flying with cats (safe, dog, vet, travel)

[mamom1]

Does anyone know if it is possible/advisible to fly oversees with cats? We may need to move to Europe for my husband's job and I don't know what else to do with the cats. I don't know anyone who would be willing to take care of them until we get back and I cannot bear to bring them to the shelter.

Any thoughts?

[beachmouse]

It's possible, but you need to start the process as soon as possible to shorten or eliminate quarantine in some receiving countries.

Some broad guidelines:

International Pet Travel, Dog Cat Pet Quarantine, Importing Pets

There should be a vet in most metro areas of the country who has experience in dealing with any necessary vaccinations and paperwork.

It's common for pets to fly in the pressurized and climate controlled part of the cargo hold on long flights. Each airline has requirements on pet enclosure requirements for those flights, and many airlines will not fly pets in summer hear or winter cold because of concerns about them spending too much time on the tarmac in harsh weather conditions while they're waiting to be loaded.

[nancy thereader]

When I moved to California, Gracie stayed in her cat carrier underneath my seat. Jet Blue charged $100. for her ticket & the vet gave me tranquilizers for her that I really did not need.

I did have a chip put into her though just in case she escaped or anything.

[maincoon]

Originally Posted by mamom1

Does anyone know if it is possible/advisible to fly oversees with cats? We may need to move to Europe for my husband's job and I don't know what else to do with the cats. I don't know anyone who would be willing to take care of them until we get back and I cannot bear to bring them to the shelter.

Any thoughts?

It's perfectly possible to move overseas with your cats so please do not consider leaving them behind. If you have more than one cat, you're probably better off hiring a pet mover. They arrange all paper works and see to it that your cats travel safely door-to-door (They pick up and deliver them to you at the destination). They pick airlines that have weather-controlled waiting rooms so that your animals stay safe during transit. They also have attendants who take the animals out for a rest during transit. Mines had a layover in Amsterdam where they stayed in a pet hotel because the airline that had no direct flight. It costs me $3000 for 3 cats. That's a lot of money but peace of mind that service brought for me was priceless. If you like, you can google under pet movers. Good luck.