You did it. You landed the job in Singapore. Or Paris. Or Sydney. Hey, maybe even Panama City.
And you have a dog. An 80-pound golden retriever. Or a chihuahua. Or a brown tabby cat. Perhaps a parrot named Captain Jack Sparrow.
The new job will help you secure visas, find a place to live, and settle in. It will move your family, your belongings, maybe your furniture - sometimes even your car. What it probably won't touch is moving your pet, and home isn't home without Rufus. Or Tiger. Or Max. Or Captain Jack. They're family, too. You must likely figure out moving The Fluffens on your own.
We have gone through the process successfully. Here's what we know:
For an international move, don't just try to do it yourself. Unless you know for sure that you can bring Kitten Mittens in the cabin with you - which is exceedingly unlikely - there are too many variables. Does the aircraft allow pets at all? Does the airline? What’s the cost? What if the plane changes? What vaccinations does Buster need? When? What forms need to be completed? And sent where? How do I pick up and drop off if we’re not flying together? If we are flying together?
These are some of the questions to which you absolutely must have answers if you attempt to go it alone - and they're all a pain.
Every country has its own procedures and forms, and some - the UK and China come immediately to mind - have rather onerous policies in place. You probably don’t want to deal with them on your own.
Globepouncing recommends using Air Animal. They’re reputable with a lengthy history of success with all sorts of animals large and small.
They’re not cheap. But Sgt. Pepper’s Puppy Paws Club Band is worth it.
Air Animal helped our very own Toby Tuxedo Tiggertail Tabby move from Pennsylvania to Ho Chi Minh City with a layover in Dubai, and he was in great shape when he was chauffeured to our door.
We opted for the 'Destination Pet Express' international package, which tasks Air Animal with stewarding your pet from Origin Airport to Destination Residence. Other packages offer various levels of Air Animal responsibility by segment: from Origin Residence to Origin Airport to Destination Airport to Destination Residence - they'll take the segments you don't want to deal with, tell you exactly what carrier to buy and what you can (and can't) put in it, tell you when to go to the vet, and tell the vet what to do. Solid.
My sis, a genuine cat whisperer and the world’s greatest kitty-aunt, dropped Sir Toby at JFK with an Air Animal rep. He flew from New York to Dubai, where he had a chance to stretch his paws and have a potty break, and then on to Saigon, where he was brought to our front door. We were impressed at how well he was upon arrival. Toby can be quite an anxious kitty - his meowing when something isn't his idea is the stuff of legend - and he still definitely looked better than we do after a trip around the world even though he had to spend most of it in a cage. He was a tired little guy, but he was pretty ok, and I think Air Animal made sure of that.
As I mentioned before, Air Animal does all sorts of pets, including big dogs. There are cheaper outfits out there, but I would never take a chance like that with my little buddy.
Worth it.
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I had to fly my Wife's Chihuahua from JFK to SGN. It was a nightmare. She was a frail little thing and she was put in storage. Upon arrival we had to wait 2 extra days to get her out because the office was closed on the weekend. Thankfully the guards were nice enough to allow us to take her for a walk and feed her each day. Thanks for the heads up on Air Animal.