Whether your dog will fly with you in the aircraft cabin or be shipped via the aircraft hold entirely depends on its size. Although every air carrier has a different pet policy, they usually allow small-sized four-legged creatures to fly with their parents in the cabin. You only need to make sure that they fit into a pet carrier that can be stowed under the passenger seat in front of you. If not, then, unfortunately, they will have to wind up traveling in the cargo hold as excess luggage. Irrespective of how convincingly airlines claim to provide furry critters the sheer comfort in the hold, the truth is it could be a horrible and scary experience for your fur baby all alone without you. Not to mention the stories shared by passengers about their injured, sick and even dead pets post their travel in the cargo hold.

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When flying with a pet, bringing along a pet kennel or crate is an absolute necessity; it doesn’t matter if their journey would be in the cabin or the hold. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has put out guidelines regarding the requirements of an ideal pet kennel that are followed by most airlines. The kennel should be long-lasting, sufficiently spacious, properly ventilated, leak-proof from bottom, and shall have sturdy handles. Also, keep in mind that you label the kennel with cautionary words like ‘Live Animal Inside’ and put arrows to clearly indicate which side is up. Your name, contact number, address, and contact information of the destination should also be there on the kennel just in case, God forbid, you lose your dog.

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The cost of your dear pet flying with you in the aircraft cabin would somewhere be around $125 for a one-way flight. Again, it varies from airline to airline. As far as the cost of shipping your pet via cargo is concerned, multiple factors are taken into account, such as the total weight of both the pet and their kennel, the distance to the destination, and others. You can also use an online calculator (available on airline websites) to gauge the cost.

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Some breeds are altogether banned from traveling in the cabin and even cargo hold. Make sure that your fur baby doesn’t fall into the category of ‘restricted breeds’ to avoid ‘boarding denied’ at the very last moment.

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Go for a non-stop flight rather than a layover one as well as refrain from flying during the holiday season (when airports and airlines are relatively busy) to keep the risk of things going wrong at bay. If your pet is scheduled to fly via the cargo hold, don’t forget to get a weather check of your destination city. A warm place should call for an early morning or late evening flight, while a place with a cold climate should make you book a mid-day flight.

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A lot of air carriers allow only a limited number of dogs per flight, so it’s better to call your preferred airline ahead of time and prior to making the booking to confirm if the aircraft has room for you and your furry travel companion. It is this reason why you should always make reservations for both of you simultaneously.

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As soon as your dog has a flight ticket, you need to pay a visit to your veterinarian and get your hands on a health certificate confirming that your furry companion is fit as a fiddle to fly and has all its vaccinations up to date. Pay heed, however, that the certificate holds relevance for only 30 days, and you are required to show it both at the time of departure and return. If your trip exceeds the validity duration of the health certificate, you’ll again have to schedule a visit to the vet during your vacation so that your fur buddy would be eligible to board the return flight.

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The last thing you would want is to be separated from your furry pal for the most part of your vacation, that too after putting in all the efforts to have your fur baby flown with you. Well, to steer clear of any trouble at the destination city, the very next thing you should do after deciding on the place to visit with your pet is to get every piece of information you can about the local animal importation laws. Be mindful that some destinations don’t permit pets to travel in the aircraft cabin at all; it does not matter how small your dog is or if it is a perfect fit to fly as hand baggage. You would also need to carry out extensive research on the pet relief areas available at the departing and the arrival airport so that you know where to head in case of urgency.

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Make it to the airport earlier than required so that you do not have to rush things at the last moment. If the dog has to travel in cargo, most air carriers need passengers to reach the airport three hours prior to the scheduled departure for domestic flights and at least five hours early for international flights. You’ll be required to take your dog to the drop-off location for cargo, so it would come in handy if you took a look at the airport map beforehand.

If your dog is accompanying you in the cabin, you’ll proceed to the check-in desk and get all the paperwork checked. Once you’ve received the ‘go ahead’ and paid the pet fee, you’ll make your way to the security. Take your dog out of its kennel or crate and carry it through security. Meanwhile, the kennel will pass through the X-ray machine.

If you’re checking your dog into the hold beneath the aircraft, don’t forget to affix their recent picture to the kennel. Keep one in your phone as well just in case the airline happens to misplace your dog and you may need it for identification purposes. You can choose to go the extra mile by having your dog microchipped in case it goes missing.

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As soon as you land, get hold of your checked bags and proceed to the cargo location of your airline without any delay. If you don’t pick your dog up within four hours of arrival, airlines will hand it over to a boarding facility or a vet. Walk your dog right after fetching it; it would badly need to stretch its legs, and so would you.

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The most comfortable and ideal option for your pet to fly is in the aircraft cabin under the passenger seat in front. There are a couple of airlines that allow pets to travel only as a carry-on and strictly prohibit them from traveling in the cargo hold. As long as the pet carrier is airline-approved, spacious enough for the pet to stand up as well as turn around, can fit under the aircraft seat, your furry companion can keep you company inside the cabin. In some cases, the combined weight of the pet and its carrier must not be more than 20 pounds.

Once you’ve made up your mind to tag your furkid along with you on-board, you need to schedule the travel and book the ticket 14 days prior to the departure date, for airlines have a limited number of slots for pets per flight. It’d cost you somewhat between a hundred dollars to two hundred dollars to take your furry companion with you on the aircraft.

However, the only catch here is that the pet has to be very small. There are cases where several full-grown cats and even small dogs are deemed too large by air carriers to sit under the passenger seat. Owing to the risks involved in pets flying in the cabin, lots of airlines restrict certain breeds of dogs to board the plane for the sake of their own safety.

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In case your pet is scheduled to fly in the cargo hold, you either have to take your pet to the check-in kiosk at the airport to be carried further as a regular checked bag, or you’ll be required to take your pet to a separate drop-off location for cargo away from the airport. It depends on the airline you are going to fly with.

Irrespective of the airline, you’ll have to obtain a health certificate from your vet confirming that your pet is fit and healthy. It has to be from within ten days of departure date, and you’ll need it for both the departure and return flight. If your trip exceeds more than ten days, you’ll again have to visit a vet at your destination for another health certificate.

As there’s no weight limit applicable in this way of pet travel, you can make the most of it by flying with a relatively large pet as long as it’s able to sit, stand up and turn around comfortably inside the crate. Your pet doesn’t have to be a service animal, and you can check almost any kind of pet into the hold other than snub-nosed dogs, such as French bulldog, chow chow, pug, Boston terrier, and others.

The snag in this pet travel is the price and inconvenience. No pet would like to fly surrounded by pieces of luggage. You also would have to take the additional effort of going to a completely different location to drop your pet for it to be shipped.

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Pets are not there just to cuddle after a long day or to cheer one up in times of distress. They do more than that. They also lend a helping hand to people with disabilities by performing life-saving functions for them. People with visual and hearing impairment and those who have difficulty with movement keep service animals by their side to seek assistance and help.

Dogs that are emotional support animals are welcome in the flight without any additional fee as long as they are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability. Passengers looking to fly with service animals are required to fill a form by the US Department of Transportation that attests to the animal’s behavior, health, and training.

If you’ve never traveled with a service animal before, these tips may come in handy for you.

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