TRAVELING PETS - WHAT THE AIRLINES DO RIGHT!
I feel as though I have written about this before, probably because I have! Once again in an attempt to sell magazines and newspapers travel writers LOVE to shock people about the incidents that can occur when pets travel on airlines. In a current issue of Conde’ Nast Traveler Magazine-February 2007, an article titled: “The Beasts in the Belly”; the byline of the article reads: Think coach class is a drag? Try the cargo hold. William J. McGee reports on what can go wrong when the airlines transport pets.
Come on! This just makes my stomach hurt! Why in the world doesn’t Mr. McGee write about what GOES RIGHT when the airlines transport pets? He would really have something to write about that the numbers can back up.
Here’s a few for starters for you Mr. McGee: {all are true stories by the way}
- Two very small dogs were unable to be loaded on a flight to Osaka with the final destination-Okinawa. The airline personally called the pet shipper to advise that the dogs were safe and sound with them and that they would personally call the customs and agriculture clearance station at the airport in Osaka to advise of the 1 day delay and request they expedite the connection to Okinawa so the dogs would not have to spend the weekend in their crates. Everything went great!
- An airline made an exception to the number of pets allowed on a domestic flight so the “pet family’ could depart and arrive together at the same time.
- The airline’s cargo agents offered to “pet sit” two cats for 45 minutes while the health certificates were rushed over to the USDA vet for proper endorsements.
- Delta Air Lines and Continental Airlines ALWAYS zip-tie closed the doors on the crate to avoid any problems or escapes of pets while in their care.
The airlines all in all do a great job in moving pets around the country and around the world. If anyone is at fault-it’s the owners of the pets. If a pet ‘loses its teeth and nails when trying to chew and claw its way out of its kennel” how can you possibly fault the airline? If a pet ever escapes from its kennel/crate the more than likely reason is because the owner purchased a CHEAP crate with a feeble door.
I am really looking forward to the time I see an article titled:
YOUR PET IS IN GOOD HANDS WHEN TRAVELING THE FRIENDLY SKIES!
March 14th, 2007 at 10:38 am
Pet Traveling is a wonderful things in itself in the fact that we can take our animals wherever we want to go, or have to be. I think that if you are willing to put your dog or cat on a plane, you should definitely research for a good carrier or how the carrier has been with animals, but as said here the only reason an animal would feel uncomfortable would be because of the owners mistreatment. I love the idea of the pet travel industry myself.
March 18th, 2007 at 1:46 am
i came across this while doing some research in preparation for my cats’ third move by air.
well said! i’ve come across so many “horror stories of the cargo hold” and i have to roll my eyes- if you look at the reports on animal deaths/injuries that the airlines are now required to provide, the number of incidents compared to the number of animals transported is minimal.
April 15th, 2007 at 6:51 pm
I have to agree that many pets that are transported via the airlines do have an uneventful flight. As it should be. However, I also believe not all “incidents” of pets being lost, injured or dying while in the care of the airlines is truly being reported. My partner, just last Monday, received a puppy which was flown via Delta Airlines and no, Delta did NOT zip tie the crate. In fact the dog was lost for 3 hours! After being told by airline employees to go to three different areas of the airport for the dog, finally finding the correct cargo area, my partner was told they did not know where the dog was, were not sure the dog was even on the flight and it was not listed on any flight log or manifest. When the dog was found, they made him sign paperwork stating he received the dog in good condition, before they would release the dog to him!! My partner argued about signing but just wanted his dog and wanted to get out of the airport. Once the paperwork was signed the crate was brought out. My partner immediately checked the dogs gums and saw the puppy was becoming dehydrated, ran to the car to get it some water, loadeed the dog into the car and left. THIS incident was not reported and should have been. I beleive this is one of the reasons the actual reported numbers are so low. my partner will be filing a report this week. As far as Delta Airlines zip-tying the crates, it was NOT done with Vivi, the whippet’s crate, nor was it done with the crate of this puppy. Vivi is STILL MISSING!