Pet travel is very different from human travel and there are certain procedures we must adhere to.
We will need the following information from you in order to book your pet's flight(s):
- Proposed travel date (Mon-Thurs)
- Name, address & phone number of where your pet has been residing in the USA
- Name, address & phone number of where your pet will be living in your destination country
- Copy of your own e-ticket
- Pet details (name, age, breed, weight, dimensions, travel kennel size)
In many cases, pets cannot travel over the weekend - they must arrive to the destination Monday to Friday.
Flight Booking Windows
Booking a pet as cargo works very differently than the way you would book your own passenger ticket. We can only book the flight(s) for pets when the airline's cargo booking window opens. In many cases, this is only 10-14 days prior to departure. This is an airline requirement that we must comply with. Even if we try to request the flight(s) sooner, the airline will not give us a final confirmation until 7-14 days prior to departure. We will let you know once the airline has fully confirmed your pet's flight(s).
Please understand that we cannot guarantee a travel date for you pet. It is 100% at the discretion of the flight/airline (and HARC if your pet is flying into London). If the airline cannot accommodate the original date we request, we will let you know the next available flight that does have space.
London HARC (Heathrow Animal Reception Centre)
If your pet is flying into London (LHR airport), then in addition to the airline space, we also need to reserve a space at the Heathrow Animal Reception Centre. The HARC space is limited and they are only allowing a certain number of pet arrivals per day. The HARC will accept a space request up to 30 days prior to departure but they fill up quickly. If the HARC rejects the original arrival date we are requesting, we will let you know the next available date.
Again, we cannot guarantee a travel/arrival date for your pet. Just because we can request HARC space up to 30 days prior to travel, does not mean we will have the actual flight space confirmed due to the airline booking windows.
Does your pet require medication?
Many airlines do not allow medication to accompany pets while in transit. If your pet requires medication to be administered during their layover or upon arrival, please let us know well in advance. We will need to make arrangements with the airline and seek approval first.
If your pet's medication is not compulsory for travel, please make your own arrangements to ship the medication to your final destination. In some cases, the airline may refuse to ship or can misplace medication that travels with pets.
Final Travel Itinerary
Once we have received confirmation from the airline that the space is booked, we will email you a complete travel itinerary with the pick up & delivery details, items to provide at pick up and flight details.
Please review the details of the travel itinerary carefully and let us know if any addresses, phone numbers or contact person(s) have changed.
Travel kennel
Have you purchased a travel kennel yet? Please refer back to our other articles regarding how to measure your pet and how to purchase an airline approved travel kennel.