Dog on a Plane- UPDATE

[SadieA]

SO... Sammy is flying (with me, except not with me in the passenger part of the plane, per se) from France to Boston on Wednesday! I've got all the important regulation-type-items figured out- all the vet visits, crate measurements, etc. But, I'm curious about any advice from those who have traveled with dogs before, just in terms of how to make the poor little guy as comfortable as possible.

He's very very used to his crate, as he sleeps in it every night, and his bed will be in there, and I figured I'd throw in all his favorite toys too. Then I was planning to freeze a bowl of water, with a toy or treat hiding inside, to make sure he has water mid-trip. And of course I'll write his name all over his crate in the perhaps futile hope it will encourage someone to talk to him on the trip. But, any thoughts on other ways to make this as painless as possible for him? My general impression is that sedation is BAD, are we all agreed on that?

Thanks so much, all!

[patrick]

DO not sedate!!  It prevents the dog from being able to acclimate to changes in air pressure and temp while flying.  Most airlines prohibit sedation of any kind and if they think your dog is under the influence they will not let him board.  I don't give water during flight - it can slosh around and a wet crate is even more uncomfortable.  I do put a toy, a chewy and some dog biscuits in their crate for flight and be sure he has a comfy crate pad

[Pyr Heaven]

I work for an airline and I feel SO horrible for the dogs that have never flown before. I wouldn't recommend sedation, but some sort of calming something or other. Their nerves have got to be going nutso. Just think about it. Going into some weird place...being taken away in your bed by these weird people. Sitting in the bottom of a weird moving thing that makes your ears feel funny-all alone. Not fun if you ask me. hahaha


Sammy will be just fine though! I'm glad you're taking him. Unfortunately I don't know much about international customs and dogs by air, but I don't think you need much more info than you would flying domestically.

I would say, the water bowl would be fine. At least it is ok at our aiport.

Good Luck. I'm sure it will be just fine. 

[chaos270]

Everyone has pretty well summed up what you needed to know, not to mention you seam to pretty well prepared.

I want to tack on a little as far as identifying and notes. Tape a ziplock bag with his food and feeding instructions to the top of the crate, give him enough for one feeding with instructions stating such. Put the time of his last feeding and when he is expected to be fed again some time after your arrival in Boston. Tape the ziplock bag closed to the crate so that if it is tampered with it will be obvious.
Tape his info and your contact info plus that of someone at your destination and their address in two or more places. One on top and another on at least one of the crate sides. Remember to put the date and time in both Boston and Paris time and label them as such.

Keep it as simple but as thorough as possible. Most importantly let Sammy enjoy Boston's Emerald Necklace (the park system).

[SadieA]

Oh my gosh, I LOVE this note idea! Thank you so much! I'll definitely do that.

[SadieA]

Thank you all so much for the advice- these are great ideas! I'm sure it's going to be incredibly stressful for Sammy, and i think your ideas will help him a lot. And as for the emerald necklace- don't worry! I'm actually from Boston, returning home, so I know it well, and Sammy will soon too!

[SadieA]

So, we made it!! Sammy did very very well. He did pee in his crate a bit, but I think that's to be expected! When he came off the flight, he was just sitting in his crate looking around at the baggage claim, happy to see me!

However, I do have a new little problem. We're visiting my parents for a while, and they have a nine-year-old female golden, Maize. Maize is used to being an only dog, and she's always been the kind of dog that loves people and ignores other dogs. So, she is not loving Sammy. He's not actually hassling her as much as I was worried he might, being a puppy, but she basically wants nothing to do with him, always walks away and sits as far from him as she can, and if he ventures too close to her, she growls at him. Now I know this is to be expected, but Sammy is stuck here, for better or worse. What can I do to make this as painless as possible for Maizie? I know they probably won't ever be the best of friends, but I do  feel bad for her, having to put up with a strange puppy in HER house.

Thanks!

[jagersmom]

YAH!! I'm glad he made it safe and sound! I don't know about the tension but everyone arrived safe and thats the biggest thing!

[GoldenPyrs]

I'm very glad that you both arrived just fine.  I agree with everyone that I'd give Maize breaks from Sammy, and keep Sammy on a leash to help keep him from wearing her out.  I think that I'd also try to give him a couple of good walks a day to take off some of his puppy energy.  I bet that as he feels more at home that he will calm down a little, and that should help, too.  Hopefully, Maize will do like my Daisy and let Sammy know with a growl when she's had enough and he'll learn to abide by that growl.  BTW, I just love his name!