lindy field From United States of America, joined Mar 2001, 3072 posts, RR: 15 Posted (1 year 10 months 1 week 5 days 18 hours ago) and read 3780 times:
AIRLINERS.NET CREW HEAD DATABASE EDITOR
Dear All,
Some friends are moving from Berlin to the US in January. Their dog Eddie (a pug) is just a little too large to qualify as a carry-on. Eddie has a heart condition, so he probably couldn't survive the kind of conditions that animals are subjected to in the belly of the plane. Our friends want to find a way to take him in the cabin. They have done some preliminary research, which was quite discouraging. They have not found a way to get Eddie out of Europe (they even looked into flights out of Amsterdam, etc.). They considered taking Eddie by boat, but the Queen Mary does not make the crossing in January.
reifel From Germany, joined Feb 2005, 1135 posts, RR: 1 Reply 1, posted (1 year 10 months 1 week 5 days 5 hours ago) and read 3741 times:
I'm very sorry to tell you that, but as far as I know no airline will accept the dog in the cabin if he is more than 8kg or something (or basically too big to fit in a special bag which does not exceeed carry on sizes). Only exception is made for service dogs, which may be taken in the cabin.
As for ships, working for a cruise line, I can tell you that it is quite similar. A dog will only be accepted on board if it's a service dog. I know ferry companies make exceptions, but I don't know any ferry company crossing the atlantic. You may try to contact different cruise lines to check with them if exceptions are allowed. There are uncountable companies out there, not only the Queen Mary. Basically every cruise line which has ships that cruise i.e. in the Carribean in the winter and come to Europe in the summer will offer a transatlantic crossing...
HT From Germany, joined May 2005, 6473 posts, RR: 27 Reply 2, posted (1 year 10 months 1 week 5 days 5 hours ago) and read 3738 times:
#1: Your friends already have made sure that Eddie will be able to enter the U.S. i.e. they have made sure all the veterinary requirements have been / will be met ? Is it the USDA to contact ?
If #1 gets a positive answer ...: Recommend to your friends to contact a reputable freight forwarder like Lufthansa Cargo and talk to them. They should be able to find a solution, albeit which might be a costly one.
They might take Eddie onto one of their flights carrying racing horses (although I am not sure if the season fits), which usually see a caretaker (for the horses) being present in the cabin.
If your friends really get lucky, they (or at least of of them) might be able to fly along in the freighter.
As for taking Eddie to the U.S. by boat ...: Suggest to your friends they might have a look into using a scheduled freighter (nowadays: Container ship). Some of these vehicles plying the Seven Seas offer accommodation for passengers, but I think still it is a 50:50 chance of they might accept a dog as passenger.
Again, make sure that Eddie will be able to go through USDA-inspection at the port of entry.
-HT
Carpe diem ! Life is too short to waste your time ! Keep in mind, that today is the first day of the rest of your life !
workwings From United States of America, joined May 2010, 55 posts, RR: 0 Reply 3, posted (1 year 10 months 1 week 5 days ago) and read 3706 times:
This is my experience bringing a miniature poodle into the States when I moved back in 2002.
I had all my papers translated. I did the move in 2 phases, with two days layover in Paris. Last phase was CDG to EWR. No one weighed the dog. Having said that you need to have the dog fit in the carrier of the right size . It helped that he was quiet and not barking.
When I arrived, I said to the official at immigration, I have a dog, would you like to see the papers? She said no, that's OK, maybe at customs. When I offered to show the papers at customs, and said, I have a dog, they said, "that's nice lady. Welcome back". And that was it.
So my suggestion is to get Eddie as close to 8KG as possible -- the limit on many carriers -- and make sure he is happy in his correctly-sized carrier.
Then see if they can fly from CDG or GVA which would save a half-hour off flight time. In my experience the European carriers are more pet-friendly.
reifel From Germany, joined Feb 2005, 1135 posts, RR: 1 Reply 4, posted (1 year 10 months 2 days 17 hours ago) and read 3474 times:
I don't want to offend you and I understand you're trying to help the thread opener and showing your own pet travelling experience, but maybe you just have been lucky. Unfortunately if in Eddie's case they take a closer look, well then he will be stranded at his departure airport, with no valid tickets anymore (or if he is lucky the chance to rebook for a fortune to another flight)... or even worse, if he makes the flight to CDG and they take a closer look while he is in CDG then he will need to fly back at his own expense with no clue what to do with the dog... I personally wouldn't take the risk...
RyanairGuru From Australia, joined Oct 2006, 2530 posts, RR: 2 Reply 5, posted (1 year 10 months 2 days 11 hours ago) and read 3454 times:
Quoting lindy field (Thread starter): Eddie has a heart condition, so he probably couldn't survive the kind of conditions that animals are subjected to in the belly of the plane
I hope this doesn't sound to blunt, but do you have a veterinary opinion for this or is it merely conjecture???
I ask because we were in a similar situation. When we moved from the UK to Australia my father was terrified that we were going to have to leave our oldest dog (who was already over the average age for his breed and very infirm) behind and try and find him a new home. However, the vet insisted that he would be able to survive 24 hours in an aircraft hold (they were not allowed off the aircraft during the tech stop in SIN) and we subsequently got this corroborated by 2 other vets.
Needless to say he made the journey fine, had no problem in quarantine and spent the last 2 years of his life playing with kangaroos!!!
I realise that if Eddie is unwell that his owner may be unwilling to part with him, but if a vet says he is fine to go in the hold then he probably is!
JRadier From Netherlands, joined Sep 2004, 4598 posts, RR: 51 Reply 7, posted (1 year 10 months 2 days 8 hours ago) and read 3434 times:
Perhaps it's worth a shot contacting KLM. They have an excellent animal hotel in Amsterdam, and several flights to the US (LAX, ORD, IAH, JFK come to mind) are operated with the 747 Combi. Even if the dog can not be transported in the cabin, your friend might be able to arange it travels on the main deck. Worth a shot!
For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and ther
lindy field From United States of America, joined Mar 2001, 3072 posts, RR: 15 Reply 11, posted (1 year 9 months 3 weeks 6 days 6 hours ago) and read 3214 times:
AIRLINERS.NET CREW HEAD DATABASE EDITOR
Hi all,
I appreciate all the responses and have or will pass them on to Eddie's caretaker.
alsberg From United States of America, joined Aug 2010, 136 posts, RR: 0 Reply 12, posted (1 year 9 months 3 weeks 6 days ago) and read 3175 times:
If you want to eliminate any risk of taking Eddie all the way to the US, and then not having him accepted, maybe try stopping in Ireland on EI where they have the pre-clearance to US customs. Also, I'm not sure how friendly EI is with pets. But it's worth contacting them I think.
sw733 From United States of America, joined Feb 2004, 6072 posts, RR: 10 Reply 13, posted (1 year 9 months 3 weeks 6 days ago) and read 3174 times:
Quoting reifel (Reply 1): I don't know any ferry company crossing the atlantic.
I think the only real option by boat would be to find a cargo ship to travel on. Many people find ways to do that and it can be quiet cheap, but also difficult and not comfortable at all.
a340crew From United States of America, joined Jan 2008, 261 posts, RR: 0 Reply 14, posted (1 year 9 months 3 weeks 1 day 7 hours ago) and read 3031 times:
Emotional Support Animal......if you can get a doctors note stating that for emotional reasons the dog needs to travel with you in the cabin most US carriers will accept the pet. the pet will need to be on your lap or able to sit on the floor in front of the bulkhead. This is a loop hole that as an agent for a major us carrier have seen people using for a while
a340crew From United States of America, joined Jan 2008, 261 posts, RR: 0 Reply 15, posted (1 year 9 months 3 weeks 1 day 6 hours ago) and read 3026 times:
More info on traveling with emotional support animal
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