Bringing my cat to Canada

[canadiangirl78]

He can't have his own luggage. He doesn't have a ticket just a reservation but there is a fee although it depends on the airline. If he fits in the carrier and can turn around in it he can fit under the seat. You have to check with the airline for some of the questions. Some won't put animals in cargo when it's hot because of the dangers. It's called an embargo. Oh you don't need to hire a company. And you don't need paperwork to take him out of the country but I guess you better check with your country to be sure.

 

[missmini]

He can't have his own luggage. He doesn't have a ticket just a reservation but there is a fee although it depends on the airline. If he fits in the carrier and can turn around in it he can fit under the seat. You have to check with the airline for some of the questions. Some won't put animals in cargo when it's hot because of the dangers. It's called an embargo. Oh you don't need to hire a company. And you don't need paperwork to take him out of the country but I guess you better check with your country to be sure.

thank u sweetie :-* oooh too bad he can't have his own luggage :-* and yeah he can move around in his carrier so i think it should b ok it's good to know
yeah i guess i have more things to do regarding him than initially thought; check with the country here although i doubt they need anything and check with the airlines; my list is getting bigger and bigger

also he does not look sick and he's very active and playfull; so hopefully he won't have particular issues during his future trip

yeah reading again here and overall i have a few more questions sorry our flight will b around 15h probably broken down in 2 somewhere in europe; overall we might b travelling for almost one day; when u have long travel like this is it recommened that he eats before or during or nothing at all just water? : what abt his needs (pee, poop) i guess i have to put some mattress, fabric, pampers kind in his bag? what do u guys do? :-\

 

[canadiangirl78]

Hard carriers don't usually fit in the cabin. It needs to be soft.

Offer him food and water before the flight. Cats usually won't eat or drink during travel because they're stressed. Serious travelers bring little folded boxes and a ziplock of litter for a litterbox to use in the plane bathroom or enclosed airport bathroom. Put a puppy per pee pad in the carrier to absorb urine. He might pee but poop is less likely. You never know though.

Cats in cargo are required to have food and water bowls attached to the door. The water is best frozen so it won't spill while they're getting on the plane. I hope he can go in cabin. Such a long flight would be tough in cargo.

 

[Steph C]

I'm taking my two miniature schnazuers. They probably won't allow them in the cabin, so the only choice is the cargo hold. One is 6 years old and the other is 3. Both are in excellent physical condition, and I am sure they will be fine. The only worry is the temperature in the cargo hold. We'll be flying out of Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific. We've contacted a pet relocation agency that will take care of all the necessary paperwork to get them from the mainland to the Hong Kong airport. They will also drive us all the way from our apartment to the airport (included in the price are two hard shell carriers). Total cost is about $2,000. Expensive! We don't have any other options, as there are no direct flights from Guangzhou to Toronto. The flight out of Hong Kong is direct (16 hours or so). It's best if we fly direct to limit the amount of time our dogs are in transit, and also to eliminate the risk of the airline screwing up and losing our two little boys...

Is $2,000 way too expensive?

FS

My friend had to get her cats out of Guangzhou to HK to move home and I think she said she paid someone to smuggle them on the train?? But I believe it was still expensive.

 

[steaky]

Who will be responsible for informing the pilots?? We were told that we need to drop them off at a separate terminal when we arrive at the airport. Then we fill out some paperwork and they take them. Cathay Pacific is a good airline, so I am really hoping they take good care of our dogs. I would be super angry if they forgot to heat the cargo hold...

I was also wondering if they secure the dog crates? Turbulence could be a problem if they are not secured...do they know this??

FS

It's actually the same terminal building (I think it's terminal one) as we humans. Just different check in counters. Don't worry. Your dog would be in good hands with Cathay Pacific.

BTW, there is a direct flight from Guangzhou to Vancouver via China Southern, but not sure if it is a good airline to travel with dogs.

 

[Sunshine87]

Who will be responsible for informing the pilots?? We were told that we need to drop them off at a separate terminal when we arrive at the airport. Then we fill out some paperwork and they take them. Cathay Pacific is a good airline, so I am really hoping they take good care of our dogs. I would be super angry if they forgot to heat the cargo hold...

I was also wondering if they secure the dog crates? Turbulence could be a problem if they are not secured...do they know this??

FS

FS, I work for a ground handling company... So here's my inside perspective on how things generally work:

It definitely depends on the airport, in regards to their animal as cargo procedures. I work in Calgary, and there you need to drop them off at the cargo facility, where they do the paperwork, customs checks them out, and then the ground crew in charge of the flight is sent to pick up the animal(s).. that happens usually just before the flight is loaded up. The animals are loaded last (so that the kennels aren't covered in bags). The kennels aren't secured down in any way, but the cargo holds of most aircraft are flat with little incline, so the kennels don't ever move much. Plus there are usually a lot of baggage that prevent them from moving. When the cargo doors close, the lights automatically turn off, which eventually settles even the most upset animal. The pilot will be aware of any animals from the cargo manifest -- airline operations and the lead hand who loaded the flight both report that information. Cargo holds that allow animals are always pressurized and heated. We are all trained to know which cargo hold you are allowed/not allowed to load animals, plus there's a big placard in the doorway if you're not allowed. If there's a stopover/connection, the animal has a bagtag so that ground handlers know which flight it's connecting to.

Of the thousands of animals I've seen fly as cargo on airplanes, I've never seen anything more than just a few stressed out animals. Just wanted to put your minds at ease a bit =)

 

[canadiangirl78]

Great to read some inside info!

 

[blessedelaine]

I think that is possible, but will need to undergo a long process, lots of paperworks and quarantine.. goodluck

 

[missmini]

Hard carriers don't usually fit in the cabin. It needs to be soft.

Offer him food and water before the flight. Cats usually won't eat or drink during travel because they're stressed. Serious travelers bring little folded boxes and a ziplock of litter for a litterbox to use in the plane bathroom or enclosed airport bathroom. Put a puppy per pee pad in the carrier to absorb urine. He might pee but poop is less likely. You never know though.

Cats in cargo are required to have food and water bowls attached to the door. The water is best frozen so it won't spill while they're getting on the plane. I hope he can go in cabin. Such a long flight would be tough in cargo.

yeah i figured the hard carrier would b useless; actually now i remember seeing in canada in bus and metro sometimes ppl with kind of purses and small dogs or cats inside....i believe some even put them in a normal purse although i prefer to find one designed for them; i never saw anything like that here though :

i did do some basic search and most companies do put it on the website: his weight + the bag should b between 5 (air france) and 10kg (air canada) so yaaaay....i think it could b possible; we'll dig deeper

thanks for the rest of the tips i learnt a lot today

 

[missmini]

FS, I work for a ground handling company... So here's my inside perspective on how things generally work:

It definitely depends on the airport, in regards to their animal as cargo procedures. I work in Calgary, and there you need to drop them off at the cargo facility, where they do the paperwork, customs checks them out, and then the ground crew in charge of the flight is sent to pick up the animal(s).. that happens usually just before the flight is loaded up. The animals are loaded last (so that the kennels aren't covered in bags). The kennels aren't secured down in any way, but the cargo holds of most aircraft are flat with little incline, so the kennels don't ever move much. Plus there are usually a lot of baggage that prevent them from moving. When the cargo doors close, the lights automatically turn off, which eventually settles even the most upset animal. The pilot will be aware of any animals from the cargo manifest -- airline operations and the lead hand who loaded the flight both report that information. Cargo holds that allow animals are always pressurized and heated. We are all trained to know which cargo hold you are allowed/not allowed to load animals, plus there's a big placard in the doorway if you're not allowed. If there's a stopover/connection, the animal has a bagtag so that ground handlers know which flight it's connecting to.

Of the thousands of animals I've seen fly as cargo on airplanes, I've never seen anything more than just a few stressed out animals. Just wanted to put your minds at ease a bit =)

yaaay Sunshine that's good to know; thanks so much for sharing

 

[Fencesitter]

FS, I work for a ground handling company... So here's my inside perspective on how things generally work:

It definitely depends on the airport, in regards to their animal as cargo procedures. I work in Calgary, and there you need to drop them off at the cargo facility, where they do the paperwork, customs checks them out, and then the ground crew in charge of the flight is sent to pick up the animal(s).. that happens usually just before the flight is loaded up. The animals are loaded last (so that the kennels aren't covered in bags). The kennels aren't secured down in any way, but the cargo holds of most aircraft are flat with little incline, so the kennels don't ever move much. Plus there are usually a lot of baggage that prevent them from moving. When the cargo doors close, the lights automatically turn off, which eventually settles even the most upset animal. The pilot will be aware of any animals from the cargo manifest -- airline operations and the lead hand who loaded the flight both report that information. Cargo holds that allow animals are always pressurized and heated. We are all trained to know which cargo hold you are allowed/not allowed to load animals, plus there's a big placard in the doorway if you're not allowed. If there's a stopover/connection, the animal has a bagtag so that ground handlers know which flight it's connecting to.

Of the thousands of animals I've seen fly as cargo on airplanes, I've never seen anything more than just a few stressed out animals. Just wanted to put your minds at ease a bit =)

Thanks, Sunshine.

We will do everything we can to ensure they take really good care of our dogs. I might even tip the ground crew or something...

The pet relocation company we are using seems very competent, so that will help when it comes time to unload them at the terminal. They probably have contacts with the cargo terminal, so we'll make sure to tell them to tell the people at the cargo facility to handle our dogs carefully.

We've decided not to separate them. It wasn't really a choice we wanted to make...

Now the stress is learning that someone in May got approval, but we still haven't received anything from CIC! What's going on? Lost application? Sent back but we didn't get it? Really worried!!!

FS

 

[canadiangirl78]

Thanks, Sunshine.

We will do everything we can to ensure they take really good care of our dogs. I might even tip the ground crew or something...

The pet relocation company we are using seems very competent, so that will help when it comes time to unload them at the terminal. They probably have contacts with the cargo terminal, so we'll make sure to tell them to tell the people at the cargo facility to handle our dogs carefully.

We've decided not to separate them. It wasn't really a choice we wanted to make...

Now the stress is learning that someone in May got approval, but we still haven't received anything from CIC! What's going on? Lost application? Sent back but we didn't get it? Really worried!!!

FS

Come on - most of april and may did not get lost! They just skipped ahead, some officers anyway. I think it is to bring down processing times. There was a big announcement about getting rid of the back log. Not fair though.

 

[Rosie Lee]

FS, I work for a ground handling company... So here's my inside perspective on how things generally work:

It definitely depends on the airport, in regards to their animal as cargo procedures. I work in Calgary, and there you need to drop them off at the cargo facility, where they do the paperwork, customs checks them out, and then the ground crew in charge of the flight is sent to pick up the animal(s).. that happens usually just before the flight is loaded up. The animals are loaded last (so that the kennels aren't covered in bags). The kennels aren't secured down in any way, but the cargo holds of most aircraft are flat with little incline, so the kennels don't ever move much. Plus there are usually a lot of baggage that prevent them from moving. When the cargo doors close, the lights automatically turn off, which eventually settles even the most upset animal. The pilot will be aware of any animals from the cargo manifest -- airline operations and the lead hand who loaded the flight both report that information. Cargo holds that allow animals are always pressurized and heated. We are all trained to know which cargo hold you are allowed/not allowed to load animals, plus there's a big placard in the doorway if you're not allowed. If there's a stopover/connection, the animal has a bagtag so that ground handlers know which flight it's connecting to.

Of the thousands of animals I've seen fly as cargo on airplanes, I've never seen anything more than just a few stressed out animals. Just wanted to put your minds at ease a bit =)

Sunshine, thanks for the info. We will be taking our dog and 2 Maine Coon cats, in Cargo. Gonna be more nervous than normal on the plane. :-[

 

[bagelbagel81]

Wow this info has been really helpful. We are looking at taking our (8kg!) cat, Toby in April from Australia- all gong to plan. We were going to pay a pet transport company $2280 to do it! But would much rather be able to have him with us in the cabin- not sure if he would fit under the seat though! It would also give me peace of mind that he wasn't to stressed, froze or died from the heat, or got eaten by a loose dog!
Will definitely have to look into whether they allow this on the airline we are planning on taking(not Air Canada, a budget Australian airline) may be a good excuse to travel on reliable Air Canada in any event!

 

[AnaMaria]

My cats have traveled 3 international trips, between North America and Japan. It was heart breaking to see them meowing at the transit not being able to give them big hugs, but they survived all trips. They never pooed or peed during the travel from leaving home to arriving new home, sometimes almost 24 hours. I placed water box in the carrier but all spilt before reaching the airport or to the other terminal . I did not give them any sedation for the first trip but they were really scared and stressed out so I gave them sedation to my boy cat who had to stay in pet cargo. I was very worried about the sedation itself but it worked well.

It is advisable to check the airline policies for pet. I used major airlines and they do not allow any pet to travel in cargo during the summer months and the in-cabin carriers must meet the requirements. I think, for my case at least, they only allowed hard carriers, not the soft ones.

I frequently went to bathroom when not busy to take my girl cat who stayed with me in cabin to get out of the carrier. The carrier, which can fit under the seat, is very small. And my cat, she was not big but weighted about 4kg was oversized for the carrier.

Unless you are traveling with someone else, I advise to travel light after check-in process.

Good luck!

I hope I do not have to travel again with them. They are 16 years old now!