Excellent information. Thanks for taking the time and for sharing. Invaluable!

 

Thanks so much for the information! This will be so valuable for those who plan to fly a puppy home!!!

I really appreciate your Yogi thread, too. I've gotten tons of information from it and find it is the "go to" place for me to find answers to many of my questions with a puppy.

 

Maybe should be a sticky?

 

Made this thread a Sticky.

 

This is so helpful as I am going to Windsor Colorado in January (about 1 hour north of Denver) to pick up our little man. I am flying there staying the night and then picking him up the following day then flying back home. I am SO excited!!

 

One thing I did which turned out to be SUCH a great thing: I got to the airport in plenty of time to go through security. 90-120 minutes early. I went up to the security area and asked the agent sitting there what was the very latest I could come back and go through (once I went through, I knew I'd no longer be able to take Shala outside). It was a very quiet afternoon in Milwaukee and he said, you can come back as late as 15 minutes before your boarding. HUGE difference. I took Shala outside, we walked around the airport (with her in her carrier), took her outside again... Always worth checking first.

And yes - EVERYONE will want to pat your puppy. It's a really fun experience.

 

Thanks, Anne Very informative and helpful.

 

Hi Toby and Yogi's mom. First of all, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this most useful post. I followed every little detail you had in here to the hilt. I flew with my 8 week old boy, Tucker, from Orlando to NJ. I want to add to you post, my own experience, in the hope that it will help somebody in the future.

After doing extensive online research, I decided to fly Jet Blue, because they are supposed to have the best small pet fly-in-cabin program. Unfortunately, even though everything else from check-in to security to boarding was smooth without any issues, I had a terrible experience with Jet Blue cabin crew. As you have rightly pointed out that some cabin crew go by the book, the ones on this flight did exactly that. They wanted me to zip up the carrier, completely, for the entire flight and my puppy was so claustrophobic in the Jet Blue pet carrier I had bought that he was barking and whining and struggling hard to get out of it. I requested the cabin crew to allow his head to be out so that he would calm down, but poor thing had an ordeal for about the first 30 mins of the flight.In the end, he broke the zipper of the Jet Blue carrier and was calm for the rest of his journey, because his head was out. The cabin crew on that flight was very rude and curt. Although, they were going by, I quote, "company policy", they were not at all humane and it made the journey so much more difficult. It was heart-breaking to see my boy in that difficult state.

Bottom line, although the Jet Blue pet carrier was the correct size to fit underneath their A320, it was definitely crammed and tight for an 8 week old, male golden retriever weighing around 12 lbs. I'm categorically advising readers to not go with their pet carrier if you are flying in Jet Blue. You will need a large Sherpa, but be prepared to face "by the book" unfriendly cabin crew attitude who will question the size if it does not fit underneath the seat. Also, bear in mind that you're co-passenger could be terrified of dogs as was the case when I flew.

Thank you again for your post.
Tucker's daddy

 

I am sorry Tucker and you had a less than pleasant flying experience. Crews really can and do make the difference in many cases. Can you imagine how your pup would react in the cargo hold instead of the cabin? I still believe the worst cabin experience is better than the best cargo hold experience for these guys! Hopefully Tucker has brushed that unpleasant experience aside and is now happy and doing all things we love about puppies!

I also don't know what can be done for the passengers terrified of dogs, other than for the flight crew, if willing, to facilitate a seat exchange with someone who isn't terrified of an adorable Golden puppy. I suspect many people would love to sit next to a pup on a flight and would trade seats. Was your flight extremely packed? That might have a lot to do with the attitude of the crew and the unwillingness to try for a seat trade. Our flight wasn't at capacity fortunately so we were able to get an entire row to ourselves. There was a screaming baby in the front bulkhead and by the end of the flight I venture to guess those passengers would have gladly traded seats to sit next to the cute puppy!

 

You have me worried for picking up our pup now. I fly out at 4:25 from detroit and the pups are an hour or so away. Drive back, drop off rental car, get through security. Fortunately it will be 2 days after christmas but still busy. I was thinking I would want to be on the road back to detroit by noon, maybe 11. I am now leaning more towards 11 at the latest, sooner if possible. I arrive late the night before and am assuming at this time the soonest I can get to the breeders is 9 the next morning. What do you think?

 

Ugh, I just discovered that detroit is in the easten time zone, yukko! Maybe I should change my hotel plans and drive closer to the pups when I arrive. Arriving late at 11 pm is suddenly just 9 pm to me.

 

Dallas Gold 2016!!!

 

Laura, you can always talk to the breeder and ask her what the earliest time is that you can come and pick up your girl the next morning. That is what I did with Ben, I asked and it was okay to pick him up at 8 AM to head straight to the airport.

Of course, we had a horrible experience with Delta as well - since they won't allow pups under 10 weeks in the cabin anymore and then they bitch about the medium Sherpa bag for even an 8 week old but a large Sherpa bag will not fit under the seat. I was also not allowed to let puppy's head stick out of the carrier, I had to put the carrier under the seat and leave it there.
I think they try to force people to put the pups into cargo. No thank you, I would rather drive two days by car than do that.

 

I would try to get as close to your breeders as possible the night before, if it's at all possible. Ask your breeder if you can pick up early and then get to the airport as early as you can. While you might be spending time in the ladies' room with a piddle pad trying to get puppy to piddle before the flight, at least you've gotten through security and are at the airport. We actually waited for several hours before our flight, which was fine because we were able to meet more people.

I just cannot imagine flight crews not liking puppies, but obviously some don't. I've flown a number of flights with animals on board and in my experience the flight attendants have been very accomadating and excited. I know some airlines work with employee volunteers who actually fly puppies back to service dog training organizations, on their days off.

 

I am going to change my hotel. I should note to Lynn the need to be early and first that day. I think the airport has a pet relief area but I doubt I will want to go near it. Sticking with piddle pads would be safest as far as disease goes.

 

This is a great resource for flying with pups and they sell super soaking pee pads sized for sherpa bags, and they are unscented.

http://www.dryfur.com

 

This is a great resource for flying with pups and they sell super soaking pee pads sized for sherpa bags, and they are unscented.

Pet Airline Travel Expert - DryFur®

Yes, the dryfur site & products worked great for me having now flown 2 goldens international in cargo and a shih tzu in cabin.

 

My daughter flew 9 week old Duncan from FL to NC on Delta. It was barely a 2 hour flight and they ended up landing early.
The breeder dropped him off just outside check-in. He was in a Sherpa and weighed close to 15lbs. Upon waiting for check-in, Duncan threw up in his bag. The breeder had just fed him a FULL lunch before the flight! (NOT recommended). The breeder also claimed he was car sick. I actually think that worked to my daughter's advantage, as Duncan's tank was empty from that point on. Check in was easy, she just had to present his medical certificate.
She said getting through security was ok, but a little overwhelming. She took him to the women's restroom in Tampa which was very big and even had a large diaper changing area. It was a deserted bathroom so she would take him out of the bag and let him walk around on the counter. Many people came over to see him at that time; he probably met close to 20 people! She gave him 3 drops of Bachs Rescue Remedy before the flight.

-IN THE CABIN-
The Delta flight attendant that was on the plane was very nice. He came over to pet Duncan and asked some basic questions. She was allowed to hold him in the Sherpa on her lap with his head sticking out until the plane started moving to take off. It was hard to cram the Sherpa under that little seat! Thankfully the person sitting next to her was very understanding and even helped her out. He whimpered slightly while under the seat in the bag, but no massive amounts of crying. When the plane was in the air, the friendly flight attendant let her take Duncan out of the bag and he sat on her lap. Duncan made NO noise when he was out of the bag, people in the surrounding seats had no idea there was a puppy in the cabin! He slept most of the flight but was extremely interested in shoving his face in between the seats in front of them! The air pressure didn't seem to bother him either. When the beverage cart came around she asked for a cup of ice. He really enjoyed licking the ice to keep hydrated. He had to go back under the seat for landing (with minimal whining), then they walked right off the plane.

Duncan was in the bag for 5 HOURS and did not pee or poop! She actually misplaced the pee pads so he only had the fuzzy bottom liner of the Sherpa.
Just one vomit accident at the beginning which Keri easily found a family bathroom to set him down and clean him up in. She was very excited/nervous, but in the end it was all worth it!

 

Glad it went well for you. Did they never ask the age of the pup? Their new policy requires it to be 10 weeks old. I am flying United because of this on friday, but would have preferred to use my Delta miles instead.

 

Now that you mention it, I saw something on their website about them having to be at least 10 weeks old. Duncan was 9 weeks and no one said a word! They were more concerned about whether or not he had enough room in the bag. (He barely did, at 9 weeks old and him being the biggest of his litter!) Hope your flight went well!

 

It's been over a year since the last post. Does anybody have any updates to report? The carrier size restrictions seem appropriate only for little foo-foo dogs; I've heard that you can exceed them a bit with soft-sided carriers that can be smooshed under the seat. I've also known folks to fly with 8 week olds, but I read here they are supposed to be 10 weeks old..?

Pandemonium will be flying home with me in May from Chicago to Vermont. Should I consider driving instead?

 

Just flew with my 8 week old

Hi Boondox, I flew home with my Maggie Mae in the cabin about 3 weeks ago on Southwest from Indiana to NY. We had a soft-sided carrier that was bigger than the dimensions said.

With that being said, so much depends on the flight attendants. Going down we didn't check in any bags, so I was carrying pet carrier. The flight attendant was so sweet and asked who was in there. When I told her a golden would be flying back tomorrow that was 8 weeks, she said she wished she'd be on her flight and she would take her to the pilots.

FF to the next day when we have her; my daughter and I found an awesome open area with grass (& snow) & I had my daughter run her on the leash for a good 20 minutes outside (she also wet/dirtied). While we were running, out walks the flight attendant from our first flight and she says, so this is Maggie. (I couldn't believe she remembered) & she petted her for a bit.

We got through security no problem and surprisingly they didn't make her take off the collar (even with her metal tag)--I had to carry her.

I had treats to get her back into the carrier, but she had gone back in no problem. I also wrapped the bottom of the sherpa carrier in a waterproof zipper pouch and then had a chuck on top of that.

When it was time to board, we walk onto the plane & the head flight attendant says, have you flown with an animal before. I tell her no & she starts running off rules, just know you need to have it under the seat at all times, you cannot take her out or unzipper it. She was no-nonsense.

My poor baby barely fit under the seat (thankfully no one was in the middle seat so I had her under there). Yet I pulled the carrier out so she wasn't pushed all the way under & the same attendant came by and said, remember it needs to be all the way under the seat.

Then as the plane starts moving she started whining/crying. I got a few looks and was trying to reassure her by shushing her and saying it's okay. Once we took off I pulled her out a little and put the tray down so it was harder to see.

Thankfully after 15 minutes she fell asleep until we were about to land, when she started whining a little again.

Overall it wasn't a bad experience, but so much depends upon the attendants.

Also Southwest has a policy where puppies had to be only 8 weeks but they never checked her vet clearance or asked how old she was.

 

I know its been a year since the last post but has anyone flown recently with an 8 week old puppy on Delta? The only carrier with a nonstop flight from where I live to where I'm getting my puppy is Delta but they require that the animals be at least 10 weeks old. I'm worried that if I wait until the puppy is 10 weeks that she won't fit in the carrier and underneath the seat. Are they really strict on the 10 week rule or would 8 weeks be ok?

 

You'd be best to contact Delta directly. You wouldn't want to get to the airport with an 8-week old and get turned away. You WILL need to show health records, which would have her DOB.

 

I see this is an older post, but I thought I would post my experience... I flew with my puppy (Max) from Salt Lake City, UT to Phoenix, AZ to Tucson, AZ on American Airlines. The agent who I paid for Max's flight fee with was a bit intimidating, saying if he wasn't quite we wouldn't be allowed on the flight and would be "out our money". In a panic from that comment and with a barking puppy I decided to rent a car and go to a nearby park (since we had several hours until take off). I tried to walk him around the park and burn some energy. He was still barking/crying a lot, so I called my vet and they recommended Benadryl for the flight (call your vet to discuss!). In our rental car we went to Walgreens and picked some up. We returned the rental car and went through airport security. About 30 min to an hour before boarding I (thought I) gave him Benadryl (come to find out out he spit the pill out). The gate agents were GREAT and let us board first. For the second leg of our flight they even gave us our own row. Max was silent the entire flight. There was even another puppy behind us whining during the first leg of the flight. I used this carrier: Smiling Paws Pets 4 Way Expandable Soft Sided Airline Approved Pet Carrier for Cats and Dogs. It was great because I could open up the sides for a bigger space while waiting for our connecting flight in Phoenix.