[smallmans]

Hi There,
My gosh, you sound just like I did when it was time to fly with my little Bella. She is a ball of energy, always moving unless she is asleep. I was a nervous wreck about flying with her. Worried she would bark and annoy the other passengers. Well we've flown from western NY to Phoenix AZ with her two times now and it went very well. Here are my little bits of wisdom that might help you out.
1. Be sure you have a "vet" certificate certifying your furbaby is healthy. There is a time limit that they are good for so be sure you know what your airline expects. You also need "rabies" shot proof if leaving and flying between states.
2. Call the Jet Blue pet reservation line to register your furbaby for the flight as they limit the number of pets per flight.
3. Get your airline carrier, now. We started by just letting Bella go in and out of it as it sat around. We then started taking her in the car and traveling in it. The trips got longer. She is normally not contained in the car so this was new for her. We found she calmed down very quickly if we covered the carrier with a small blanket. We also took her to Starbucks in the carrier and sat outside so she could get used to seeing people move around her. It was a slow and careful process, but well worth the effort.
4. The day of the flight we got her up early, took her on a long walk, played ball ALOT in the house and kept waking her if she started to nap. We also limited her food and water intake to just enough so we knew she wouldn't be hungry or thirsty. We left at 2:00 p.m. in the afternoon. When we arrived at the airport we took her to the pet area to potty one more time and then it was back in the carrier, covered with the blanket. About 20 minutes before the flight we gave her a "vet approved" dose of Benadryll. We just took her out of the carrier and gave it to her at the gate before boarding. It made her sleepy. She slept the entire flight. We kept her under the seat and covered. We didn't lift it out but peeked to be sure she was okay. She woke up about an hour before we landed. We talked to her quietly and she only whimpered a little. It is very noisy in the plane. We could barely hear her. The constant drone of the engines and her location under the seat made it impossible for others to hear her. In fact, no one knew she was even on the plane. As soon as we got off the plane I took her immediately to the pet area while my husband collected the bags.
5. We also sprayed her carrier pad with DAP (dog appeasing pheramone) it's an imitation of the pheramone a lactating dog releases to keep her puppies calm and relaxed. You can buy it on the internet. Our vet recommeded that and Benadryll as opposed to anything stronger.

I know how concerned you are. I was, too! But I've done it twice now. It just takes some some extra work to get them ready. If you put in the time now you'll be just fine. In fact, Bella arrived happy, healthy, and active and I was exhausted from worrying. The second flight was better for me. I think the third time will be a charm for both of us.

I'll pm my phone number if you want to talk in person. Believe me, I understand.
Take care, it will be okay. Your furbaby will do great, you'll just be worn out at the end of the day.