Airplanes?
 

I don't need to do this anytime soon...but I was wondering if any of you have ever flown with your baby? In a couple of years my fiancee and I are planning to move. For holidays and such we will be flying home. I would NEVER board Syd at a kennel (heard too many horror stories) so I intend to take her with me on the plane. Since she is small and I have a purse type carrier...she could be my carry-on luggage. I would never consider sending her with cargo. But will the changes in altitude hurt her ears? Has anyone ever attempted this?

You may want to check with the airlines, but I don't think you can fly with her in a pocketbook type bag. A friend of mine flew with her Yorkie & she had to keep her in a crate. She was not allowed to take her out of the crate at all during the flight or anywhere inside the airport. Plus she had to pay extra to fly with her in the cabin (rather than cargo). Good luck!!

yuck!
 

Hmmm...I don't like the sounds of that! I expected to not be able to take her out of her crate on the plane. But why the extra $? I am really against sending her in the unheated/uncooled cargo area. Plus...have you ever watched your luggage get loaded? They are sooooooo rough. I think I'll look on Petfriendly.com and see if they have anything on there about airlines.

The airlines will only allow one animal in the cabin on a flight, so be prepared to book early, and pay around $50.00 for the flight. You do have to have a crate that will fit under the seat in front of you, and it has to be solid. If someone has booked ahead of you then they will say that your pet will have to fly cargo.
Also it is best if your vet gives a tranqualizer before the flight.
This comes from my 25 years as a travel agent, but you better check with the airline to make sure of their rules.

Yeah - and the extra $$ was a few hundred dollars, not a small fee! I hope you find something that works out!!

Ahhhhhh!
 

So should I just plan on driving?

What distance are you talking about. Figure the flying time, the down time at the airport, the time it takes to get you to and from the airport in both directions, and then figure how long it would take to drive. Sometimes you will be surprised that you are only paying for speed not comfort.

....
 

Just say he's a service animal. He'll fly free.

I flew with one of my girls 2 times, round trip, from California to New York. Yes, you have to pay extra...it was about 4 years ago, and I had to pay $50 to have her stay with me. Yes, they are supposed to be in a crate type thing that will fit under your seat (they will tell you the size). I had her in a soft crate, that zipped all around and had plenty of screening for air circulation. You definitely have to keep her in there when you're landing or taking off, but during the flight, if it's not too crowded, and depending on the stewardesses how nice they are, I kept her on my seat with me most of the time. Try to sit in the back of the plane, or where the exits are, so you have more room. And, if you take a nite flight, they are usually more lax. I also had the vet give me some pills to take with me so I caould keep her sedated. But, looking back on it, I didn't like giving her the drugs, it made her so dopey. I think the movement of the airplane itself would've lulled her to sleep anyway. Just don't be real obvious with her and it should work out fine. Oh, and in the airport terminal, you have to keep them in the crate, too. But, when I was waiting for the plane, I took her out once again. :thumbup:

This is one of the reasons I have yorkies. They are so small and so easy to travel with. There are lots of "airline approved" carriers now and they look like purse carriers. They are really cute. Just ask if they are airline approved before you buy it. It is true too that, if they are service animals, there is no "extra charge". Mine are service animals. It is not hard to qualify them as service animals either.

?
 

How do you do that?

It will be about 650 miles...about 10 hrs. I believe that is 1.5 to 2 hr flight.

Problem with driving is that she isn't the best car-rider. Plus we'd have to find a hotel that would allow her if we stop...and what about when we stop to eat?

We are flying from CT to Michigan (Detroit) and then a smaller plane from Detroit to Pellston July 1st.

We fly Northwest Airlines and they only allow one animal in the cabin as carry on PER FLIGHT, so we had to make advanced reservations to make sure she was the 1 dog.

They also charge $80 each way for her to come as carryon with us.

PLAN AHEAD if you want to have your dog in the cabin with you!!

We have a airline approved soft sided bag, it's like a small duffel bag

They also said I have to have a vet signed document less then 10 days from the departing flight

?
 

Does anybody else think that this is a little crazy? I've been on flights next to someone with strep throat (did they have to have a signed paper from their doctor saying they were healthy?) and people with multiple crying babies (they allow more than 1 baby on the flight). Both of these things plus a host of others are more obnoxious than any of our dogs could possibly be!!!

Ok, sorry I got a little angry there. Well I'll look into making her a service dog...and go from there. However it looks like we may do a lot of driving. :(

The law is spelled out in the Americans with Disabilities Act, but basically all you have to say is that yours is a service animal and technically, there is no proof of trainng nor any special license required and they cannot ask you what your disability is. Almost anyone can qualify because we all have some minor disablity of some sort.

Service animals are animals that assist people with "disabilities" whether they be hard of hearing in one ear, a diabetic, can\'t see well, an epileptic, high blood pressure, anxiety disorders or whatever. If the dog is trained, or is being trained to, bring yu your purse, your cell phone, bark when the doorbell or the phone rings, push a button to call 911 in an emergency, calm you when you are anxious, detect a change in body temperature reflecting a need for medication, whatever, they are a service animals.

Although it\'s not required you can get a Service Animal Certificate from the Service Animal Registry of America by filling out an applicatio. You can be the trainer and pay the $30 fee and they send you a laminated card. Just google it and you will find it. You can also get patches and vests and leash tags identifying your dog as a service animal from Raspberryfields.com or others. They are easy to find on the internet. Service animals who are assisiting their owners have to be allowed access to any place that an able bodies person is allowed without extra charge.