Is there anyone out there who has brought a cat from the US to Switzerland? I would like to bring my cat back to Zurich with me but I can't get a good idea of what this entails. I would prefer to have the cat in the cabin with me- is this possible? If someone has done this recently, could you fill me in on the whole process? For example,

How much does it cost?
What documents are needed, for both the US and CH?
Which airlines are most accommodating?
Is quarantine necessary?
How do I return to the States with my cat?

Thanks for you help!

Erin

I just flew two cats from CH to the US in the cabin. I used Swiss which allows the cats in the cabin but cost 250 bucks each (ouch). American Airlines does not allow cats in the cabin as far as I am aware. You should check other carriers though, I find Swiss the most flexible if you can believe that but they make take an arm or leg. The price of being in the cabin went up about three fold since 2003 when we flew to CH, I can't believe they charge so much to shove a cat under the front of your seat. You also have to reserve a space for the cat because most airlines only allow 2 or 3 cats onboard per flight. If we travel again with the cats, they are not going in the cabin, too expensive.

No quaratine on either side, coming into the US, you need to have a health certificate from the vet and updated rabies shots within 30 days? of traveling. Going into Switzerland if I recall was very similar but that was six years ago. The rabies shot is required and will be checked at customs, I am not sure if CH requires the good health certificate. In reality, the whole process was much easier than we expected on both sides.

My cat flew here on AA from DFW to ZRH, the info is somewhere here on the forum. Cost was about 200 bucks.

Hi Erin:

I brought my cat from the US (Connecticut) in February 2009, and there were some rude surprises on the US-side you should be sure you understand first.

1. Cost: I would budget around 500-900 USD for the whole thing, including vet visit(s), paperwork, soft pet carrier, and the cost to the airline for transport

2. Documents: Start by arranging a visit to your vet, or another vet who has experience with animals relocating abroad (get a referral, you want a vet that does this routinely). For Switzerland, assuming your cat had full vaccinations as a kitten, all you must be concerned with is the annual rabies. I was at the transitional time when CH was just adopting the EU requirements, and got some bad info that other vaccinations and 4-month quarantine were needed -- nonsense! Make sure the vet has the most up-to-date information and challenge him/her by doing your research online and with the USDA web site.

Your vet should prepare an International Health Certificate (EU-Form 998) not more than 10 days before your departure. Then (this is where I was caught off-guard), your certificate must go to the state veterinarian or other USDA-approval authority (mine was located in the state captial, Hartford). Here, you essentially pay 24 USD to have the reviewing authority stamp the health certificate your vet prepared, and you are all set. I did mine in person, since I was flying the end of the week, but I've heard you can mail it in.

Your cat will also need a microchip (if you don't already have one). Tell your vet to give you a chip that has all numbers in the ID. This is IMPORTANT, because the chip readers in Europe cannot read some of the older chips from the US (like those made by Schering Plough Animal Health, which have alpha-numeric IDs), and you will need to have the animal "re-chipped" in Switzerland. Just being "ISO-compliant" is not enough.

3. Airlines: Swiss (LH) is the carrier I used to move from JFK airport to ZRH. They were very friendly and accommodating, offering water frequently and making sure the animal was comfortable under our seat. The cost was 200 USD, plus I needed to buy a soft-sided Sherpa bag (about 60 USD -- don't skimp here, your cat will be in here for at least 9 hours from the East Coast before you can comfortably let her out).

American (AA) will NOT accept cabin animals, but just about all other US-flagged carriers will. I've used United (UA) and Air France (AF) on my other relocations to Europe with no problems, but the cost varies carrier by carrier.

4. Quarantine: assuming you have all your vaccinations in order, no problems here.

5. Returning: When you find a vet in Switzerland, get a "pet passport" (which looks just like the human passports). It costs about CHF 75 I believe. I am getting one my next trip to the vet. It apparently makes life very easy to travel around Europe and back to the US.

6. Arrival (extra info): When you enter the airport, have your pet paperwork in order and go through the Red (Goods to Declare) line. Show the agent your paperwork, certificate that goes with the microchip (the agent may scan the chip with the reader) and be prepared to pay CHF 88 minimum. If you have a pure-breed, you may have to convince the agent not to charge VAT on your animal. I have a Maine Coon-Persian mix that came from a farm (and cost me nothing), but the agent kept asking how much my cat was worth, before agreeing on this as the fee. I later found out this was the standard rate charged for bringing a cat.

Once you're here, hop in a taxi, tram, or bus if you like. I've taken my cat all over Zürich with no problems at all.

Hope this is useful info for you and your feline. Good luck with your move.

BAM

I was really worried when I flew our two cats from the UK to CH recently. They're both quite nervy and have never travelled well in the car but they travelled in the 'hold', not in the cabin, and arrived seemingly unphased by the whole experience. I think they probably just went to sleep. Them travelling separately also took a little bit of the stress out of our trip over, I'm not sure I could have coped with them howling at me through the flight on top of everything else :-) Good Luck!

While this may be sufficient from the relatively-close UK, I would not consider this for a trans-Atlantic flight, and certainly not if coming from anywhere but the Northeast US non-stop. In the best case, the animal sleeps through the entire trip. But if a problem occurs, you won't know until it's too late. I did it myself, bringing our 9 yr old lab from France to the USA, and it was a pretty nerve-wracking flight although she arrived safely with no issues.

Here is an blog posting that addresses some of the serious concerns of flying in a passenger plane with an animal in the cargo hold.

A friend on a UA flight from SF-NY told me the pilot chose to make an emergency landing in Denver because he was unsure if there was sufficient cabin pressure in the cargo hold (don't believe the 'unpressurized myths', but problems do occur), and he knew there was a dog aboard. Everything turned out okay, and she mentioned that the inconvenienced passengers were very supportive of the decision. But options like that are not very plentiful on a US to Zurich flight.

BAM

Continental airlines allows you to take them in the cabin with you...in a cage under your seat...I believe it's about $120... go to http://www.bvet.admin.ch/themen/0161...x.html?lang=en for the information on what you need for paperwork.
Hope this helps...
Cheers,
P.