Paw Pals Pet Sitting

Dog Walking & Pet Sitting in Northern VA

(703) 345-1695
Schedule Our Services
  • About Us
    • Client Reviews
    • Common Questions
    • Team Bios
    • Join Our Team
    • Who We Support
  • Pricing
    • Dog Walking
    • Dog Sitting
    • Cat Sitting
    • Pet Sitting
    • Additional Services
    • Holiday Fee Service Schedule
  • Policies
  • Dog Sitting
    • Areas Served
      • Centreville, VA
      • Chantilly, VA
      • Clifton, VA
      • Fairfax Lakes, VA
      • Fairfax Oaks, VA
      • Fairfax Station, VA
      • Fairfax, VA
      • Manassas ,VA
      • Oakton, VA
      • Reston, VA
      • Vienna, VA
  • Dog Walking
  • Cat Sitting
    • Areas Served
      • Centreville, VA
      • Chantilly, VA
      • Clifton, VA
      • Fair Lakes, VA
      • Fairfax Station, VA
      • Fairfax, VA
      • Manassas, VA
      • Oakton, VA
      • Reston, VA
      • Vienna, VA
  • Pet Sitting
    • Areas Served
      • Centreville, VA
      • Chantilly, VA
      • Clifton, VA
      • Fair Lakes, VA
      • Fair Oaks, VA
      • Fairfax Station, VA
      • Fairfax, VA
      • Manassas, VA
      • Oakton, VA
      • Reston, VA
      • Vienna, VA
  • Blog
  • Contact Us

Tips for Flying with Your Pet

May 18, 2017 by Mary Telesz

We all adore our pets, and can’t imagine life without them. Sometimes, however, owning a pet can be a bit of a nuisance. We might think of our dogs or cats as a family member, but that doesn’t mean that we call a dog-sitter when we want to go on our date.

For the most part, animals are fine when left alone in the house during shopping trips, date nights, and maybe even an occasional overnight stay (as long as you leave late and come home early the next morning). However, taking a vacation when you have a pet can be a real headache. First, you have to think about whether you’re leaving them at home or bringing them with you — this initial decision can be complicated enough.

Should They Stay or Should They Go?

Flying with petsIf you decide to leave them at home, you have to figure out how you intend to do this: will you ask a close friend or relative to dogsit? If so, do you require them to stay over at your place or just call in to feed them every day? Do you trust them enough to feed them at the right time/the right amount/fill their water bowl often enough? Is your pet friendly? Or will they be not-too-happy about your next-door-neighbour turning the key in the lock every day?

If you decide to take them with you, the obvious question pertains to your mode of travel. Are you just going for a break a few hours away or flying to Australia? If you’re driving to the next state, is it suitable to bring your pet in the car? Do you have a pet crate for transport? If you’re planning a cruise, did you know that there are a few pet-friendly cruises out there?

All of these questions can be overwhelming, but the option that inarguably requires the most contemplation and preparation is deciding to bring your pet along on an airplane. To help you out, here are some tips that will reduce the inevitable stress and anxiety you feel when thinking about taking your precious fur-babies on a plane:

Research and Preparation

First things first: fly with your pet only if you have lots of time before the flight. We recommend starting research and preparation at least three months before your flight: particularly if you order the transport cage online as I did (online is much cheaper).

The Cage

You don’t need to hire a professional company to do the transport for you. The vast majority of pets will be fine being flown in their cage if properly introduced to it to build comfort and familiarity. We recommend buying the cage and having it arrive at your house at least two weeks before the flight so you can get your animal used to it by leaving it open and putting a blanket or toys in it. Some cat and dog breeds are highly strung, so it will take them a while to become comfortable with the cage, especially when you try to close the hinge.

The Vet

Your animal will have to get injections coming up to the date of the flight. The amount and nature of the injections depends on three things:

Your Country of Flight Origin

The country you’re flying from affects the veterinary care needed because different countries are prone to different diseases. The general rule is that your animal has to have injections to prevent or cure any diseases that affect them in your country of origin — not your destination. This is because the country you’re going to doesn’t want to bring a new disease into their own country, so if you come from a country that has animal diseases that are foreign to them, they require your animal to be vaccinated against it (even if they don’t have, and never had, the disease).

Your destination

Flying with petsThe country you’re going to only really matters in the sense that you have to make sure your animal is vaccinated against all diseases required by that country. For example, if you’re from America and flying to Ireland, you have to get rabies shots for a pet you’re bringing on board. This is because America has rabies naturally present in animal populations and Ireland doesn’t.

However, if you want to be really organized and reduce further potential stress, you may want to check out the animal diseases that occur in the country of your destination. A good way of illustrating this is by flipping the Ireland/America example the other way round.

The requirements for flying dogs on a plane set for America is actually very easy: oftentimes, all you have to do is get them a general check-up to say they were in good health. This is just to cover the general regulations of any airline or airport, who want to cover themselves legally in case something happens to your animal on the flight. This has nothing to do with disease or vaccination. Get any necessary vaccinations very close to the actual flight so that they won’t expire before arriving in America. This isn’t essential for your animal to enter the destination country, but it saves the extra stress of making a vet appointment as soon as you arrive. More information on bringing your pet to the U.S. can be found on the CDC’s website.

What airline you’re flying with

Every airline/airport have different rules and regulations pertaining to the transport of animals, so as soon as you have your flight booked you should contact the appropriate staff to find out what those specifics are. Different airlines, for example, have different requirements for the height/length/width/material of the transport mechanism for your animal.

The Checklist for Flying with Fido

All of the information above will undoubtedly help you to feel more confident and relaxed about flying with your pet. Below is a checklist of the things you need to remember when preparing to fly with your animal:

Before Booking:

Check that the flight allows animals by consulting the airline website. Write down questions you’ll want to ask on the phone.

When Booking

Book your animal on board the same flight and ask the questions you wrote down. If you remember other ones later, call back when convenient.

After Booking

Consult the airline website for more detailed information. Next, check out the country of origin airport to see if they have any extra regulations (usually they just say to contact the airline). Finally, check the airport of the destination country to see what their animal process is.

Months Before the Flight

Book vet for required and optional injections/check-up, check that you have all the appropriate documentation for your animal, order the cage and train them how to use it, and make general arrangements for the day of the flight.

Alternatively, you might want to opt for the easy choice and hire a pet-sitter so you can avoid the headache of this scenario altogether!

Filed Under: Travel

Contact Paw Pals for More Information

Paw Pals specializes in professional dog walking, dog sitting, and pet sitting services. One of our reliable, adult staff members will keep your pet safe, while providing your pet the love and care they need when you are away. Contact us to learn more!

Have a question?

Send us a message and we'll get back to you in a timely manner.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Certifications & Associations

PetTech-logo

PUPS-logo

KennelPro

Northern Virginia Magazine - Best Pet Care 2019 Award

 2020 Best Pet Care Award

Powered By

Pet Sitter Plus logo

Office Location

Paw Pals Pet Sitting, LLC
14001-C Saint Germain Drive #213
Centreville, VA 20121
(703) 345-1695

professional dog walking software

Office Hours

Monday
9am - 5pm
Tuesday
9am - 5pm
Wednesday
9am - 5pm
Thursday
9am - 5pm
Friday
9am - 5pm
Saturday
Closed
Sunday
Closed

Areas Served

Centreville – 20120, 20121
Chantilly – 22151
Clifton – 20124
Fairfax – 22030, 22033
Fairfax Station – 22039
Manassas – 20109, 20110, 20111
Reston – 20191, 20190

Google Rating
5.0
Paw Pals Pet Sitting
Paw Pals Pet Sitting
5.0
Andrea Hall
Andrea Hall
22:45 03 Oct 20
I wasn't sure about hiring a new doggie walker service... after all they are our kiddos... my babies were in great hands and I felt relaxed having them in their care. Thank you for everything!
Phillip Evans
Phillip Evans
14:38 11 Jul 20
When we adopted our new dog in January, Paw Pals agreed to walk her and give her some outside time so she wasn't in the crate all day. She loved her dog walker and you could see her excitement every time the walker showed up. We moved out of the area but would recommend Paw Pals to anyone needing someone to care for their pets.
Katie Russell
Katie Russell
15:01 17 May 20
Paw Pals is fantastic! I have had a great experience with Mary! Compassionate, professional, responsive, and prompt! Thank you!
Kristin Conrad
Kristin Conrad
16:00 16 Nov 19
We are so grateful we found Mary and her team at Paw Pals. They are exceptionally responsive, amazingly organized and detail-oriented.We have such peace of mind when we travel knowing our home and pets are so well cared for. Paw Pals is the best pet sitting service we’ve used, and we’re so happy we found them.
Dr Tammy Cashion
Dr Tammy Cashion
21:11 12 Mar 19
We have used Paw pals pet sitting on multiple occasions for our bunnies while we are away. Many pet sitters are not interested in small pets however; Mary and her team, are amazing and we trust her implicitly! We are very happy with the outstanding service we have received from her team including texts and photos of our pets when we are out of town. They always go the extra mile and we highly recommend them!
Cindy Welgoss
Cindy Welgoss
13:12 27 Nov 20
We have been using Paw Pals for several years, and through a variety of pets that we have loved. Mary and her team have always been *exceptional* in every way. They are professional, courteous, and truly love our fur family! Mary herself is an organized and stellar administrator of her pet care business, keeping detailed records of our pet’s needs, scheduled pet visits, payments, and balance due easy to keep track of as the pet owner. The pet caretaking team is reliable and trustworthy. When our dogs see any of their Paw Pal friends, they get SO excited to see them! Follow up comments are left via text to keep the pet owner informed of the visit and how the pets are faring. Paw Pals has allowed our family the peace of mind to leave our pets at home, for work, weekend getaways and longer times away when necessary, where they are the most comfortable and familiar. We are grateful to Mary and her team for giving us the ability to enjoy pet ownership without feeling tied down. The responsibility of having pets comes with the need to keep them safe and comfortable at all times, and Mary and her team affords us this when our family has to be away.
See All Reviews Write a review
powered by Google

© 2021 · Paw Pals Pet Sitters, LLC · Website Design by 321 Web Marketing