I Need Help!

[LilyOfTheValley]

I am writing to ask you wonderful Yorkie lovers if you could please provide any advice, feedback, help, personal experiences, anything on our situation.

A dear friend of mine in Arizona had a stroke and has decided she can no longer care for her Yorkie named Yogi. Since my hubby and I are experienced Yorkie parents, and she and I have known each other for several years, she wants more than anything for us to take Yogi. (Of course, if she ever wanted him back, we would return him.) He is currently with a wonderful rescue lady in Tucson, but he must be out of her home by Aug. 13.

We have put a rescue plan into place where my hubby will fly out out of DFW to Tucson to get Yogi and fly back with him the same day. When I called airline reservations, on two occasions, and talked with a different reservations agent each time, I was given the same generous dimensions under for his pet carrier to go under the seat. However, when I called this week, it was an entirely different story. Now they say that the height of the carrier can be no more than nine inches, and that he must be able to stand up and turn around comfortably. Yogi is a super-sized Yorkie, about 12 pounds, and he measures 14 inches from floor to top of head, and 10 inches from tummy to top of head (laying down measurements). My Celltei bag is 11 3/4 inches but soft sided so we could get it to fit the nine inch requirement. Yogi will be lightly sedated, and probably sleeping, and it is only a two-hour flight. Our worst fear is that my husband might encounter a problem at the counter when he gets Yogi's ticket (which must be done in person so they can see the dog), or at the security checkpoint, or at the gate if he encounters someone who is a "by-the-book" type of employee. He will have Yogi's proof of rabies and his 10-day medical certificate, but if they will not let him board with Yogi, he will have to give him back to the rescue person and fly back dogless.

I've talked to someone who flies a lot with her Yorkies for dog shows, and she feels he will not have a problem as long as Den keeps a low profile. (That will be a trick for a six-foot man with a short grey beard and a cute Yorkie under his arm.) Someone on another board who had been a stewardess for 12 years said she had never seen this rule enforced, that she thought it would be fine. After all, it's only a two-hour flight.

So if any of you could please give a moment of your time with a quick response regarding any experience or personal story you have had with taking a Yorkie on an airline flight in the passenger cabin, please pass it along. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks to you all.

Sandy

[bellaismybaby]

You should be fine. All of the Celltei carriers are airline approved. When you go through the check point he will carry the pup through the scanner and the bag will go through the machine. They won't even really see the pup in the bag. When I went to get Izzie and fly back the same day I was worried too. But she didn't even go in the bag until we took off, then I put her and the bag on my lap for the flight. As long as the bag is comfortable for the dog and it will fit under the seat you should be OK.
Good luck with your new baby!

[TootiesMom]

I flew home with Hope and they never even asked to see her carrier... he just took my $$ and gave me a tag for it.. I dont think he will have a problem.
d

[Yorkiekids]

I think you'll be fine. It's still small enough not to get in the way.

[rnnw62]

I flew about a month ago with one of mine. Although she
was tiny no one even looked at her to see her size. They
wanted the money at the counter and that was it. I think
you'll be just fine. You might want to see if the rescue
person is willing to start the dog on getting used to being
confined in a travel type of bag now so once the time
comes it won't come as a completely new experience.
I personally wouldn't sedate an animal to travel unless it
was absolutely necessary. You might want to talk to the
vet about that and get his thoughts. Good luck with the
new furkid! Your doing a very kind thing going to the extent
you are for your friend and this dog. I am in AZ so if there
would be some problem get ahold of me and I will help you
out if something does go wrong. Tell your hubby to have
a safe trip!

[ladyj]

Originally Posted by LilyOfTheValley

I am writing to ask you wonderful Yorkie lovers if you could please provide any advice, feedback, help, personal experiences, anything on our situation.

A dear friend of mine in Arizona had a stroke and has decided she can no longer care for her Yorkie named Yogi. Since my hubby and I are experienced Yorkie parents, and she and I have known each other for several years, she wants more than anything for us to take Yogi. (Of course, if she ever wanted him back, we would return him.) He is currently with a wonderful rescue lady in Tucson, but he must be out of her home by Aug. 13.

We have put a rescue plan into place where my hubby will fly out out of DFW to Tucson to get Yogi and fly back with him the same day. When I called airline reservations, on two occasions, and talked with a different reservations agent each time, I was given the same generous dimensions under for his pet carrier to go under the seat. However, when I called this week, it was an entirely different story. Now they say that the height of the carrier can be no more than nine inches, and that he must be able to stand up and turn around comfortably. Yogi is a super-sized Yorkie, about 12 pounds, and he measures 14 inches from floor to top of head, and 10 inches from tummy to top of head (laying down measurements). My Celltei bag is 11 3/4 inches but soft sided so we could get it to fit the nine inch requirement. Yogi will be lightly sedated, and probably sleeping, and it is only a two-hour flight. Our worst fear is that my husband might encounter a problem at the counter when he gets Yogi's ticket (which must be done in person so they can see the dog), or at the security checkpoint, or at the gate if he encounters someone who is a "by-the-book" type of employee. He will have Yogi's proof of rabies and his 10-day medical certificate, but if they will not let him board with Yogi, he will have to give him back to the rescue person and fly back dogless.

I've talked to someone who flies a lot with her Yorkies for dog shows, and she feels he will not have a problem as long as Den keeps a low profile. (That will be a trick for a six-foot man with a short grey beard and a cute Yorkie under his arm.) Someone on another board who had been a stewardess for 12 years said she had never seen this rule enforced, that she thought it would be fine. After all, it's only a two-hour flight.

So if any of you could please give a moment of your time with a quick response regarding any experience or personal story you have had with taking a Yorkie on an airline flight in the passenger cabin, please pass it along. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks to you all.

Sandy

Have you checked with a different airline? I have flown with my Bichon many times on Delta and the regulations were that the dog weighed less than 20 pounds and the carrier would fit under the seat. The 9-inches rule would keep most dogs from flying!

[Sookie]

When I picked up Kalina from the breeder I actually had a carrier that was the dimensions they quoted. They told me it was too big (turned out it would have fit perfectly with room to spare) and they made me buy this tiny little carrier for $50. It was a horrible little plastic BOX. Kalina only weighed 2lb 2oz and she barely fit it in. I had a really bad experience.

I wound up holding the puppy on my lap on the flight home, but that was because my seat mate was ok with it and so was the flight attendant. It gets very, very cold under the seat, so make sure you have a little blanket for the puppy just in case...the air conditioning blows really hard under the seats.

Here's the thread I posted about my problems.http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=84027

I hope your husband has better luck.

[YorkieTime07]

Haven't had a flight experience yet so i can't give advice on that but i wanted to say that what you are doing for your friend is wonderful and you'll probably never know how much peace you have given your dear friend by doing this!!! I commend you and your hubby and wish you the best with your new baby and know that you both will be blessed 100 fold for your generosity and kindness!! What a giving heart you two have!!!

[LilyOfTheValley]

Thank you all for your support and suggestions. I will FedEx the pet bag to Tucson with a nice ripe, smelly, stinky tee shirt I made my hubby wear for three days. The foster mommy will leave it in the x-pen when she goes out and put toys and treats in it. When she is home, she will put him in it for short periods and even take him for a ride in the car so he gets used to engine noise and vibrations.

I am still worried about the outcome. I hope my hubby is not stranded at the airport with Yogi, unable to fly, and the foster mom is long gone. She needs him out of her house by the 13th, and I don't even know if she would take him back or hang around to find out if they were both able to board the plane. Talk about being between a rock and a hard place!

Sookie, I give you credit. What a nightmare! I am so grateful we are not flying that airline. How stupid of them to make you stuff a tiny baby into what amounts to a matchbox, especially when your carrier would have fit just fine. Where do they find these morons? I used to have migraines complete with vomiting so I know how miserable and embarrassed you must have been.

I was wondering if those of you who have flown would mind telling me which airline you used? Also, has anyone tried to fly with a dog out of Tucson?

Thanks again everyone. I am grateful for your help. If Den wasn't in the middle of a job search, we could have taken a week and had a nice leisurely drive out and back, with several days spent there to bond with Yogi. Unfortunately, Den must stay here so he can be available for interviews--they don't give you much notice, and if you're not available when they have a time slot, they just go to the next person on their list. That's why he's doing the out-and-back thing on a Saturday, and a particular health problem I'm having right now requires me to stay close to home.

If I had known about the Yorkie Train, it might have been a better solution, considering the relatively short distance (a 14-hour drive between Tuscon and Dallas according to Map Quest) and Yogi's larger-than-average Yorkie dimensions, and I could have paid it forward after I recover from my surgery in September. So close, but so far. I will be a wreck until I see them both come through the front door.

Thank you all for your help.

Sandy

P.S. I've attached some photos of Yogi. He sure is a handsome little man.

[Sookie]

I flew Northwest and do not recommend it at all, as you know from my story. They have been in the news last week for grounding well over 100 flights - all on the same day.

I wish you luck. I can't wait to hear how it all turns out. Your new little guy is adorable.

[laurenr]

Bless you for what you are doing for your friend. Yogi is just too precious for words!
I have heard many great thing about Continental Airlines, and from what I know of them, they are super pet-friendly. I have read other posts on these forums that have used Continental with great success in transporting their Yorkies.
Good luck to you! Yogi looks like an absolute treasure!

Lauren

[laurenr]

One more thing - I did a search on these forums and found this great link for pet travel:

http://www.pettravel.com/airline_rules.cfm

Hope that helps!

[Tinkerbelle1]

I don't have any flying advice. I just wanted to say what a wonderful thing you are doing for Yogi and his mom. He is just too handsome. Good Luck.



j

[Xena'smommy]

I'd be happy to help here in AZ as well if you need anything. Good luck!

[Patti]

I flew with my Yorkie years ago and the flight to Florida was great, they let me have him on my lap. At that time I flew Delta. Yogi is a beautiful guy.