Hello all -

Has anyone recently (within the last 3 months) flown a pet to the United States? I am planning my return and have received conflicting information from my airline about whether I as an individual can ship the pets, or whether I am required to use a shipping company. My understanding is that this varies by country of origin (i.e., from where the animal is being shipped).

Firsthand information (rather than speculation) would be greatly appreciated. Thanks much in advance.

I had to send a dog to USA in march. We used a shipping company, simply because I was not travelling with him.

We brought our dog ( a 6 year old rottie) from chicago to zurich 3 weeks ago. We did it ourselves and was absolutely no problems whatsoever. We flew swiss air and checked her in as excess baggage (cost 200usd but she weighs 110 pounds -- might be less for smaller dogs).
There were some papers we had to provide prior to departure (currrent rabies shots etc) and when we arrived had to register her within 8 days with authorties here. When we arrived at zurich airport we put her on her leash and walked out of the airport .. noone even looked at the documents ! If there is anything else we can answer we know the process inside out so drop us a PM ... Best of luck !

Hi WorldFoodie,

Last year I wanted to travel with my dog (Boxer) to the U.S., but was concerned because of her short muzzle. So I researched and found some pretty useful links. Three I found were particularly helpful:

1. http://www.petsonthego.com/transairlineregs.html
This site includes a link called "Air Travel Consumer Report" which is provided by The Department of Transportation (DOT). It contains specific statistics on animal mishaps aboard domestic carriers (1998-2009).

2. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dq/animal/index.htm
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - Traveling with Pets, Importation of Animals and Animal Products into the United States. A lot of useful stuff under "Specific Topics", but most important "Animals Regulated by the CDC." Under that heading, select your animal (e.g. Dog) to see information about the importation into the U.S.

3. http://www.iata.org/whatwedo/cargo/l...imals/pets.htm
Traveler's Pet Corner - Shipping your dog or cat. Whether shipping via Currier or traveling with your pet, the proper transport container is a must. Choosing the correct size, measurements and other useful information can be found here.

Important: Whatever airline you choose, check their website regarding pet travel for guidelines and fees.

I hope the above links help to answer some, if not all, of your questions and concerns. Good luck & happy and safe travels!

-Odyssey

I am having exactly the same problems/questions!!! We're moving back to CA July 17th, but we're stopping in DC for 4 days to see family & friends & don't want to have to bring our 2 cats to a hotel for 4 days. So, I wanted to fly them out this Friday, July 10th, into SFO. Our neighbor is going to be picking them up & settling them in back home.

I called Air France because they had the shortest flight time for them & I've heard they're great with pets. They told me they only deal with a pet transportation service & the quote I got was 1700chf!!!!!

I'm on my way to the airport now to talk to multiple airlines face to face to try to get this sorted out. I'm afraid we may end up taking them with us to DC after all. I will let you know what I find out. What I do know FOR SURE is that they have to be up to date on all their vaccinations & rabies & be checked by a vet & get a health certificate that they are healthy to fly within 10 DAYS before travel. Talk to you soon.........

I have been dealing with trying to get my cats back home to California & it's a nightmare to get them out of Switzerland!!! I have called just about every airline & I even went to the Zurich airport to try to talk to someone face to face. Finally when I spoke with someone at Continental airlines he told me there are new regulations & can no longer book pets through the airlines, you MUST go through a pet broker/shipper. The quote we got for our 2 cats was 1700chf!!!!!

It seems there is nothing else I can do.....we're going to have to pay the 1700chf & be done with it. At least this way all of the paperwork will be handled for us & there won't be any surprises.

Just wanted to give everyone a heads up for when/if your time comes to fly your pets out of here.

Hi,

Don't give up Continential and Swiss both have numbers you can call that are devoted to pet travel. They weren't the nicest on the phone but in the end we were able to make it work. Another we did, was fly one airline to the US and then connect using our regular US airlines when got into the States.

We brought our two dogs over from the US in April to Zurich. They are Boston Terriers and small enough that they used to travel with us all the time in the cabin when we would take flights in the US from city to city.

I ran into a similar problem and looked into several of the pet travel places which were crazy expensive. I ended up figuring out which cities and airlines have direct flights from Zurich to the US. We decided to fly through JFK and stay the night before we left because it was the shortest flight option. We flew Swiss and they couldn't have been more nice and accommodating. Swiss was the only airline that I could guarantee they could come in the cabin as they meet the weight limit to fly in cabin in their Sherpa carriers and slept almost the whole way. The only downside was my husband and I had to fly on different flights because only so many dogs are allowed in the cabin. It was 200CHF each which was much better than the shipping companies.

I would think your cats would be similar or less in weight and would also be able to fly in the cabin. Plus they would have the comfort of being able to be with you.

The only problem we ran into was trying to get all the export forms from our state when leaving. We ended up having to drive to the capital the day before to get the forms signed by the State Vet Office. It differs by state but I'm pretty sure you have to fill out similar importation forms. However, after all the worry, customs in Switzerland of course didn't stop us to ask for anything. I have a feeling it may be different going into the US though.

Here's the site on Swiss that's useful with numbers (http://www.swiss.com/web/en/services...s/animals.aspx)

Good luck and safe travels!

I used Continental to send Lily from the US to Switzerland two years ago, and found them to be very helpful. What I'm wondering is whether or not the regulations are different when you leave Switzerland versus when you enter. It seems that the regulations might require that you use a shipper when you leave. Seems to be a bit of racket - animal shippers needing business. Or perhaps there have been too many problems.

Continental ships pets as expedited cargo and the price is based on the weight of the pet and crate. (For example, 65lbs of dog and crate were $800, over 70lbs, $1000. Continental was very good in providing me information about the size of the crate required (enormous), and we really had no problems, despite entering Switzerland with slightly wrong paperwork. But again, this was coming from the US to Switzerland 2 years ago.

I would call Continental in the United States - the pet safe program number is +1 832.235.1541
http://www.continental.com/web/en-US...s/default.aspx


One other option - KLM, the Dutch airlines has an "Animal Hotel" in Schipol Airport (Amsterdam) and I know that lots of animals are shipped out of A'dam. You might check with them. Air France and KLM are part of the same company (and I think Continental code shares with them), so it may or may not be helpful.

Edited to add... I just checked here
http://www.mypetmove.com/page/airline-info
and it looks like KLM will only work with a shipper, and obviously AF will only work with one as well. Still not sure about Continental

This is good to know, if we decide to go back to the US for any lenght of time, we'll have to take Lily and I'll need to plan this, I guess.

Good luck.