Flying with a sheltie

[jasonsjwou]

What is the longest flight you've done with your dog (sheltie or others) as a checked bag or under-the-seat bag?

I have close to a million miles on my frequent flyer program.... Well I fly frequently because of my job. But I have NEVER encountered anyone flying with their dog under the seat. (Heard hundreds of crying babies but never heard a dog bark inside the passenger cabin)

But I've heard some breeders flying their sire/dam over to a different part of the country just to mate... Heard someone flew their dog (Just the dog, as a luggage) from Boston to Chicago to get it mated... she was the "AKC Breeder of Merit" so it must be ok thing to do in the dog fancy world. I'd guess this could be a good thing because it may broaden the gene pool.

And some breeder site even says "we ship anywhere in the world". I thought this was pretty dramatic...

So. Here're my questions.

How many hours of flight have you done with your dog?

How about international flight? (Visas and Passports?)

Has anyone gone far, say, to Japan or England (Shetland islands????) with their dog?

 

[danisgoat]

Dandie was flown to us from the breeder at 8 weeks. She did great. It was from Florida to New Jersey. She flew Continental.

 

[tofu pup]

How many hours of flight have you done with your dog?

The farthest we've done personally is from Connecticut to Los Angeles. The dog flew as checked baggage and did just fine. The same dog also flew from CT to Denver and CT to Dallas (and back, of course!) with no problems at all. We've also shipped from CT to Oregon, CT to Arizona, and done frequent shipments between Nova Scotia and Boston. Every dog has flown cargo or checked baggage, and every flight has been uneventful.

How about international flight? (Visas and Passports?)

Has anyone gone far, say, to Japan or England (Shetland islands????) with their dog?

Never done this myself, but shipping dogs between Japan and the East Coast of the US (which, I think, is about as far as you can get!) is not as rare as one might think. I don't know what the regulations are (beyond needing an approved crate and health certificate). It's best done through a trans-shipper: you have someone in California who you know and trust, and who knows Shelties. You ship the dog from the East Coast to your trans-shipper in CA. They pick the dog up and give him or her a "layover" in their home or kennel: the dog has time to relax a little before the Really Big Flight. The trans-shipper takes the dog back to the airport, and sends it on to Japan.

It's a big trip, but many, many Shelties (and dogs of other breeds!) have done it with no ill-effects. The dogs who do this trip are very high-value animals (successful American dogs going to Japan for stud careers, promising young Japanese dogs coming to the US for show campaigns, and vice versa). Everything possible is done to ensure the dog's safety and comfort.

Something to keep in mind is that our dogs are used to traveling in crates. They learn from a very young age that you go into your crate, you take a nice nap, and when you wake up, you're in a lovely new place where good things will happen (usually a dog show!). When we drop the dogs off, we're very confident and nonchalant, because we want the dog to think that it's just another trip in the crate - nothing to stress about, nothing scary. Shipping bitches to be bred is fairly routine, and it's a valuable tool for breeders to be able to access dogs from across the country. Shipped semen is cutting down on the need to ship bitches, but it's not yet the norm.

We have a Forum member who has experience shipping dogs to Hawaii, which is also a very long way! As I understand it, the little dog did great, and because she and the new owners did their homework before sending the dog, they were able to make the process as smooth as possible.

 

[HopeShelties]

I've shipped puppies under the seat. It's the only way I will ship. Either I or my fiance' fly with the pup and hand deliver them. I've had bad experience with shipping a dog cargo, so I just don't do it. It's better for me, IMO, to know the puppy did fine on the flight than to chance something going wrong

 

[Sharon]

Flying a dog

My dog has flown overseas in cargo and did just find.He flew from Boston to Paris and Paris to Germany.

 

[SheepOfBlue]

Interestingly Japan to TX or certainly FL is further than to the east coast. They fly north and up over the small part of the globe. When flying from AL to CA we go up toward Colorado then down as it is short (you can test this with string on a globe).

I have never flown a dog but was on a flight with chickens in the hold (we could hear them)

 

[ClantyreSheltie]

I have sent two dogs from Baltimore to Honolulu. Both were approx. 18 hours door to door. Both were dry on landing, and both peed for minutes and minutes.

 

[BarbV]

My preference has always to find a breeder close to home.

If any issues come up, then the breeder is right there and not on some email address 1,000 miles away.

I know not everyone has that luxory but that would be my preference.

Cheers
Barb

 

[Lightplum]

My preference has always to find a breeder close to home.

If any issues come up, then the breeder is right there and not on some email address 1,000 miles away.

I know not everyone has that luxory but that would be my preference.

Cheers
Barb

I dont think they were asking about getting a dog from some far away place, more of taking their dog with them? Or did I read that wrong...at any rate,
I had my first show girl come from Canada and fly in cabin as I went up to get her..she did fine. it was an 8 hour flight.
My second girl came from California, she was 10 weeks old and flew from cali to RI 13 hour flight she did fine as well.
Noah just flew last month from RI to our National in MO, he did great as well...and on the way back since the airport was uhhh gone...we flew out of Chicago after our 8 hour drive in the car...he did fine as well!
I wouldnt hesitate shipping via the airlines, its relatively safe and quick.

I do the chilled for my girls as well, since its cheaper than shipping. works great!

 

[jasonsjwou]

No I'm not interested in buying a dog from out of state.
It's already hard enough to weed through the breeder list to find a good one locally. Unless i've personally met them in a competition or something, I would not consider getting a dog from someone far away.

I just wanted to know how far people are willing to fly their dog.

I have families overseas, and I've always wanted to take the dog if it is at all possible.

I'm still interested in hearing from the experts!!!