schrevolution Posted March 16, 2014 Report Share Posted March 16, 2014 Hi, I'm wondering if others have had to ship there dogs because of moving, etc. I'm going to have to do this with Ziggy roundtrip because my family live way to far to drive (26hrs) and it gets way too hot for him to fly at the same time as me during the summer. He'll be over a year old when he has to go, but I was reading a little about fear stages and the article I was reading mentioned not shipping a dog during this age because it could be traumatic. To be honest, if I could do something less stressful I would, but I can't see kenneling him for five weeks. He'll also end up arriving before I am able to get home, maybe a few days before me depending on flight schedules so he'll be in the midst of my family and two very old (15 years) family dogs. I was curious about others' experiences, did you find your dogs were seriously rattled after being on a plane? I think once I get there and he realizes he hasn't been abandoned he'll be ok. I don't really know what I could do to make this easier for him, but I'm open to any suggestions others may have of things that worked for them. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dinkle Posted March 16, 2014 Report Share Posted March 16, 2014 Hi - I had to fly 3 dogs and a cat from the UK to Kenya and then 4 dogs and a cat back again from Kenya to the UK (we adopted another whilst we were there...) and I was terribly worried about it. I had 2 very sensitive greyhounds who didn't do well in kennels at all so I thought that flying them would be about more than they could cope with. But I have to say that after neither flight were they unduly stressed - excited at seeing me again yes! As they travel in a climate controlled section of the plane - the outside temperature isn't an issue (and let's face it that at that altitude, summer heat isn't the problem!) as long as they travel in an appropriately ventilated crate they are fine in that respect (and I don't think airlines allow otherwise anyway). They are given water and food and just sleep :-) Even our Kenyan adoptee who absolutely freaks travelling in cars was fine in a crate in the plane. If you already use a crate for him then that's great as it's his safe place anyway - if not, it might be an idea to introduce one and get him used to it. But having said that, I didn't have the opportunity to do that with mine and they hopped into the crates like they were born to it anyway :-) Good luck and try not to worry - I assure you that I fretted for weeks over it and was horrified when I realised they couldn't so much as have rescue remedy to calm them....but I really needn't have! As you say - once he sees you again the journey ends with a very happy association for him (with a little snooze in between) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G. Festerling Posted March 16, 2014 Report Share Posted March 16, 2014 I dont know about the fearstage but years ago I took my non crate trained dog, put her in one on a big trip from the US to Germany. Long delayed trip due to weather and yet she was fine. That was traveling at the same times as me. Since then I have received (for friends mainly) several dogs at the airport and none seemed to have issues that were not there before already. Had one I refused to take out of the crate due tu known super aggression tendencies. One of my girls came in at about five months and had no problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schrevolution Posted March 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2014 Thanks for the replies, I feel a bit better now. Ziggy loves his crate and the flight is only 3 hrs nonstop much shorter than a UK->Kenya or US->Germany trip I'm guessing and if a new rescue can make it I'm guessing mine will be fine I'm guessing he'll bounce back quick, as dogs are apt to do, even after a nosiy airplane flight. I know my family will lavish him with cuddles when he arrives so I don't know if he'll really get a chance to mope while waiting for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donald McCaig Posted March 17, 2014 Report Share Posted March 17, 2014 Dear Travelers, Contact your chosen airline's air cargo for detailed instructions. Donald McCaig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted March 17, 2014 Report Share Posted March 17, 2014 FWIW, it's not the temps while flying in warm months that are the issue, but rather waiting on the tarmac.... J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dinkle Posted March 18, 2014 Report Share Posted March 18, 2014 FWIW, it's not the temps while flying in warm months that are the issue, but rather waiting on the tarmac.... J. appreciate that, but good airlines/airports have animal welfare practices in place that minimise this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G. Festerling Posted March 18, 2014 Report Share Posted March 18, 2014 Still check! And double check. Google, ask for references. Too much goes wrong. All those practices do squat when employees don't adhere to them. Or when there are problems which may delay things for some reason. When I did it 20some years ago, I blindly trusted the airline. Today, I read too much and see too much to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted March 18, 2014 Report Share Posted March 18, 2014 ^^Exactly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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