sending a dog....alone

[truebrit 4]

hi.

quicky question...

has anyone sent a dog over to the usa, alone?

i took my dog with me in 2008 and she returned with me in 2009, i am wondering if it is possible to send her on her own on the plane, she would be collected at the airport on the usa side by my hubby.

the reason being is because she is an akita and they dont allow animals to be transported if the weather is too hot or too cold, she has a certificate from the uk vets saying she can withstand colder temperatures than is allowed, i think it is -8 degrees more than they say...but on the hot side there is no leway....looking at my process i think it is going to be around july august time for me to be going over to usa....this is really not good for my dog...

thanks for any advise...

[Nik+Heather 121]

I haven't read the pinned thread about bringing pets from the UK, but I wanted to bring it to your attention in case you missed it.

I've never transported pets so I can't be so much help on a past experience level, but I have read about it when I was thinking about moving a few years ago. A lot of the guidance seemed to be based on constant knowledge of the pet's location - and if they had been loaded on time but then there were delays at the gate making sure that they were unloaded/checked on. With all of the security on airlines, I'm not sure how well a non-passenger could monitor such things.

Have you considered a pet airline (do they do international? I just remember a "quirky news" article) or another form of shipping which isn't on regular passenger aircraft?

[truebrit 4]

hi,

thanks

i have read this link and i have also, i think, contributed to it....in a previous life...lol...

i know that continental airlines dont accept a dog on its own...even though there is someone at the other side...

(we went continental both going and returning)

transporting my dog was horrendous...really....i thought my trip was hard...but...my dog took the biscuit...

to start with, i called DEFRA who after telling them my situation asked me what kind of SNAKE she is...i was gobsmacked! it reduced all faith i had in dealing with this government agency!

i got the rabies and injections (i had more injections than her!)...the vet then mixed up her chip number with her brothers...and the rabies report...though it was fine, came back with the wrong info...because i never thought to read and check this number....it wasnt until the SUNDAY EVENING before my early morning flight that i noticed the error, i called the vet...who by the way, was great....he asked me up to the surgery so he could correct this mistake...all corrected my dog was shipped no problems to america...with myself...she was drawing all kind of attention from everyone she met...

on returning...i met with APHIS (the usa version of DEFRA) who actually knew what an akita is...they got kinda confused about her rabies injection though as in the UK is is classed as a three year injection but over there it is only one year...she was allowed to travel eventually, without having another rabies (which the original expires this month) she didnt have a pet passport as such, the EEC type....just lots and lots of paperwork.

the return journey was straight forward...i used airborne animals on the usa side and pets on jets for importing into manchester....

there was no paperwork done for my dog, other than the invoice to travel, (not like leaving the uk) and pet on jets had no idea that she was even on the plane....she was left in her crate on the runway at manchester for 4 hours...it was HOT and she was so happy to see me when they eventually found her...i was cra**ing myself because i didnt even know if she was ever on the plane...

soooo....when she arrived at newark airport she was taken from me, loaded on the plane, and loaded off at manchester...taken somewhere else and eventually was back with me...so to be honest, i cant see why she could not travel alone....and yes, i realise this is a long winded reason why not.

i really have no faith in pet transporters but it seems i have to use one...unless the rules have changed somewhat since 2007

[Nik+Heather 121]

Yeah...as I suspected, I know next to nothing after all. We only have cats, which I think you can tuck under the seats in front of you, so!

[truebrit 4]

Yeah...as I suspected, I know next to nothing after all. We only have cats, which I think you can tuck under the seats in front of you, so!

thanks

i wish the first time i could have just stuffed her under the seat...lmao...

your reply WAS helpful...it reminded me about the pet post

ANY advise is good.

have a good day.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Just a quick qn. Do you think July/August is when you'll get your visa? Or July/August when you can fly out? If the former you could wait a little while because the visa has a 6 month validity.

Could your husband come to the UK for a visit and take the dog back with him?

Could you go over for a visit and take the dog?

Could you postpone your visa process (by taking a while to return docs or rescheduling interview) to give you more time to fly over with her?

Just some ideas. I would try a pet carrier company first. Hopefully someone knows a good one. I know I personally couldn't send my dog without me or someone else able to check on her...

[truebrit 4]

Just a quick qn. Do you think July/August is when you'll get your visa? Or July/August when you can fly out? If the former you could wait a little while because the visa has a 6 month validity.

Could your husband come to the UK for a visit and take the dog back with him?

Could you go over for a visit and take the dog?

Could you postpone your visa process (by taking a while to return docs or rescheduling interview) to give you more time to fly over with her?

Just some ideas. I would try a pet carrier company first. Hopefully someone knows a good one. I know I personally couldn't send my dog without me or someone else able to check on her...

if everything goes straight forward...filed 130 in sept, looking at approval in feb/march...then nvc april/may.....visa...june ish....flight july/august (hopefully things will go a lot quicker though!)...sooner than later!! i should have been on a return flight 18 months ago...but things happened, and i got stuck here

my hubby comes over in january, we are looking into him returning home with my dog, but...this comes down to money as it isnt cheap...

as far as i am aware - i cant visit there while this is all being processed.

pospone visa?? - stop swearing at me....lmao....

next week i am sending out emails to a few companies i tried the last time...

thanks

[VanessaTony 3,567]

if everything goes straight forward...filed 130 in sept, looking at approval in feb/march...then nvc april/may.....visa...june ish....flight july/august (hopefully things will go a lot quicker though!)...sooner than later!! i should have been on a return flight 18 months ago...but things happened, and i got stuck here

my hubby comes over in january, we are looking into him returning home with my dog, but...this comes down to money as it isnt cheap...

as far as i am aware - i cant visit there while this is all being processed.

pospone visa?? - stop swearing at me....lmao....

next week i am sending out emails to a few companies i tried the last time...

thanks

You can indeed visit him while the process is going on. Take a copy of your NOA1 to prove you're going about it the legal way. Show strong ties to your home country and you should be fine.

Hopefully your hubby can take him in Jan but if not hopefully you can arrange a visit.

[Used to be broken 147]

You can indeed visit him while the process is going on. Take a copy of your NOA1 to prove you're going about it the legal way. Show strong ties to your home country and you should be fine.

Hopefully your hubby can take him in Jan but if not hopefully you can arrange a visit.

Your pushing it to think you can do the January flight because of temps and also the summer trip because of temps. Just went through this with my pet this summer, not able to fly him to Europe because it was too hot on the runway here in US.

Here is an idea. . its expensive but sometimes they have cheap direct flights from UK to Canada and from the US to Canada.. keep an eye out for that, just meet there and he can pick up the dog there... don't switch flights it risks losing the dog.

[truebrit 4]

Your pushing it to think you can do the January flight because of temps and also the summer trip because of temps. Just went through this with my pet this summer, not able to fly him to Europe because it was too hot on the runway here in US.

Here is an idea. . its expensive but sometimes they have cheap direct flights from UK to Canada and from the US to Canada.. keep an eye out for that, just meet there and he can pick up the dog there... don't switch flights it risks losing the dog.

hi

i missed this reply...sorry...

my dog shouldnt be a problem in january, i originally flew with her on 13th jan 08 and she also has a certificate from the vets saying she can withstand colder temperatures than recommended by the airline - because she is a 'double coated' breed, an akita...

going to canada myself with my dog isnt an option, i only have a week off work and for some reason i have landed working a day in the middle of that holiday week...i have no idea how my boss has worked that one out? baffles me!! lol

personally i think it is all a crock of ####### after what my dog was put through on her landing back in the uk. it is just a way of people making money and they really dont give a ####### once the dog is out of their hands and on the plane.

manchester never even knew she was on the plane and she was left in (yes - unbelievable i know) really hot tempretures on manchester runway for over 4 hours watching planes flying around her! we paid over $2500 for that journey for her.

though my initial query was ' can she fly alone' i am still looking into this and not having much success as airlines keep palming me off with other departments....

frustrating.

[Rebecca Jo 1,962]

You can come over on the QM2 and bring your dog. Not as expensive as you think.

[Used to be broken 147]

my hubby comes over in january, we are looking into him returning home with my dog, but...this comes down to money as it isnt cheap...

as far as i am aware - i cant visit there while this is all being processed.

If your husband is already scheduled round trip, you should look into having him bring the dog back, its not that expensive less than $200 to fly cargo. Much much cheaper than flying the dog solo... that is crazy money. I got a couple quotes, makes no sense to do it that way.