Valuable flight info

[DOG]

Hi

We've just retired from USAID/American Embassy and have taken dogs into and out of developing countries for many years. Our first dog was an Indian street dog rescued from under a bush in a park in New Delhi. We've just brought our three Egyptian street dogs to the US about three months ago, via postings to Sri Lanka (we flew them from Egypt to Sri Lanka) and then Republic of Georgia (Colombo to Tbilisi), and for this trip home, we flew them from Tbilisi to LAX. It is very stressful traveling with animals when they are out of your sight, or every time the plane hits a bump and you know they are scared.

I've attached the handout from Dept of State's Oversea's Briefing Center which covers the requirements for every country where we have an Embassy - it is now a year old, but should still be valid. It sounds to me like the shippers are just, without knowing the real situation, telling you thing would be bad there for a dog. It's not a US life for sure for a dog brought in - your best bet is to ensure you have housing with a walled compound so doggie can run around. We took ours for walks on the street all the time, but you do sometimes run into street dogs. There are a number of reasonably good vets available, and I assume that now that the Indian middle class has grown (we were there in 89-93), there are more pet foods and products available. And it's a bad life for an Indian street dog.

My strongest recommendation is that, if at all possible, your dog NOT go as air cargo via a shipper, but rather as checked baggage with you. You don't lose control of the dog, and it is vastly cheaper as accompanied excess baggage - usually if coming direct from the US, it is the piece rule, so the dog counts as an extra suitcase, and might cost $150 - $200. If by air freight, maybe $2000 range? With air freight, the documentation is usually much more significant, and instead of being able to get the dog out of the box quickly, he has to go wait at the air cargo terminal for a while.

And you must be aware of any dog embargoes that the airlines have (dates/temperature - especially summer) - it usually is something like it must be cooler than 85 degrees at all take off landing and touchdown points. Europe is usually ok any time of day, and you would probably arrive in India at 3 AM, so OK, but your takeoff point from the US my be an issue to be looked at (we once drove our Indian dog from Florida to Boston to ensure there would be no temperature issue). we always had to fly America (or American code shares) which limited things. But if you have no such restrictions: our favorites are Lufthansa and KLM for dogs. I'm not sure which US airlines fly in now rather than codes shares. The primary guidance - all segments on the same airline if at all possible. second rule is as few stops as possible. If you must use two airlines, make sure the dog is on your record in the system of BOTH airlines, and make sure the second airline will accept the dog from the first airline. You will not be able to get the dog out (of the terminal, or even out of customs to check back in) due to the EU import regulations (unless the dog is microchipped with a European international standard chip, and you have had rabies blood titers done at an EU approved lab some months in advance, so in other words, don't let anyone tell you to get the dog out yourself, and check back in - transit dogs do not fall under the EU regs). I would strongly recommend against Air India on general principle. Lufthansa has a very nice "airport animal lounge" (transit kennel) and a full time animal welfare officer plus the kennel staff - if you can arrange a layover in Frankfurt of more than four hours or so, the dog could be taken to the kennel and let out of the shipping box. And you can call the transit kennel (you can't visit) and confirm your dog is OK. Also, if you take doggie as checked luggage, you can demand at each takeoff point to know if the dog is on board - one method is one foot on the jetway, one in the plane, and say you aren't moving until you know if doggie is onboard - but usually if you ask nicely, they will check. and make sure the pilot knows a doggie is on board. KLM has a nice system - they put a multipart tag on the kennel, and once loaded, they bring a tearoff part of that tag to your seat so you know the dog in on board - not sure if they are still doing it.

If you go as checked luggage, be sure it is in your airline system record. get a printed copy of the record if possible showing it is there. and then check it periodically to ensure the record is still intact.

However you send doggie, make sure you have an "international" kennel versus a "domestic" shipping kennel. International means airholes on all four sides. Domestic usually only have the front door, and window grates on the sides, and no wholes in the back. I discovered ours were like that, so just got a one inch drill bit and drilled a bunch of airholes in the back of the kennel box, and that was fine (I actually used a graduated size drill - looks like a little christmas tree - smaller bit, then a larger one, then a larger one, etc. Makes it easier to start the hole and then get it up to one inch. Very easy because the kennel box is plastic.

Not sure where you are going in India - I wouldn't try shipping a dog on any domestic flights - but flights coming into the gateways of Bombay and New Delhi only. Make sure you have an "expeditor" meet you at the airport - not someone who just waits for you with a sign after immigration and customs, but someone with credentials to come in and meet you in baggage claim and help you get through customs and immigration - and make sure it is someone who knows you have a dog coming. What if the airport vet isn't there? what if this, what if that? The expeditor can make it happen. I don't know how you find such a person, since we always had Embassy expeditors, but I'm sure you can find someone through your contacts on the India side. There are hotels that take dogs - it's mostly the big chains, who have a worldwide policy of accepting dogs, so they can't weasel out of it.

As you see on the Embassy info page (you want Resource #1, I also send resource #2 in case useful) it says allow two months. It can probably be done more quickly with the right incentives... I'm sure you will need an "import" permit. The company that provides the expeditor will handle getting that, with info you provide (maybe copies of rabies certificate, your passport copy, etc.). I'm sure you will also need a health certificate - usually a vet in the US does it, and then you fedex it to the state ag service who rubber stamps it, and, if you can arrange it, fedex's it back to you (the certificate is usually only good 10 days).

Hope this helps. Be glad to answer any questions - the only stupid question is the one not asked!

Bob