DandNHill

Hi Everybody

How do I work out the size of the crate needed for my dog? Has anybody got official calculations?

According to the John Humphris people I need a "giant" crate for my Golden Retriever!!!??? That's the largest they do so does that mean bigger dogs cannot travel?? It sounds huge but I want to make sure I get the right one! I thought I had it all sorted out until I actually tried to work it out!

Any advice badly needed please

Thanks

AlexInBC

The official (IATA) calculation is detailed here:

http://www.iata.org/whatwedo/cargo/l...ages/pets.aspx

puglover

hi i flew my german shepherd london to halifax through a courier she was too big for the largest cage so they made her a wooden, made to measure one she had to be able to stand and turn around comfortably i think the cost of the box was about 160 pounds roughly, i think the larger breeds tend to end up with these wooden crates also air canada used to sell the crates themselves and the cost was reasonable might be worth enquiring you can buy them wether your dog flies with them or not good luck

DandNHill

Thank you both so much for that!

John Humphris seem to have the wrong info as according to their calculations I needed a 122cm crate and according to Iata I need 103 which seems much more reasonable! She's only a Goldie not a Great Dane!!

Cowgirl

Just thought I'd let you know - we are also shipping our Golden Retriever.

I contacted Ladyhaye and they are making a wooden crate for our dog - it measures 105cm. He needs 100cm, but they always allow a bit extra. Still, 122cm - that's a LOT extra!! It's important that the crate isn't too big as it will make a huge difference to the cost of shipping!

Anyway, Ladyhaye is charging us £95 plus VAT plus £35 to deliver the crate. We are probably flying him Air Canada Cargo - they quoted £865.

Are you DIY-ing?

DandNHill

We're doing everything DIY including the move. We're shopping around for self pack containers at the moment!
I now have it all worked out for the crate! We also need approx 105cm. In fact yesterday I was comparing your dogs measurements to ours and they are almost exactly the same size which was reassuring to know that we had measured her correctly. We want to get the crate asap so that she can get used to it as she is very nervous! How old is your Goldie? Mine is 9!

Alphawolf

Hi, we agonised over this for months, we only have Siberian Huskies but because of their height to the tips of their ears being 32 inches high, the only crate that accomodates this is the giant one, the dog has to be able to stand or sit upright without his ears touching the top of the crate.
Hence we have now had wooden ones made to size, saved us quite alot on volume and money. Just hope our measurements are right now, will be having fits on the day we fly until we know they are on the plane ok, I still can't believe the agents don't measure the dogs themselves for the crates.

Cowgirl

Ours is 6 years old - today!

That's good to know they're about the same size, puts my mind at ease too! Yeah, we want to get our crate well before the trip - our dog has never been in one so we want to get him used to it.

Are you still getting your crate from John Humphries? How much have they quoted you, if you don't mind me asking? And which airline are you shipping her?

DandNHill

Belated Happy Birthday Goldie!

Still unsure where the crate is coming from to be honest. But they're about £105. That's one pound per centimeter!!! Trying to find a second hand one though., Not proving easy in that size! Plenty of 90cm crates!!!

We think she'll be flying Thomas Cook straight into Halifax but not sure yet. Air Transat having come up with the cheapest quote though at circa £500.

Who is yours flying with?

DandNHill

It's a nightmare isn't it? I agree with that anxious feeling. Right up until the moment the plane takes off I'll worry that something might go wrong.
Mind you first things first we have to persuade her it would be a good idea to get into the crate! That will be a miracle in itself!!!
Are you saying that a wooden crate is cheaper to fly or to purchase?

puglover

my kids kept crawling in and out of the crates and my dogs eventually were so nosey they had to go in and take a look ! i had them in the house and left the doors open they soon decided it was a quiet place to sleep i even put them in the garden on sunny days they would go in for the shade ! when i arrived at halifax to pick them up i was so nervous and hoping everything had gone ok but my shepherd heard me speak in the office and my god did she bark the place down it was lovely the cats and other dog just looked at me as if to say what took you so bloody long !!!

Cowgirl

I think the chance of finding a second hand wooden crate that fits your dog perfectly is pretty slim to be honest - we've already looked! Wooden crates are a far cheaper way to ship than plastic crates as they are slimmer and therefore less volume. Airlines calculate and quote based on the volume.

Ours is probably flying Air Canada Cargo - £865 Heathrow to Calgary. Air Transat would have been my first choice, as they are the only cheap airline that do DIY, but they don't fly to Calgary until Nov!! Unfortunately Thomas Cook don't do DIY (have to do it thru a pet travel agent) so is more expensive than Air Transat Cargo.

DandNHill

Air Transat fly to Toronto all year round. As we might fly to Toronto rather than to Halifax when we make the move it would work perfectly for us. Otherwise unsure still what route our dog will be travelling!
I might look in to a wooden crate. We were quoted £960 to Halifax with a plastic one!!

iluvhuskies

Hello am curious if building your own crate worked and what size it was. I am about to fly my 1 year old 62lb husky from Atlanta to the UK and would really like to know how to do so. I seem to think the XL crate(500series) (30inches high) will be enough. The next size up is Giant 700(35inches) and costs considerable much more to ship due to amount of space it takes up on the plane. For perspective the quotes i got today from delta are $1500 (XL) and $2500(Giant). My husky when standing and his ears are erect is 33inches but he doesnt hold his head high always nor his ears erect always. Do you think the XL(30inch) crate will be acceptable or think i should build one instead. I would hate to get turned back by airline on the day of travel.
If you dont mind, please let me know how much it eventually cost you to ship the wooden crate and what the dimensions were and airline. Thanks

MillieF

D and N Hill and Cowgirl - can you tell me when you are planning to go? I haven't got a crate yet, the animals were on my hit list of 'to do' for this week (thankfully, my dog is a Cairn, so not a mega crate jobbie) I just wanted to know how much in advance you are getting prepared? I'm going in July.