Have Large Dog, Would Love to Travel
August 3, 2009 · Posted in anne k, authors, pets, planning, travel by anne k.
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Dottie tries to stowaway {from Author’s Personal Collection}
We are the owners of a large dog. Dottie is 70lbs to be exact. There are many restrictions for flying with large dogs, such as they are only flown when the outside temperatures are between 45 degrees and 85 degrees. When they are flown, they are placed in the cargo hold with the luggage. It’s a special section of the cargo hold, but it’s the cargo hold nonetheless. The thought of her being handled like luggage doesn’t sit well with us. So, we have been kenneling her or leaving her with friends while we are away. It’s not our favorite solution. Whenever I see people toting their little dogs in carriers at airport terminals, I am envious.
We are in the midst of planning a trip to visit family on the East Coast and are entertaining the idea of bringing Dottie with us. She’s a member of our family and we really hate leaving for long periods of time. Since we prefer not to fly with her in cargo, our only option would be to drive to our destination. Driving cross-country is not always as fun nor as exciting as it sounds. The biggest downside to driving cross-country is the amount of time it requires. We would spend most of our vacation on the road and have limited time to spend with our family.
Recently, I was told about Pet Airways. I’m looking into it as a possible solution to our dilemma.
Here’s how the company describes themselves {Excerpt from PetAirways Press Release}:
Pet Airways ensures pets are in the good hands of people who love and know how to take care of pets. From the moment a pet is dropped off at a Pet Lounge, the pet is always under the care of trained Pet Attendants. Monitored by Pet Attendants, pets will fly in planes that are fully-lit, climate-controlled and have the proper level of fresh air circulation that pets require. Pawsengers will be boarded and de-boarded from planes as quickly as possible, never left in the cold or heat, and depending on transit time, will be offered toilet facilities, food and water as necessary during stops. Pet Parents will be assured of sensitive, careful handling and the peace of mind that their pets are well looked after by people who care as much about their pets as they do. The Pet Airways goal is to make the pet travel experience more comfortable and enjoyable for both pawsengers and their human families.
Pet Airways plane {from company’s website}
Pet Airways Interior of the plane {from company’s website}
This sounds like a solution for us. We live in one of their service cities. They seem to be affordable, but it seems almost too good to be true. So I was wondering…
Have any EAD readers flown their pet with Pet Airways? Or do you have suggestions or advice for flying with a large dog?
I believe Pet Airways just made their first flight on July 15, so they are still very, very new. I think it’s a great alternative available to people in their select service cities, but I would have a lot of questions before using them. For instance, obviously, your flight and your pet’s flight wouldn’t be scheduled at the same time, so what if your flight leaves, and then your pet’s flight is canceled due to weather later in the day (or vice versa)?
I’m looking forward to hearing from more people who do this too. Luckily, our family is only a six hour car ride so they usually come with us or get boarded.
What breed is Dottie?? She looks nearly identical to our dog, who we think is a pitbull mix, but since he was a stray, we’re really not sure what he is!
i just read through all of their website and it looks awesome, although with them being so new i’d definitely want to find out as much as possible. we’re lucky, charlie can fly under the seat, but this seems like a great option!
We are definitely going to go this route. I plan to blog about our experience. We are going from L.A. to D.C. According to their site, this means Dottie will have an overnight layover in Chicago.
Becky & Elizabeth - Those are really great questions to ask and things to consider.
Kanishka - I’ll definitely keep you abreast of how well this works.
Erin-Kelley - Dottie is an American Staffordshire Terrier, which is the same family as an American Pitbull Terrier. In some locales, they get lumped into one category - Pitbull.
Hi, I am sure Pet Airways is good, and much safer (for everyone) than driving!
Sadly, Amtrak does not allow pet dogs, but public transport in Boston and Metro North railway (NYC to its suburbs) does! The Metro North thing is unofficial, but quite known. In either case, this is just for off-peak, and I think doggie is free, but will need a muzzle of some sort.
I love pits who have good human companions, but unfortunately - and stupidly - they are banned in Ontario and in some EU countries (which also allow pet dogs on most intercity and urban transport.) such as the UK and Hungary.
If a car rental company does not allow pet dogs, I would just have one of the humans and the dog hang out somewhere else when the driver is doing their business, BUT of course the dog prohibition could exist because of allergies of people who use the car later.
Also, I am sure you know how dangerous it can be to keep a dog in a closed car, but if you have a good place for it to hang while you are visiting museums etc then no prob….
I haven’t heard of this, it looks really interesting! I’m not sure it would work for us though. Bones (another Dottie lookalike) would probably be fine, but Rusty (a 95 lb Rhodesian Ridgeback mix) would be entirely too freaked out. Assuming he could even fit into one of their crates there would have to be a lot of drugs involved. Fortunately we’re all pretty used to driving long distances. In fact, when I first got Rusty we were travelling so much he was more comfortable in my truck than at home for months!
I can’t wait to hear about how it works for you!
We traveled with our 63 lb. English Springer Spaniel from SF to NY twice round trip on Continental. They don’t have the temp restrictions that I found on other airlines. He did have to go cargo and he did have to transfer planes, but the people were all very caring and really nice to him. They gave him water and food and didn’t mind his constant barking (he’s not really crate trained and has separation anxiety). Over all I recommend them. The one snafu we had was that the rules aren’t always consistent. On his way back home, on his first flight, the NY airport said the crate was too small so made us buy another one before they’d accept him. We’ve not has a problem with the crate since.
Can’t wait to hear how it goes. Thanks!
