Allfourfeet

I now there is a few old threads on this, but wondered if anyone has any recent experience of doing this? In particular what airlines allow us to do it ourselves as checked baggage? Will be going to houston if that makes any difference!

I think, as company us paying for our flights, we might get stuck if the airlines they only use won't allow it! Might have to consider paying for my own flight and taking them with an airline that allows dogs as checked baggage!

Any help, much appreciated!

unique_boy

I haven't done it myself but have been looking into getting a dog in the US and then how I would get it back to the UK.

There are a couple of websites around summarising the policies off various airlines. Pet Air Travel | Pet Friendly Airlines Pet Policies | Pet Friendly Travel

THere is also the Pet Travel Scheme. https://www.gov.uk/take-pet-abroad

Interesting NY Times article I found on a first hand account.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/08/tr...anted=all&_r=0

Some breeds are banned from flying I believe the likes off bulldogs and pugs due to breathing difficulties at high altitudes.

Hope this helps.

thinbrit

How many dogs, and what size/weight?

Weeze

Bringing Pets : British Expat Wiki

sherbert

Did it in April using KLM, cost EUR 200 one way. Was fairly easy to be honest: the hard part was keeping control of my emotions when he was wheeled off in his cage and during take off!

What do you specifically want to know?

Bear in mind that most of the US airlines have embargoes on transporting animals as baggage during the summer months and to several destinations during the winter months.

unique_boy

Was this from UK? What dog was it? I had read it can be quite bad for them in with essentially the same place as the bags? Is the baggage hold even heated?

sherbert

No, sorry, I flew from Amsterdam. I think I read on here about someone who drove over with their dog to Germany as Lufthansa also flies dogs as baggage (very easy to take your dog through the tunnel).

They go in a special section of the plane that is reserved for stuff like flowers, fruit, instruments - basically the delicate cargo. And yes of course the place they put the dogs is heated and pressurised: it's like -65 Celsius at cruising altitude!

I would honestly be VERY surprised if the cargo shipped dogs go in a different section of the plane (there is only one heated baggage section) or get treated any differently at all in the grand scheme of things. I think the difference is that they get collected by a special van upon landing whereas at the baggage dogs wait and get put on the little cart with the other delicate cargo...but I don't know an now I have written that I feel awful that my dog had to go on a the little cart....

Anyway, I have a mixed breed dog (bernese, flat coated, border collie) about 25 kilos. When we picked him up at the other end he was pretty traumatised until we let him out of the cage then all was forgotten...but he was very jumpy for a month or so afterwards.

Honestly, I am SERIOUSLY not looking forward to getting him back across the Atlantic but I'd probably send him as baggage again because shipping as cargo is 4 x the price.

Weeze

We did the Amsterdam route too also with a border collie! Aberdeen-Amsterdam-Houston. He wasn't bothered when we collected him but he did look pretty funny sat in his cage in the excess baggage queue. The drugs dog went mental at him and kept getting told off.

unique_boy

Thanks, don't worry it was a better option than leaving the dog behind :-).

andrewlohnes

I'm definitely going to use Pet Air when I send my border collie over, it's not going to be the nicest experience for him as it is! I at least want it done the best way possible and have budgeted £1000 to do it.

MoshiMoshi

The 'cargo' pets and the 'checked baggage' pets go in the same section of the hold. That's why the price difference is so infuriating!

Interesting about the van/cart, though. Our cats went as 'baggage' from Europe to the US, and it was all very laid back: we dropped them off at the outsize luggage counter in Germany, and picked them up from the side of the luggage carousel at LAX, with all the bulky buggies and skies!

When they flew US-UK, as cargo, it was much more official: dropped them off at the airline's cargo terminal, and picked them up from the Animal Reception Centre after hours of clearance (and, yes, they got to ride in the special van).

You probably already know this, but if you fly into the UK you don't have a choice. Thousands of pounds extra, and the only tangible difference for little Fluffy is that van-ride from the plane to customs -- argh!

Edit for the OP: I'm 99% sure you still can't fly pets out of the UK as baggage. As with arriving pets, they have to be manifest cargo.

DJL99

I'd rather not pay for an agent if we can avoid it... but it isn't looking simple otherwise. We need to go from London to New Orleans... but of the airlines listed on the wiki none fly there or to (fairly nearby) Houston as far as I can see. At present flying with Virgin to Orlando, see the grandfather in law and driving 9 hours is looking our best plan...

MoshiMoshi

Do check with the airlines which fly your route, even if they're not listed in the Wiki. I don't think it's a conclusive list, and airlines also seem to change their pet policies quite often.

DJL99

Thanks... I think New Orleans 'International' has no flights to Europe and Houston only has direct London flights via BA (who I think insist you use an agent) and United (who gave me the number of a cargo company). I'll be delighted if anyone has found out otherwise though!

MoshiMoshi

BA don't insist you use an agent for flying into the UK. I did read somewhere that they mandated an agent for flying out, though, which is really annoying -- but you could just double-check anyway. A lot of stuff has been in flux since the UK regulations changed in 2012.

I don't know about United. Did they say you had to use an agent, or did they just request that you booked pets via their cargo division/affiliate? When our cats flew LAX-LHR with BA, we organized everything ourselves, but we did have to book their tickets with BA World Cargo. The regular ticketing department isn't set up to take manifest cargo bookings.