shipping cats in late June

I've never heard anyone having trouble traveling with a cat. You will need one adult for each animal. When we brought our cat back from STX no one examined the cat to see if she could stand up. They will make you take the cat out of the carrier to go through security. We bought a harness and leash just so we could keep a good grip on her while she was out of the carrier and that worked fine. I took water, food and a pad so that, if necessary, I could take her out in the "family bathroom" but none of that was necessary. She was pretty freaked out about the trip and didn't eat, drink or poop until we got her home.

I recently contacted both USAirways and AA regarding their pet policies because I am bringing my 2 cats with me when I move to the islands this fall. This is what I was told: Both airlines stated that they do not put cats in the cargo area and certain times of the year they do not allow any pets in the cargo area due to the tempuratures. Also, they each have a limit of 6 pets allowed in the cabin per flight. Pet carrier count as 1 of your carry-on bags and it must fit underneath the seat. They each have a pet fee of $125 per pet which you pay when you are checking in. You cannot "reserve" spots in the pet limit per flight in advance. (I asked) Its first come, first serve so I would suggest getting to the airport earlier than you normally would to ensure both of your cats can fly with you.

As Linda J said "you need one adult for each animal". I was also told that if flying solo, I would have to buy an extra seat to be able to carry on both cats. I noticed you said "we" so buying an extra seat probably wouldn't be necessary.

Good Luck!

We traveled on American to STX in 2005 (late June too!) with a cat that was slightly large for its on-board carrier, and they never checked if she fit. They probably rarely check. Nobody blinked when we took her out during security, and that was the obvious time to see how big she was.

Thanks to everyone for the input. I have been having nightmares of getting to the airport and having them deny access to our kitties, causing us to not be able to leave. Do any of the local vets sell the airline approved carriers? Are they tiny?

Best thing to do is contact the airline that you have booked your fight on, directly, regarding travel restrictions based on time of year/temperature, types of carriers and their general policies regarding transportation of animals. You can check out K-mart as they have
pet carriers of different types or the various pet stores on island. You probably will end up having to get the soft carriers because I believe by June the restrictions are in place for not allowing any animals to be flown in cargo so the carriers would have to fit under seats.

Ask your vet re: health certificates and shots your kitties shall require. Do this now so you can have time to get whatever carrier you will need for your kitties and have everything in place. Don't wait until it is time for your flt., go to airport and hope for the best. No sense in worrying if you know what you need to do and have when you can prepare properly.

Maybe some other posters here may have carriers they no longer need and are willing to sell, once you find out the airlines requirements.
Good Luck to you and your kitties!

My experience of frequent-flying with a cat is that nobody ever checks anything except whether you've paid the $100+ pet fee, and sometimes they don't even check that.

I recommend soft-sided carriers rather than hard carriers. If you can't find one locally, you still have time to order them online. Cover the bottom panel of the soft-sided carrier with a "pee pad" (designed for puppy training), tape it in place, and carry a spare pad and tape in the pocket. Should an accident occur, you can easily change out the pad and continue on without your cat having to spend the rest of the journey sitting in a mess (which doesn't smell too good, either).

If you care about an animal, please don't ship him or her via cargo! If anyone is thinking of doing this, please read the cautionary tales online that will spell out why, from trauma to death. I know countless people who have said their dogs were "never quite the same" after being shipped here from the states.

The only time size of animal in container comes into play is when they are traveling overseas for a lengthy trip. St. thomas doesn't really qualify. So your good there. As far as the carrier. I would check online for an FAA APPROVED carrier, then call the particular airline that YOU have chosen to use and ask what the measurements under the seat is. It should be the smallest carrier size. I would by flight insurance just in case there is a problem and there are more animals on the flight than allowed and yours gets bumped. Also, you will have to be able to produce ownership of your animals if you intend to bring them back to the states from the VI. You will also have to go through another vet visit and shots before bringing them back into the states.

I'm in the process of going through this sort of thing with my two parrots, which is a bigger head ache than cats or dogs. They are considered exotics and is in a whole other catagory.

The only time size of animal in container comes into play is when they are traveling overseas for a lengthy trip.

Obviously you've never been checked in by the nasty Eagle employee in STX who wants to see the dog turn around in the bag...as a cabin pet

 

I would by flight insurance just in case there is a problem and there are more animals on the flight than allowed and yours gets bumped.

Does flight insurance actually cover such a scenario? I'd double-check on that one. Regardless, many airlines no longer limit the number of carry-on pets (they'd rather make a buck on the fees). Get to the airport a little early and I doubt you will have trouble.

Also, you will have to be able to produce ownership of your animals if you intend to bring them back to the states from the VI. You will also have to go through another vet visit and shots before bringing them back into the states.

Your vet can tell you what you need for a health certificate; depending on when your cats last had vaccinations, you may or may not have to repeat them. I don't know what "proof of ownership" for an animal would entail, but I've never seen such a requirement by any airline or government regarding household pets, nor been asked to produce it. Furthermore, I know people accompany shelter pets to the states all the time that they don't "own".

The only question I've ever gotten from anyone upon leaving STT with my kitty was at Customs. You have to check the box that says you are bringing "meats, animals, animal/wildlife products." The CBP official asked me what kind of meat I had! 😮

And we ALWAYS get a reservation for our animal, which flies as a cabin pet...The dog gets his own locator code, which is supposed to be linked to my res, but i always bring it because sometimes it's missing. I think sometimes when it was an Eagle from the VI they would not honor cabin pet res, then it was first come first serve...
We were on an eagle once, SJU to STX, where the limit was 2 cabin pets, but there were 4...and the pilot would not fly until 2 of them went into the luggage area.

Actually, US Airways no longer accepts pet reservations or limits the number of cabin pets. Made me nervous the first time I flew that way, but there were no problems. The airlines just want your cash; they really don't care what you have in the bag.

The only time size of animal in container comes into play is when they are traveling overseas for a lengthy trip.

Obviously you've never been checked in by the nasty Eagle employee in STX who wants to see the dog turn around in the bag...as a cabin pet

Sooo true. I've let people go ahead of me in the line to avoid getting her.

 

We just flew with a dog and they said NO pets if the outside temp is higher than 82 degrees where you are landing or taking off from!

We just flew with a dog and they said NO pets if the outside temp is higher than 82 degrees where you are landing or taking off from!

It is supposed to be 85 degrees (at least on AA). I always recommend printing out a copy of the rules from the Airlines website and bringing it with you when you travel. Sometimes the check-in people (ESPECIALLY on STX) either do not know the rules, or make-up their own to make your life difficult.

when i brought my cat, it was november. so no problem with the temp. he had to comeout of his carry case at mia but stx never asked to see his shot record which needs to be updated within ten days of travel? not sure of the exact time limit

I recently contacted both USAirways and AA regarding their pet policies because I am bringing my 2 cats with me when I move to the islands this fall. This is what I was told: Both airlines stated that they do not put cats in the cargo area and certain times of the year they do not allow any pets in the cargo area due to the tempuratures. Also, they each have a limit of 6 pets allowed in the cabin per flight. Pet carrier count as 1 of your carry-on bags and it must fit underneath the seat. They each have a pet fee of $125 per pet which you pay when you are checking in. You cannot "reserve" spots in the pet limit per flight in advance. (I asked) Its first come, first serve so I would suggest getting to the airport earlier than you normally would to ensure both of your cats can fly with you.

As Linda J said "you need one adult for each animal". I was also told that if flying solo, I would have to buy an extra seat to be able to carry on both cats. I noticed you said "we" so buying an extra seat probably wouldn't be necessary.

Good Luck!

Say what? You make reservations for them just like you do yourself. We did with our two cats months in advance. It is true that they limit the number of pets on a flight, hence advance reservations. I'm thinking the agent didn't understand you. We also flew AA.

Just get a health certificate and two soft sided carriers form petsmart. They didn't check to see if it would fit or if they can stand up. They will be fine, I was super stressed about our 2 and one is kinda a scardy cat but they were perfectly fine, and very quiet. Happy to get our of the carriers at the end but it was WAY less stressful than I though.

Say what? You make reservations for them just like you do yourself. We did with our two cats months in advance. It is true that they limit the number of pets on a flight, hence advance reservations. I'm thinking the agent didn't understand you.

Not on US Airways you don't. They used to do it this way but changed their policy maybe two years ago now. No reservations, no pet limit. I can't speak to AA's current policy because I avoid flying with them when I can. Point is, different airlines work differently. Check with your carrier when you book.

I would by flight insurance just in case there is a problem and there are more animals on the flight than allowed and yours gets bumped.

Does flight insurance actually cover such a scenario? I'd double-check on that one. Regardless, many airlines no longer limit the number of carry-on pets (they'd rather make a buck on the fees). Get to the airport a little early and I doubt you will have trouble.

Also, you will have to be able to produce ownership of your animals if you intend to bring them back to the states from the VI. You will also have to go through another vet visit and shots before bringing them back into the states.

Your vet can tell you what you need for a health certificate; depending on when your cats last had vaccinations, you may or may not have to repeat them. I don't know what "proof of ownership" for an animal would entail, but I've never seen such a requirement by any airline or government regarding household pets, nor been asked to produce it. Furthermore, I know people accompany shelter pets to the states all the time that they don't "own".

The only question I've ever gotten from anyone upon leaving STT with my kitty was at Customs. You have to check the box that says you are bringing "meats, animals, animal/wildlife products." The CBP official asked me what kind of meat I had! 😮

There may not be an issue with cats or even dogs. But birds or exotics are a whole other story. I was told that you must be able to show ownership of my birds once I hit customs especially in Miami. This can be done by original paperwork when birds were purchased, legs bands from the breeder or microchipping at my local vets office in the states. They will still require quarantining for 30 days, which can be done at the miami facility or if they are nice about it, they may elect to allow me to quarantine at home for the 30 days if i can show that I can keep them seperate from other birds. This is what I have found for birds or exotics only right now from my research. This is the main hold up for me coming back to the islands for a lengthy vist. Our two birds are our babies since we are retired. I would hate to have to leave them behind in the states or rehome them or leave them in the islands when we decide to return to our home in the states.

I know dogs and cats fall into a seperate catagory than exotics and therefore much easier to deal with as far as traveling with them. Like I told my wife about our birds, it's just a bunch of hoops that we will have to jump through to travel with our birds, but the quarantine thing does have me a bit worried. I have no paperwork on my birds since they are second hand birds and rehomed to me and neither has leg bands. So one of my main hoops will be to prove that my birds were not wild caught or purchased outside of the US. I also am required to obtain a health certificate form from the VI Agriculture center and have it filled out and retured to them within a certain number of days before receiving permission for my birds to be allowed in St. Thomas.

We just flew with a dog and they said NO pets if the outside temp is higher than 82 degrees where you are landing or taking off from!

That's only for pets in cargo right? And the temperature restrictions vary by airline. The OP wants to bring cats as carry-on, which I don't think has temperature restrictions.

Bethany Bradford is the Ag Vet and she is based on STX but comes to STT/STJ weekly.
You may want to call her and find out when she is available on STT. She will be more helpful to you than others in this dept. from whom you could wait forever to get a response. Good Luck!
Her Tel. is 778-0998 X241 You can also try thru 778-0997.

Bethany Bradford is the Ag Vet and she is based on STX but comes to STT/STJ weekly.
You may want to call her and find out when she is available on STT. She will be more helpful to you than others in this dept. from whom you could wait forever to get a response. Good Luck!
Her Tel. is 778-0998 X241 You can also try thru 778-0997.

This was for mtdoramike.

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I love my little cruzer and snapper and want to make sure everything is all set.

Bethany Bradford is the Ag Vet and she is based on STX but comes to STT/STJ weekly.
You may want to call her and find out when she is available on STT. She will be more helpful to you than others in this dept. from whom you could wait forever to get a response. Good Luck!
Her Tel. is 778-0998 X241 You can also try thru 778-0997.

This was for mtdoramike.

Thanks Alana, I took down the info and will see about getting into contact with her.

Mike

Say what? You make reservations for them just like you do yourself. We did with our two cats months in advance. It is true that they limit the number of pets on a flight, hence advance reservations. I'm thinking the agent didn't understand you.

Not on US Airways you don't. They used to do it this way but changed their policy maybe two years ago now. No reservations, no pet limit. I can't speak to AA's current policy because I avoid flying with them when I can. Point is, different airlines work differently. Check with your carrier when you book.

I have spoken to 2 different USAirways reps in the past month. Both said the pet limit is 6 pets in the cabin and there is no reservations for pets. As for AA, I only spoke to one AA rep, that person told me no reservations either, but like AandA2VI said they may not have understood what I was asking, or maybe its one of those things you get different answers on depending who you talk to. So if I book with AA I will follow up with them before booking any tickets to verify the policy.

FDR, why do you try to avoid flying AA? I've never flown with them and have seen on other forums people saying that they avoid them as well. I usually fly USAirways but am considering AA because for the dates that I am looking at as my potential move date AA will get me on the island earlier in the day than USAirways will which is very important to me since I am flying with pets. Thanks!