DFW on the carrier. Luckily I caught the mistake, and she corrected the error. I don't think my beagle would be happy in Detroit instead of Dallas.

mm

Sylvie, <BR>I forgot to mention to you that I brought bottled water with me. I figured that they would be thirsty so I was prepared for them as soon as they cleared customs. You might want to do the same.

Nissa

Dear Ms. Woodhouse, pardon me for stepping on your paws, ah...toes. I don't know how dogs think. I am, however, not a complete fool. By "move around" and "stretch" I meant that a carrier (in cargo) in which a dog can stand and turn around will afford her more comfort than the smaller carrier appropriate for in-cabin travel. If you are Barbara Woodhouse of dog training fame, please give us your opinion on plane travel for dogs?

Sylvie

thanks to everyone for their input and suggestions! it's costing $127 plus taxes one-way (cabin or cargo) on lufthansa. i made her reservation when i made mine as there is a limited number of pets allowed on each flight. okay, i think i'm leaning more towards having her travel in the cargo area. severe heat shouldn't be a problem for two reasons: i'm flying at the end of march and also they have black out periods (three months) during the summer when it is too hot for the pets. she's about 17 pounds and although she meets the requirements for riding in the cabin on lufthansa, i think i'd rather have her be able to stretch and move around. i've also heard that tranquilizing isn't a good idea (for the dog). personally, i don't think i'd like to be all doped up in a strange place all alone. i've also heard that a hamster type of water bottle in the kennel is a good idea so there isn't a mess if it's turbulent, and disposable diapers lined in the cage are a good idea in case there is an accident. i haven't checked out takeyourpet.com yet, but here's a good site on which i found some info: gorp.com/gorp/eclectic/pets/trvlfido.htm. does anyone have any suggestions for when we land and i'm sure she'll have to "go" really badly? should i wait to take her out of her kennel until we're in an area in which she can relieve herself? thanks!

Cheryl Z.

<BR>Sylvie, don't forget to crate train her, way before the trip so she gets used to staying in the crate and thinking of it as her little refuge. Dry cedar shavings would be better bedding in her crate - don't use or include anything she can chew on. No toys! For extra security on the crate, use a bungee cord. Don't feed or water for few hours before the trip. If you're taking her airfreight, you'll pick her up (as well as check in) at a different building than where baggage claim is usually, and there's often places right outside where you could excercise her right away. Carry some plastic bags to clean up after her, and a small spray bottle of water as well as your leash. Have a great trip and tell us how it all went.