It’s hard to separate fact and fiction these days.
A letter from Joan Draper in Ramat Gan, Israel tells of her dog Turtle creating mayhem in transit at Paris Charles-de-Gaulle Airport, when he escaped from his unlocked cage, might have been a scene from Keystone Cops. To lock or not to lock the cage of a traveling pet is a crucial concern for civil aviation.
But the arcane domain of frequent flier programs becomes even more surreal with news that Virgin Atlantic has launched a ‘Flying Paws’ reward program for traveling cats, dogs, and ferrets. (Rabbits, hamsters, crustaceans and ornamental tropical fish are left to make their own arrangements (www.defra.go.uk)
On their first flight Virgin Atlantic gives jet-setting pets a ‘welcome onboard pet pack.’ Dogs are given a ‘Virgin doggy t-shirt and sparkling dog tag.’ Cats are given a toy mouse called ‘Red’ and a Virgin collar tag; and ferrets receive ‘a cool limited edition flying jacket and collar tag.’
Pets that travel on the European Union’s Passport for Pets scheme are given a passport ‘which not only gives them a record of all their flights, but allows them to collect “paw prints” which they will be able to redeem for gifts.’ After 10, 15 and 20 flights pets can claim rewards from ‘blow-dries and pedicures to Prado, Burberry, and Gucci pet clothing, to a personal “Pawtrait” from famous artist Cindy Lass, renowned for her paintings of celebrities [sic] furry companions around the world.’
One paw print is awarded per flight; five paw prints brings a galaxy of goodies, such as handmade Virgin bowls plus a non- slip mouse mat so they can ‘dine in style’ or choose to donate their rewards ‘worth £50’ to their favorite animal charity or sanctuary.’
‘If they’re feeling especially loving toward their human friend, they can show their true feelings by donating 1,000 bonus air miles to his or her “Flying Club” account.’
How do I deal with readers’ letters asking how to convert pet miles into people miles?
Question: ‘My ferret Joshua has accumulated 100,000 pet miles in the Virgin Atlantic program. Can I redeem these for an upgrade to business class on my next flight to Orlando?’
Answer: ‘Joshua and you should have reciprocal rights on flights taken separately or together. But check the exchange rate between pet miles and people miles. Joshua could be entitled to elite status with access to the cargo hold lounge. But do make sure that Joshua, or heaven forbid, the animal rights folk do not get to know what you are planning.’
Airlines have different requirements about carrying pets on board. Virgin Atlantic, in common with most carriers, does not allow pets to travel in the cabin with their owners. But they are individually collected at check-in and travel in a separate part of the hold from the baggage, with controlled temperature, and fed water, according to Marianne Jenson, a Virgin spokeswoman in London.
Air France, one of the few dog-friendly airlines, allows dogs up to 5 kilograms to sit in the cabin; United Airlines allows ‘small dogs or cats’ to travel in a cage under the seat; guide dogs are confined to the hold. British Airways requires all pets to be checked in as ‘excess baggage;’ except for guide dogs which are allowed a seat of their own.
Pets should not be sedated and given a light meal before traveling. Take care to check quarantine and vaccination rules and make sure you have the documents you need. You’ll find useful tips at www.hotdogsholidays.com.
China Southern Airlines joins our ongoing debate on the crucial issue of traveling with pets, with a charmingly succinct release in the apocryphal (‘There’s a French widow in every bedroom’) guide book tradition.
‘Pets are not allowed on board the aircraft, except for dogs for the seeing impaired.’ This is because ‘once a dog or a cat becomes agitated… it may run about the cabin and is very likely to bite off its restraining leash, or hamper flight attendants in their duty.’ Or ‘the pet could carry bacteria or parasites and since the cabin is a sealed and constant temperature environment which is favorable to the multiply [sic] and infection of the bacteria, it could affect the health of passengers and aircrew.’ What is more, ‘some pets, such as mice, could easily throw passengers into a panic; and pets of any species can leave their droppings randomly in the cabin.’
China Southern provides exemplary specifications on the size and the ventilation of pets’ traveling boxes, ‘which must be firm enough to prevent the pet from opening it from the inside, and able to hold the pet’s droppings during the flight and ground handling,’ along with the need for quarantine certificates.
‘If you consign your pet to China Southern, it will enjoy a first class cargo service; it will not only be looked after before the boarding but also be supervised during the entire trip,’ we are assured by Li Kun, chief operating officer at China Southern Airlines.
I am pondering the possible fate of my ferret Joshua on a hypothetical flight to Guangzou, when another release from China Southern, this time with a Chicago dateline, hits my mailbox.
It transpires that 470 ‘Canadian breeding pigs’ were flown to Shenzen; ‘accompanied on board with their own “welcoming ceremony” of a three-step disinfection.’ After the 14-hour flight to China ‘the foreign travelers were greeted in the Middle Kingdom with fire hoses and showered disinfectant.’ Quarantine clerks ‘inspected all swine documents’ to see that there were ‘no illegal aliens.’
The ‘porkers were humanely treated and had three in-flight meals during their journey.’ That we should be so lucky! On the other hand – ‘they did not get to see an in-flight movie, nor earn Sky Pearl Club frequent flier miles.’
So pigs do fly! Have a nice year.
Despite draconian measures to restrict hand baggage since the airline bomb scare last month, that still forbid one to bring liquids, whether bottled water or hand lotion, into the cabin on some flights, it is pretty much business as usual when it comes to traveling with pets; an issue of crucial concern to a growing number of readers. While pets and their containers may now be required to pass through an X-ray machine, in addition to a metal detector, Air France (one of the world’s most pet-friendly carriers) still allows cats and dogs of up to 5 kilograms to travel under your seat in the cabin; larger animals are consigned to the hold. British Airways still allows guide dogs to sit next to their owner free of charge; while Virgin Atlantic will welcome dogs, cats and ferrets (in the hold) and award them ‘pet miles.’ KLM hosts pets at an ‘animal hotel’ at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, where they are fed, walked and watered, and their cages cleaned before re-boarding. Humans should be so lucky! Itineraries and choice of airline can depend upon whether you can take a pooch or feline with you on board.
So I was hardly surprised to learn from the American Pet Product Manufacturers Association, Norwalk, Connecticut, that ‘pet travel soared 33 percent last year to a record 80 million and a full 14 percent, or 29 million, Americans travel with their pets.
‘People love their pets, and love being with their pets, and that means hitting the road with them,’ says Leslie Downey, director of communications at TravelersAdvantage.com. ‘The surging trend in pet travel has put more bark in luxury vacations, and airlines and resorts are listening.’
I can hardly wait to take my ferret Joshua on his first flight with Virgin Atlantic, when he can claim his ‘cool limited edition flying jacket and collar tag.’
Meanwhile, I am wrestling with a rising tide of anguished letters from peripatetic pet owners seeking the right airline, and the best route to fly with their pet – vaccination documents and quarantine rules, and arcane rules on certain breeds banned from cargo holds.
The latest pet conundrum arrives from Hans Carl, a reader, recently resident in Montreal-du-Gers, France, who asks how he can bring his ‘hand-fed female green-gold yellow head Amazon’ parrot over from Massachusetts.
‘We have searched for information from American and French veterinary authorities, but have nowhere been able to get firm advice on what is needed,’ Carl says, ‘Can she travel in the cabin (a cat cage does fine)? If not, is the hold safe for a bird?’
Alas, I can find no way for him to bring the bird – short of getting her to talk her way through security and on to a flight, or fit her with a homing device to fly the Atlantic. British Airways, Air France and Virgin Atlantic say they do not fly birds either in the cabin, or in the normal baggage hold, although nobody could explain exactly why (aside from a frivolous suggestion that a parrot might cause a noise disturbance in the cabin, especially if it were to bark commands in a strange tongue).
Warwick Smith, a spokesman at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in Britain (Defra.gov.uk), explained that there is a ‘temporary ban on importing live birds’ into any European Union country until December 2006, because of the risk of spreading avian ‘flu, although there are exceptions in the case of ‘endangered species.’
For advice on pet travel in or from the United States, go to www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dq/faq_animal_importation.htm.