Shipping your dog

May 02, 2003
Delta Air Lines Announces Embargo on Pets As Checked Baggage
M2 Communications
Delta Air Lines will implement its annual embargo on the acceptance of pets as checked baggage from 15 May through to 15 September.

During this embargo period, customers may transport their pets by shipping them as cargo under the Pet First programme or transporting them as carry-on luggage. The airline's Pet First programme is available from Atlanta, Cincinnati, Dallas and Salt Lake City, and is designed to address the special needs of warm-blooded animals shipped as cargo without their owner.

Those customers wishing to transport pets as carry-on luggage may bring their pets (dogs, cats, birds, ferrets, rabbits, hamsters and guinea pigs) into the passenger cabin for a fee of USD75 when travelling within the US or Canada. The animals must fit comfortably in a kennel measuring 17"L x 12"W x 8"H.

Further information is available online at
http://www.delta.com.

New airline law
Ten animals were killed, injured or lost by six U.S. airlines in May, the first month for which carriers were required to report to the government.

A large dog escaped his kennel in the cargo hold of an Alaska Airlines flight and killed an Abyssinian cat named Tango in one of the four deaths reported Thursday by the Transportation Department in Washington, D.C. Five animals were injured, and one was lost, the report says.

"It has been a hidden secret for so long how many animals are lost, hurt and killed," said Barbara Listenik, a Brooklyn, N.Y., artist who campaigned for the reporting requirement. "That's why I fought so hard for this."

In April 2000 Congress enacted the law for airlines, which transport about 500,000 animals a year. The information, which the government will disclose monthly, "will help consumers make informed decisions about whether and how to travel with pets," the Department of Transportation said.

A dog and rat arrived dead on Continental Airlines Inc. flights due to natural causes, the report says. A Sheltie named Kelly was put to death after ingesting a toxic substance, possibly antifreeze, on a US Airways Group Inc. flight, the report says.

Injuries and a loss were reported by Northwest Airlines Corp., Continental, Alaska Air Group Inc's Alaska, Frontier Airlines Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc.'s Comair.

"Obviously one injured or killed pet or animal onboard an aircraft is too many," said Jack Evans, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, a Washington trade group whose members include major U.S. carriers. The 10 incidents reported show problems are "the exception rather than the rule," he said.

DOT: Short-snouted dogs most likely to die on airline flights

By Ben Mutzabaugkh, USA TODAY

"Bulldog and pug owners beware: Short-snouted breeds accounted for roughly half the purebred dog deaths on airplanes in the past five years, Transportation Department data released Friday shows." That's from a story just out this afternoon by The Associated Press, which says at least 122 dog deaths have been reported since the DOT required airlines to start making that information public beginning in May 2005.

AP adds English bulldogs "account for the single highest number of deaths among the 108 purebreds on the list," representing 22 of the deaths on the list compiled by the DOT. Pugs (11 deaths), golden retrievers (7), labradors (7), French Bulldogs (6) and American Staffordshire terriers (4) followed English bulldogs on the list.

DOT press release: "Short-faced" dogs more prone to death in flight, according to DOT data (PDF file)

Dan Bandy, chairman of the Bulldog Club of America's health committee, tells AP short-snouted breeds face a particular risk in being transported in the cargo holds of airliners.

"The way all dogs cool themselves is basically through respiration, either just panting or the action of breathing in or out, is a method of heat exchange for them," Bandy tells. "A dog that has a long snout or a long muzzle has more surface area within its nasal cavity for that heat exchange to take place. So breeds like labradors or collies or those types of dogs with the long muzzles have a more efficient cooling system."

Adam Goldfarb, director of the Humane Society's pet risk program, expounds on that to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He says such short-snouted breeds have "problems breathing and with air flow. It's [flying] a stressful experience for a dog. They are in a crate, [in] a small enclosed area. There are new smells. Then the plane takes off and it's an unsettling experience. And [there is] the noise."

As for recent examples, Bloomberg News writes "the one dog death reported to the [DOT] in May, the most recent month for which data are available, was a 6-year-old pug named Pixie, who died during a Continental Airlines flight from Houston to San Jose, Costa Rica. According to the report, the death was likely 'breed-related' and unrelated to Continental Airlines' handling of the dog."

Some airlines go so far as to prevent short-snouted breeds from flying as cargo during hot periods of the year. The Journal-Constitution notes that Delta -- the USA's biggest carrier -- says on its website that it will not transport "snub- or pug-nosed dogs and cats" in temperatures that exceeds 75 degrees. Delta says all other breeds are barred at temperatures above 85F.

The DOT report also covers missing and injured animals. The Journal-Constitution notes there "were 88 pets injured or lost between May 2005 and last May."

"When it comes to traveling with your pets, consider... whether your pet wants to go with you and whether it's worth it," the Humane Society's Goldfarb tells the paper.

Posted Jul 16 2010 2:46PM

SHIPPING YOUR PUPPY Whether you are buying a new puppy, taking a vacation with your pet or moving across country you may be faced with the issue of shipping live cargo through the airlines. Here is some "need to know" information to help your puppy have a successful trip.

DOT: Short-snouted dogs most likely to die on airline flights

SHIPPING YOUR PUPPY
Whether you are buying a new puppy, taking a vacation with your pet or moving across country you may be faced with the issue of shipping live cargo through the airlines. Here is some "need to know" information to help your puppy have a successful trip.