FYI - Must Take Fluffy Out!!

Just a little FYI for those of you who might consider flying with your pet. Before booking my recent flight to Wisconsin, I carefully read all the information on the airline's website about what I could and could not do, taking my cat on board. I made sure I had an appropriate carrier. I paid the necessary fees. However, nowhere, NOWHERE did it say that I would be expected to take Bax out of his carrier to go through airport security.

He had been doing so well. There was a bit of howling on the way to the airport but he quickly chilled out. I was feeling pretty good about this whole pet travel thing. Soon enough, I was in the airport security line. I had taken off my shoes, thrown all my crap into the dingy gray bins, and was ready with Bax safely enclosed in the Sherpa carrier to pass through the metal detector. That's when the security woman who appeared to be about 19 years old (why are they all so young?!) said, "Please remove your pet from the carrier."

"WHAT?" Already anxiety ridden, I thought my heart was gonna give out right there.

"Remove your pet please," she repeated. I think she may have been snapping gum, too.

I was in complete shock.

"What?" I asked again.

I will save you from the boring details of our conversation since it went into broken record mode. Suffice it to say that there was a rapid succession of phrases such as:

"HE'S GONNA TAKE OFF IF I LET HIM OUT OF THIS THING!"

"Well, ma'am, you've got to."

My favorite part, though, was when she tried to instruct me in the appropriate manner of cat transport through the hustle and bustle that is airport security.

"You just take him out, hold him like a baby, and walk through."

Clearly, not a cat owner.

But what could I do? So I had one of those, Don't think about it! moments and opened the carrier, grabbed him, held him to my chest while he went a little nuts, yelled at security staff to get my (*@#! carrier through ASAP and then stuffed him back in as a cloud of gray fur settled on the conveyor belt. All in all, he did rather well. I was honestly amazed that he did not take advantage of the moment and execute some sort of escape. By the time I had gotten my shoes back on, he was looking amazingly mellow in his little case. I, on the other hand, was sweating and on the verge of heart palpitations.

I hadn't realized what a scene I had made in line until I got to my gate and random people began approaching me.

"Are you okay?" "How's the kitty?" "Everything went okay, right?" "It's so stressful, isn't it?"

In the end, I'm glad that I didn't know about the airline's policy. I probably wouldn't have gone through it all. However, I'm not exactly a fan of being kept in the dark. Hence, my desire to spread the word. So there you go.

And next time, for my heart's sake, collar and leash!

Things I've Learned About Pet Travel

I feel like I am writing a book report with such a title. Anyway...

I've done quite a bit of research lately in regards to traveling with one's fuzzy friend so I thought I'd share some of my findings.

1) Putting your pet in cargo is actually more expensive and complicated than keeping him/her in the cabin with you. Who knew? If you decide to put Fluffy in the pet cargo area underneath, you have to follow all sorts of restrictions in regards to the type of carrier you use. You also have to provide special health information from the vet within ten days of your flight. For a summary of these pretty standard regulations, check out Delta's page.

On the other hand, if you choose to bring your pet into the cabin with you (and be wary, not all airlines allow this), there are few restrictions. You basically need to have a smallish pet to fit in a carrier under the seat and you have to pay somewhere around $70-$100 for his/her "ticket." (For travel in cargo, it seems to be around the $150 mark). You also do not need to provide any health documentation. Maybe that's because you are present to see Fluffy potentially foam at the mouth right there in front of you.

2) I also learned that there are travel services that will transport your pet for you. I looked into one and was impressed by the quick response (via email as well as telephone) from a person with a soft spoken voice who I couldn't help but envision wearing Birkenstocks while feeding 17 cats. I was a bit shocked to learn that the quoted price for Baxter's transport was $421. However, this involved door to door service and to be quite frank, when considering lost wages due to my little trip to Wisconsin, it's probably not a bad deal.

3) Pet Airways. Let me say that again. PET AIRWAYS! Check it out! This warmed my heart and had they actually serviced Milwaukee, I would have considered it.

But alas, I am taking Baxter the Cat myself. His happy foster family awaits. And I get to see my family in the process. Not a bad way to wrap up my time in the U.S.