Hello all, I know there are some threads on moving with dogs already, but they’re old enough that I’d like some more recent input.
At the end of the year ish, we’re moving to the USA with our three dogs (between 22 and 26kg each). I’ve acquired IATA approved size 6 crates, and we’re starting the process of acclimating them (our two females are already familiar, though from some time ago, with the concept of crates, but for the male it’s a new experience).
What would advice be on traveling with dogs?
I’ve got all the CDC pages read and re read and will be making sure our vet fills out the appropriate paperwork. Because we occasionally take them to Italy, they’ve always been up to date on their rabies. They have never been in a high risk rabies country.
For the crates, I’m getting all the IATA stickers (Live Animas and so on) and will have food and water dishes (recommendations?), although because our male inhales his food and is a slight choking risk given the circumstances, I’ll likely be requesting they hold off feeding until we are reunited and/or at least they’ve arrived and disembarked.
We will do one direct flight, take a hotel for the night and then drive to final destination stateside.
Planning on flying SWISS since United no longer flies dogs in the cargo hold. Any other suggestions or recommendations? I’m looking into what kind of pad would be best for the bottom of the crates.
did you think about chartered air travel with pets? you can find all the information on FB. people are traveling (moving) like that a lot to and from Europe....
You need to ask Swiss how many spots they have in Cargo hold - when we did this 6 yes ago it was only 2 spots for dogs.
Also don't worry about food - honestly the dogs are so stressed they will not eat and also not eating for 12 hrs wil be fine for them and better than risk checking.
I suggest a cool mat for the bottom of the crate and also some t-shirt with your smell (that you will throw away after).
If they can travel all together will already be a big advantage as at least they are not alone.
In case you are thinking of coming back to CH with the dogs at some point, it's good to keep the rabies vaccination up to date.
I’m not sure what “flavour” of dogs you have or what time of year you will be flying, I’ve found my Samoyed is happiest with nothing on the bottom of his XL cage (or he’s just so exuberant to meet me at arrivals there is no way to know)
I used to put one of those mats meant for a cage (rubberised backside) on the bottom, it was inevitably scrunched up and not in place at end destination.
I lost my dog when I flew from CH to Singapore. It broke my heart.
When I look back, I would change the following:
Make sure you know every little detail of the pet transport and the agency looking at this.
Take a direct flight instead of a connecting flight. Flights are very stressful for our furry family members.
Make sure you have the medical for the dogs done and speak with your vet and mention that you will be taking them on the flight.
And be on the airport to receive the babies because flights are very stressful for dogs....the more attached they are to the family, the more stressful is the trip.
I wish the family a very safe trip and hope the dogs remain in good health.
This is devastating. I'm so sorry you had to go through this.
AnnaSophiaA, it sounds like you're very well prepared and have selected the least traumatic journey for them, which is really great.
I can't recommend which particular absorbent pads to use, however I can suggest that when you put them in the crate, use double-sided tape to secure them to the bottom of the crate. I didn't do this, and the pad was bunched up in a corner by the time we arrived, which meant it was pretty useless.
I'm with kri on the food, I wouldn't put any in there. I did find that the water bowl which came with the crate was find - inevitably some will spill but that's where the absorbent mats are helpful.
Best of luck for the trip, I hope it goes well. Come back and let us know how it goes, particularly if there is anything you would do differently.
Thanks for the tips! SWISS website said I had to have food available but I’ll just put it in a ziplock in one of the storage compartments in the crate to fulfill that requirement. Unfortunately I got my crates second hand and they didn’t come with any kind of bottle or dish so I’ve got to find something that’ll work.
I really hope they can all travel together! I’ll be so disappointed if they say I can only bring two and then one separately.
I have double coated dogs (short coat) but it’ll be winter, I was wondering if I should do something like this? https://www.amazon.com/Vetbed-Non-Sl…d_i=B01F6QB6UK I’m thinking even a taped down pee pad would just get shredded by their claws.
I’m so so sorry for your loss what a horrible experience! That’s exactly why we’ve decided to fly direct. And we will be on the flight with them!
Thank you, we’re definitely hoping all will go well, it’s a little bit stressful of course!
Oh now, this is the same route we flew. So sorry for your loss - what happened if not too painful to recount? Really devastating and hope time will help you heal ��
I would use a pet cooling pad as heat is more an issue that cold to them, no kind of blankets etc and definitely not pee pads as will get shredded and are plastic so risk of ingestion etc. As for the food, just tape a small sack of it outside the crate. The water bowls you can hook inside will get spilled... You can buy a squeeze bottle to attach to the outside. Also put a sign to make the dog human - like "Hi my name is Jack, I like to be talked to gently to calm myself down as I am afraid to fly, would be good if you could give the bottle a squeeze to refill my water. Thanks you." (you never know which nutters touch the crate and maybe this helps)
We also flew long haul and you are doing all the right things.
Our flight was 12 hrs and dog did not pee/poo/drink eat for about 15 hrs... I think they just go into shock to be honest and sort of curl up inside themselves. Took our dog 30 mins to recognize my husband, he was sort of dazed by the whole experience.
Put big red signs about not leaving the crate in the heat or in the cold (depending time of year etc) in addition to the other signs.
And definitely only have them in hold not cargo.
During the flight we had asked the hostess who had gone to check and reassured us he was ok (not sure she really did it but was reassuring nevertheless).
Thank you! I don’t think I can use cooling pads for two reasons : I’ve got one that chews sometimes when stressed and cooling pads usually have a chemical fill. And second reason is the website for SWISS makes it crystal clear it has to be an absorbant crate lining, which a cooling pad isn’t unfortunately. But I’ll have a look for something really streamlined that won’t add extra heat! My dogs tend to ball stuff up to sleep on anyway, so I am guessing that even if I tape something down, they’ll find a way to scrunch it up for a pillow like they do at home.
The stickers about heat and cold is a great idea! Thanks! I’m hoping they’ll give me an update at least once during the flight, but like you said, there’s really no way to know if they’ve actually gone and checked.
Would you recommend putting trackers on the crates? I’m flying first with a family member from the US, so they’ll have US service and I’ll have CH service as far as using a phone to track the crates in the airports. I’m really hoping I can take all three on the same flight with my US family member because that will significantly improve their comfort I think and it will also help my husband’s entry later to be smoother.
When we moved to CH from the US a while back, on the Swiss side we used Moving Animals (they were Ace Pet Movers back then) - https://www.movinganimals.com/home-en
Very good, professional, and helpful. On the US side we used Animal Land Pet Movers - https://www.petmovers.com/
Also excellent people.
The way it worked for us was that we contacted Animal Land, and they worked with Ace. We shipped 5 dogs and 3 cats, some of which were quite old and had medical conditions, and everything went smoothly. The whole move was door-to-door, which was helpful with such a large crew.
I don’t think we’ll be moving like that again, but if we do, we’re going to start with those two companies.
Just ask Swiss how many animals they take and then book super early. This was 6 years ago but the process was stupid because one had to book the flight and then call them back to book pet in. And if no space then you need to move the flight which is annoying.
Also check when the services are open in the land of destination - I don't remember the details now but I know we had to change the flight as we were originally landing on Sunday and some office would have been closed hence they would only release the pet the next day (which obviously was unacceptable).
You are doing all you need to be doing and with plenty of time - well done!
Was it a direct flight? Just curious as to why you think I’d need movers as the paperwork is pretty straightforward and I’ll be on one flight with them all. Definitely open to learning why they’d be helpful!
Thanks! Will do. It definitely says only two dogs per passenger, but we’ll have at least two adults for three dogs so I’ll just give a call and find out. Thanks for the advice on the services! I’ll have to check that with the destination airport!
I personally would not use cooling pads. The area where animals go in cargo is air pressure/temp regulated so it shouldn't be necessary and especially when one of your dogs is a chewer like you say.
I've flown many times with my dogs, both in hold and in-cabin, short haul and long haul (13 hr flight). Besides all the already given good advice, the best thing I've always done is get them used to the crate/soft carrier well in advance. Gave my dog a treat going in there by himself, and I also left it in the living room with a blanket so he would even nap in there during the day.
When your dog flies in the hold - you must attach a water bottle but it is highly recommended not to feed your dog breakfast if your flight is in the evening or dinner if your flight is the next morning. Don't put any chewing bone or toys in there either. All my adult dogs have never peed in the crate or carrier - even when it meant 16 hrs in the crate. (flight + all the paper-health check at the airport and check-in time etc) Only when I flew my puppy long haul had he done 1 small pee on the toilet pad in the crate. Adult dogs don't like to dirty their space, so most likely will hold it. If you are worried one of your dogs chews a lot, maybe just skip it and put a towel with your smell on it inside the crate that he can lay on.
Also, once you land you must go through customs before entering the country. Don't take your dogs out of the crate until you are outside the airport. Once I saw a couple at customs, where the wife had let their dog out and had done a massive pee on the floor causing the customs staff having to bring over a mop etc. and it was quite a mess - while the husband frustratingly telling his wife "I told you not to take him out until we're outside!"
I personally would not use a pet transport company - only because I would like to be in charge of all the processes. It really is not hard - just need to be careful with detailed research on the proper governmental websites.
Last but not least, try to relax and not worry. Don't smother them at the airport as if it will be a forever good-bye which will make your dogs more worried. Act cool and normal - and they'll be fine. As we know, animals feel our emotions for better or worse
Oh, and recently I asked our neighbor who's a pilot at SWISS if flight attendants really can go to the hold area where animals are kept. He said "no". (and he confirmed many movie scenes on a plane that are impossible too )
This was many years back but it feels like yesterday.
It was in 2011. We flew from Basel to Singapore. It was not a direct flight. My Dog could not deal with the flight stress and passed away because of a cardiac arrest a few hours after landing. The only saving grace was that I could spend the last few hours with him. So he was not alone. The doctor said that he did not want to go alone and held on till he met me and then his heart gave way.
It broke my heart. I have not been able to get another dog. And I often ask myself what else I could have done. Having gone through that experience, I would never fly with a pet again. Not worth putting them through the stress.
I am so very sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing your story. I know we human like to look back and wonder what we could have done different but often, there is nothing you could have done to prevent this. Life has a way of hitting us with hardship. You could have left your dog behind and maybe something would have happened anyway. The way I see it, you wanted to take your pet with you as your family - that is what a good owner does. Sending you hugs.