brushmate

hi has anybody used petair or ryslip to get their dogs from the uk to sydney,im torn between the two companys and cant find any reviews on any of the companys.

miss_morph

Hi,
I can't say from personal experience about the two companies but someone on British Expats recommended 'Petair' to me when i was researching flying my dog out to Oz, plus they turned out to be £1000 cheaper than rival company 'Airpets'.

that's all i can say really but hope it helps!
Sarah

brushmate

Hi thanks for the advice but in this case ryslip are 1200 pound cheaper than any of the 5 quotes we have had,ranging from 3800 to 1400,and ryslip seem quite good,i no cheapest aint always the best so would like feedback on ryslip if anybody has used them.

aussiedude

Try Ladyhaye or Dogtainers. Dogtainers are based in Sydney but do the UK to Australia, regulary, so you may get a better deal with them.

We had 4 dogs shipped via Ladyhaye when we move to Australia but in my job I use Dogtainers regualry and have had no problems with them.

Your quote will probably not have the quarantine charges included this is extra on top.

Shipping costs need to be paid up front and Quarantine charges we paid 10days before the dogs were due to be released.

Good luck

Cant rain all the time2

We used Petair back in 2008 to ship our Yorkshire Terrier, no problems!

Cheetah7

We used ryslip, excellent service - I would highly recommend them.

barney41

Me too, fantastic service. We had a little yorkie , they said they weren't going to put him in the kennels overnight as he was so small and put him in the salon to stay warm.

brushmate

thanks for the advise

MrCro

could somebody please list all these companies in a thread with contact details as I need to get quotes for 3 cats.

Expecting that to cost thousands now looking at some of these prices!!!

I could get 1st class ticket for myself for that kind of money but then no cats no wife!!

chelly77

Hi Guys,

We shipped our little dog in January and went with Golden arrow. Yes they were one of the most expensive but they were also head and shoulders above everyone else and their service was second to none.

There should be a posting on here with an excel doc listing all teh companies and what they do for you along with costs and contact details.

Our little dog is a right mummys boy and I was so scared about putting him through all of this. Golden arrow picked him up from up and gave me regular updates on how he was and were always available to take my calls. The guys are great.

Clive went to the Sydney Quarantine station which is a right nightmare to get to as we did not have a car. When we visited him it took him a good 5-10 seconds for him to recognise us and then he was soooooo excited.
Rachel his kennel maid was brilliant and always told us how he was doing.

We did have a few accidents when we got him home, but now hw is all settled and loves his new home.....we are able to take him to play on teh beach each day which helps.

The hot weather has been a problem so we shaved him shorter. One brilliant tip is to freeze fresh beef and chicken stock for them so that they can have doggy ice pops to keep them cool.

If I can help anyone through this please feel free to drop me an email. I know how scary this whole process can be.

Chelly xx

chelly77

Ooo just forgot 2 things you must do when you get your dog back is to register there chip number and you MUST register your dog or cat with teh local council.

We are in Ryde and it cost us $11 register his chip on the database and $40 with the council......it costs a lot more is they are not desexed and the cost is a one off unless you move and then you have to register then again with teh new council

Wendy66

Hi Brushmate

We used Overhills but my second choice would have been Ryslip, they are very knowledgeable people and true 'dog people' - owner Liz Cartledge is very nice and knows her stuff. My Australian friend brought her dog over to the UK for a couple of years to show him and then he went back again both times with Rylslip she has imported puppies from England and always uses Rylslip.

Lisa and Martin

I used Airpets after getting 4 quotes, I don't think they were the cheapest but included more things in their quote so all in all probably worked out much the same as the cheapest. What we were looking for at the time was (a) one company to take ownership of the whole process - by the time you are leaving you have enough on your plate with shipping, last minute jobs & seeing friends / family etc that you want to outsource the whole thing (b) somewhere close to our house for drop-off, we lived 20 mins from Heathrow so even if the quote from a place near Gatwick was cheaper it wouldn't have been worth our time, time is in short supply in your last few weeks in the UK (c) a company that we got a prompt, efficient response from whenever we contacted them. Our dog failed his first blood tests but Airpets had it all in hand and told us all the parameters for dates etc. This was valuable as it all happened during the major snowy season and even the vet couldn't make it into the surgery for a few days due to the snow, but we knew that it wouldn't mean a change in flight & quarantine dates.

As I dog owner I appreciate that you really need that peace of mind when handing your beloved pooch over to a company. However, having just gone through the experience I would say the shipping company is perhaps not the priority - in reality they compete the paperwork, submit some forms, book a flight and put your dog in a box. Their time for interaction with your dog is actually minimal so whether they are 'dog-people' or not is kind of irrelevant. What happens on the flight is up to the airline, the size of the box is regulated, there is actually very little variation in the service and it's all over in a day. So what I would look for is not people who are dog-friendly (though that's nice) but people who are paperwork efficient.

Having decided who fits into that category, then choose the cheapest quote. The majority of your dog's journey to Oz will be in the quarantine station, not on the plane. There's 30 days of this and this is where I would spend any savings made on the shipping. I employed Dogwalks to make sure my boy got out of the kennel twice a week and a visit whenever i couldn't make it, I supplied the kennel maids with a box of treats for him, and I would also put a couple of new beds in the kennel (they have a day and a night area). The dogs have a sort of platform to sleep on covered with a blanket, I don't think it was that comfortable and my dog took to sleeping on the concrete, partly also due to the heat. He used to have a beautiful coat but now has bald elbows from this and i don't think it's good for the joints. The dogs are bored and sometimes stressed in quarantine so regular visits, interaction, new toys etc makes all the difference. An added bonus of Dogwalks is they take photos and post them on their website. So if I wasn't able to visit I could see pics of my boy having a good play, and when I did visit then we had our pic taken together, I sent the link to the folks back home so it was a good way of them seeing a few updates on us when we really had so much on our plates setting up our new lives here that sending regular emails and photos could sometimes get neglected!

I hope what I've said makes sense. One other point that became clear from the experience is that the people who work in pet shipping love animals, and they wouldn't be there if they didn't. Everyone I met through the whole process, from shipping to quarantine etc was a career animal-lover. These were people who trained as vetinary assistants, worked in wildlife rescue, drove RSPCA ambulances in their spare time etc etc. They usually had at least 3 animals of their own at home....sometimes lots more. Often the people who work there have to do a mix of paperwork and animal care, and when they are stuck behind a desk doing forms it is clear that they would far rather be out in the kennel area dispensing care & affection.

Wendy66

Just wanted to add, the dogs shipping was the only thing we did NOT bother or care about price, we went with who we FELT happiest with.

The only thing I would change was not have them on the plane the night before we were due to go as it totally spoilt our last night in UK worrying about them and tracking the plane like a mad possessed person, I had a zillion texts from friends doing the same thing for us.......... wasn't the best way to say good bye to hubby's parents

aussiedude

We put them on the same flight as us but they travelled up the night before and stayed overnight in Ladyhaye kennels and then they flew out with us.

Very nerve racking as you say, especially as you know they are below you in the hold.

But would never have been without them for anything.