piercedprincess

Before anyone tells me to go read the government websites etc. I have. It just confused me more.

Right, I'm living in the UK (always have, born here, British passport), husband lives in New Hampshire (NH) USA (always has, born there, US passport) and the plan is for me and my daughter to move there with our cat sometime next year, probably between the end of may and the middle of September if that matters (assuming our documents are all in order by then). We have someone over there who can look after the cat until I get there so that's not a problem but no-one here to do it once we leave so she needs to go before us or around the same time but not after. I'll be talking to the vet sometime soon about anything she needs to be able to travel outside her normal checks and immunisations which are all up to date but our vets are all small, local ones and may not know. I'd like to know ahead of time what we need to do so that we have plenty of time for any documents/quarantines/other such to be done and ready.

Anywho, what I want to know is how to go about getting my cat from here (Leeds, UK) to there (NH) - how long does it take to plan, does she need any documents/immunisations, what happens on the other end, does she have to go by cargo beforehand or can I take her on the plane when we go as a carry-on/hold luggage, if not can my mother in law collect her or does it have to be me, can anyone recommend an airline, is there anything I've missed?

I've seen that she can go from Manchester airport, which is good (also LeedsBradford and Liverpool are nearby if that's a possibility) but I CANNOT get to London. The nearest airports are probably going to be Boston(MA), New York and Manchester(NH but I don't know if they take UK flights or if it would mean 2 planes to get there) but any others nearby are also fine so we're open to suggestions.

I would rather take her with me as carry on if possible unless there is a better way to go about it since I've never moved a pet abroad before.
She's a moggy, mostly british shorthair with a bit of tabby so no breathing issues like with smushed-nosed pets, good health, fairly chilled when she's in her pet carrier.

Has anyone else moved a cat flying from in/around Yorkshire who can share experiences good and bad?

You guys all seem nice and helpful so please don't shout at me for asking stupid questions, I'm just looking for a push in the right direction because right now I'm just bewildered.

Bob

Welcome to BE!

I'd start by looking at previous threads. There have been plenty of threads that go over the basics for cats and dogs in a step by step guide.

The variants that change things are any particular state requirements, which you'd need to look up yourself as I don't remember anyone taking a pet to NH.

Also which airline you take, BA require a third party pet carrier, but other airlines don't. There's also some restrictions of flying into certain airports during certain winter/summer months because of the ground temps, though presuming at this time of year it shouldn't be a problem, if you move in Sept.

You will need a rabies jab, can take a while to sort out and which one you need would depend on the state, so you'd need to look that up.

You'll fly into Boston Logan...the airport in Manchester is a puddle jumper and when they say "International", it really means the occasional jumper from Canada for the most part and it'd be really expensive. You can get a jumper to the airport from Boston, but it's only a couple hours away tops in the car.

piercedprincess

That answers some of my questions, Bob, thankyou.

I think our moving window gives us enough time to sort it for a time that isn't restricted so that's fine but I'll make a note to make sure I get that right.
Boston airport isn't far from home so Manchester(UK) to Boston is probably going to be the winner there since someone can pick us/just her up from there and just drive home.
I can ask the vet about the rabies jab too and see what she says.

What did you mean by third party pet carrier or not? She has a sturdy plastic pet carrier with a metal door so would that be ok or does it need to meet specific requirements?

rpjs

We shipped our cat with us to the US (London Heathrow to New York JFK) when we moved over in January 2011. We ended up using a pet shipper (PetAir UK) who got her booked on the same (BA) flight we took. They are based near Heathrow so I don't know if they'll cover Manchester or Leeds/Bradford but they were super efficient and helpful.

It was, however, quite expensive (cost as much to ship her as our own flights put together) and we didn't even opt for the most expensive service! However, I've seen other people post here who've "done it themselves" for cheaper. My understanding that some airlines will let you book your pet's carriage with them yourself, others require you go through a specialist shipper. Whichever route you end up going for, you need to have established a "business relationship" with the airline/shipper at least 30 days before the cat flies to meet US transportation security regs. Asking for a quote from a shipper/airline is enough.

In general, the principle requirements are that a vet certifies that the cat is fit to fly, and whilst I believe I'm right in saying there's no specific requirement for rabies jabs, in practice you'll need to get her them to meet the requirements of both the airline and the state you're importing her into, and a UK pet passport will serve as documentation for that. Even a local vet should be familiar with the pet passport scheme.

You'll also need to get an IATA-approved carrier which is somewhat larger than the cat carrier you might get from a pet shop.

The US does not have any specific requirements for importing cats other than that they be in good health, but the individual states all have their own regulations - you'd need to check both the requirements for the state the cat will land in and the state (NH) she'll end up in - again a shipper can help with that.

One other thing is that getting the cat through US Customs is time-consuming: took much longer than it did for me to have my immigrant visa processed. Essentially you first go to the airline's inbound cargo handling facility to pick up paperwork which you take to US Customs, which at JFK at least was the other end of the airport. They electronically release the cat and you return to the cargo handlers where you pay a small handling fee (it was about $40 for us) and pick up your cat. I understand from other posts that a procedure like that is in place at most US airports. One tip: make sure both you and your husband are named on the shipping paperwork for the cat as US Customs will only allow a person named on the paperwork to request the cat's release.

Good luck!

avanutria

"Third party pet carrier" means a company that arranges for the cat to fly with the airline on your behalf. I flew BA with our cat in 2009 and we hired a company called UK Pet Exports. BA won't deal directly with the public, they only want to deal with pet import/export companies for this stuff.

The pet carrier does have to meet specific requirements. I highly recommend the Varikennel brand. I forget if this is the size we got:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vari-Kennel-...dp/B000TBJ4J8/

Many typical cat carriers are not robust enough (or large enough) to hold up to a flight, particularly the ones that come in two plastic halves with plastic connectors between. The metal door is all well and good but if those plastic connectors fail, your cat is off and running. The varikennel had metal connectors, I believe, and I think I also zip-tied the two halves together through some spare holes. I also recommend DryFur pads (www.dryfur.com/) for the bottom of the carrier, though they might not be sold in the UK so you may need to have your husband order some (of the appropriate size) and mail them over to you. We had a pet pad and a towel in Elbie's carrier. At the end of the flight the towel was soggy and smooshed into a corner, Elbie himself was a bit damp and cranky, but the Dryfur pad had absorbed any liquid that landed on it and was still dry to the touch. If I did it again I would not use the towel (but I would probably double-sided tape the pad to the bottom of the carrier to prevent it from moving around at all).

sir_eccles

Just an FYI, most cats in the US tend to be indoor cats. Most people do not let their cats roam the neighborhood as they do in the UK. I'm generalizing slightly and it varies regionally, but just so you are aware.

Bob

By third party, I meant a third party....a company that deal with taking the animal, crating up and transporting it to/from airport without you being involved.

If you do it yourself, say with Virgin, what the animal goes in will depend on whatever the airline has for guidelines, which would be different if the animal goes in cargo or in the cabin and going in the cabin or not depends on how busy the flight is etc.

Bob

In NH, pretty much indoor cats as it'll get eaten alive by the nasties outside and if in the countryside, ticks are a mental hassle.

Only tend to see cats out and about as work cats on a farm...or dead by the side of the road....though might see more running around in bigger cities like Manch-vegas

ian-mstm

As a frequent flyer with a severe allergy to cats, I'd prefer you didn't!

Ian

piercedprincess

Thankyou Avanutria - I've been trying to find out what those pads were called with no luck so far, I'll get hubby onto it if I can't find them and we'll forego the towel since it didn't seem to work so well for you.

Thankyou rpjs - I'll make sure I put more than just my name on the forms so we can get her back if it's not me that goes.


We don't usually fly BA but if that's the only way to get Ozzy there then so be it. It can't hurt for me to email those carriers and ask of they go from the north too or if any of the airlines that fly from up here will take animals, maybe they can suggest someone who does if not.

I've been reading everything I can find on it and some people have managed to set off from Manchester which is what we'll need to do. I cannot get us all to London in any kind of sensible way so that's not an option unless there's a way to send her on her own to London from Manchester but that seems like a weird way to do it.

I'm aware that cats are indoor here, we have a metal-fenced outdoor area with a door to the house that nothing can get in or out of for hubby's cats and they have their own beds and litter boxes in the office so that's already sorted but thankyou anyway.

And finally, pet carrier- it's on my to do list.

thanks all, you've definitely helped send us in the right direction

piercedprincess

I too have a cat allergy. If you're on the flight with me, you're welcome to share my allergy meds. They're non-drowsy and safe to take with pretty much any other medications

I forget some people have bad allergies, I'll look at getting fuzzy in the hold instead, sorry allergy-sufferers, looks like I'm an inconsiderate pet-owner

avanutria

BTW, I got the name of the third party that we used backward - it's http://www.petexports.co.uk/ and they do work out of Manchester but they usually have to route the flights through Heathrow. Ideally if you can get a single direct flight where you need to go that's best for the pet, as it avoids a lot of the stressful parts of layovers etc.

And ignore the garish colours of the website; it put me off a bit but I obtained a reference from a former customer which was very positive and we also had a very positive experience with them.

piercedprincess

Allergy sufferers rejoice! I'm pretty sure she isn't allowed in the cabin for flights from the UK so into the hold she goes.

scrubbedexpat099

Sometimes you have to think outside the box.

Mummy in the foothills

I don't believe any pets are aloud in the cabin on international flights, they put them in the temperature controlled hold. Internal flights here you do see small animals in carriers sometimes.