Flying with a pet: What you need to know
This holiday season, we decided to bring our dog Pablo with us on a trip across the country. If you feel like we do about our dog, then you know that everything is better when they are around. Plus, he is one of the joys of my mom’s life so we wanted to bring her a little surprise for Christmas. It was our first time traveling with a dog on an airplane. Our experience went very well and I wanted to share a few tips on how to travel safely and be well-prepared with a dog so you can create good memories on your future trips with your little furry ones!
Destination and requirements
The first thing to do is to verify if there are specific requirements — quarantine, vaccines, paperwork, etc. — at the destination and to be prepared in advance. If you travel internationally, you will most likely need to have a vaccine certificate, maybe a rabies antibody test, and, in some countries, they may even require a quarantine upon arrival. It may also be necessary to have a health certificate from your veterinarian mentioning that your pet is free of specific disease and okay to travel.
Airline
After you verify specific requirements at your destination, contact the airline you are planning on traveling with. You will often need to contact them by phone and to plan your time accordingly since it can be a decent wait time to speak with an agent. Unfortunately, you cannot just show up at the airport with your pet on the day of even if you meet all the requirements. They will guide you on all the specifics: size of carrier allowed, which seat you can book (you have to book a specific seat for them), attached pet fee, requirement for vaccination, etc. The carrier maximum dimensions are a little different for each airline, but should always allow your pet to stand and turn easily. You can find more information on their respective websites: Air Canada, United, Southwest, Hawaiian Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Delta Airlines, WestJet, American Airlines, and JetBlue.
Please note that I am specifically sharing our experience with traveling with a pet in the cabin; it would be slightly different for pets in cargo. My best advice is to contact the airline so you can get all the information you need and to do it in advance.
At the airport
- Arrive early! You cannot ‘’check in’’ to your flight by yourself when you have a pet with you since you need to go see an agent, which may significantly increase the time you need before boarding. The agent will verify your carrier and your pet’s paperwork to make sure everything is in order.
- Pet relief area: Traveling day may become a very long day for your four-legged friend. Airports do have pet relief areas your pet can use before the flight or during layovers. During our recent trip, we experienced one that was very clean, but we had a not so good experience with our second stop during our layover. Be prepared and if your dog has the habit of going on a pee pad, it may be a good idea to carry some of your own too.
- Food: Your pet will most likely be hungry during the trip at some point. It is a good idea to bring a little bit of their regular food with you and to pack a little more in your carry-on in case of an unexpected event or delay with your flight or baggage loss. Having collapsible bowls in which you can make your pet drink (and eat) is also a must.
On the flight
Your pet will have to stay under your seat during the whole flight. Depending on the furriness of your animal, it may be a little cold during the flight. You should plan accordingly and bring an extra blanket, a jacket, etc. We were very surprised how smoothly it went with Pablo during both of our flights. Since he doesn’t have a lot of fur, he was wearing a shirt and had a few blankets in the carrier and a blanket over the carrier. As it got colder in the plane, he stayed warm the whole flight! Personally I do not recommend feeding your pet during the flight as he/her may experience nausea with the plane moving.
Medication & veterinarian
Flying can be stressful for a pet (and for you!). Be as prepared as you can. Talk with your veterinarian about the medical status of your pet and if you need to bring medications (anxiety medication, antiemetic, other prescriptions, etc.). Your veterinarian can also guide you when to give which medication to have the smoothest trip possible.
I also always recommend to my clients to make a list of the emergency veterinarians at their destination so they can be prepared in case of a need. An emergency is never planned and still can happen on a vacation so it makes it easier to know who to call when an emergency situation happens in advance.
Traveling with a pet requires a lot of planning, but being prepared makes the experience more enjoyable and less stressful. We will surely travel again with Pablo. Having him with us was definitely worth it! Hope you had a happy holiday season and wishing you and your pets all the best for 2022!
