@MapleTwinkie especially a male! Kyuubi outgrew the requirements for flying in cabin at 7.5 weeks. What a monster. But a female Hokkaido puppy should be fine I think.
@mapletwinkie Thanks @poeticdragon You couldn't pay me to fly United lol. Why would you recommend none of the Star Alliance though? I might not have a choice about going with ANA. JAL couldn't accommodate our needs last time I checked.
@okiron the "Star Alliance" all have the same pet policies as United. These policies were originally implemented by Continental and have been implemented to the other airlines as part of various merger agreements. The program is called PetSafe.
To "protect" pets they no longer allow them to fly as excess baggage. They claim to be giving pets better service/protection at the terminal and loading but as I mentioned before the pets still fly in the same part of the plane. Its a scam to charge more money for pets; cargo costs are by weight while excess baggage is a flat fee. Whats more I saw no evidence of any kind of extra service or protection for my dogs. They were left out in the baggage area unattended for two hours.
What really pissed me off, though, was that they changed their policy without warning pretty much the week before we went to Japan to pick up our dogs. I posted about it here: http://nihonken.org/forum/index.php?p=/discussion/7149
Whats more I read a very sad story about a disabled vet flying with his service dog on United. The airline lost his luggage, including his medication and dog food, and his connecting flight was delayed. He was having trouble concentrating or communicating because he didn't have his meds and because he was fatigued. He asked for help and they wouldn't help him, calling him nasty names. One of the United flight attendants actually kicked his dog -- twice -- saying she was "afraid" of dogs and it was the dog's fault. He was literally left huddled, stranded, and helpless in the airport terminal for almost a full day. Finally someone from a different carrier came and helped him. The dog was so traumatized from the whole affair she had to be evaluated whether she could continue her role as a service animal. This story is not heresay, but video blogged by the vet himself. It included cell phone footage of his dog freaking out from the mistreatment.
Ugh, I knew ANA and United were linked in a sense but I wrongly assumed they were still operating separately. That poor man. Looks like I'm going airline hunting then.
Well the thing is, I want him in cargo. I'll be traveling with 2 kids so I don't really want to add to the in-cabin stress lol. But I refuse to give United my money so if ANA is owned by the same parent company, they wont see my money either.
I have had nothing but good experience shipping pups through the pet safe program. All my puppy buyers have ben thrilled with how easy the process was and how friendly the airline staff was. The people I have talked with on the phone to book have always been great. They take the time to determine the best flight to put the animal on that created the least amount of travel time for the pet. Ritsu was shipped to me through Pet safe. I arrived before the plane had landed. Once the plane was in the gate, Ritsu was the first thing taken off the plane. He was brought directly to me where I showed ID to prove I was the correct person picking him up. They left his crate on the cart for me so I would not have to track down another cart. The guy even offered to push the cart out and load it in the car for me. I was in the parking garage so he let me take the cart out to the garage and load Ritsu up. He met me at the elevator and took the cart back for me.
@sjp051993 My problem is not with PetSafe but that the airlines using the PetSafe program have discontinued allowing pets to fly as checked or excess baggage. Even if you are on the same plane as the dog, you will be charged the cargo rates. Its a scam. They charge you for your full round trip ticket and the full cost of sending the puppy alone! The service provided (transporting one human and one animal by air) has not changed but the total price has gone up tenfold.
Now, if you're planning to ship the dog as cargo anyway and not fly with the dog, then my complaint is irrelevant. Use whatever carrier you prefer.
e. Even if you are on the same plane as the dog, you will be charged the cargo rates. Its a scam. They charge you for your full round trip ticket and the full cost of sending the puppy alone!
Ah, I took it as you'll have to pay the cargo fee but it'll still be cheaper than if the dog traveled alone. That sucks if you're paying full price if you're flying with them anyway.
Comments
@mapletwinkie Thanks
@poeticdragon You couldn't pay me to fly United lol. Why would you recommend none of the Star Alliance though? I might not have a choice about going with ANA. JAL couldn't accommodate our needs last time I checked.
To "protect" pets they no longer allow them to fly as excess baggage. They claim to be giving pets better service/protection at the terminal and loading but as I mentioned before the pets still fly in the same part of the plane. Its a scam to charge more money for pets; cargo costs are by weight while excess baggage is a flat fee. Whats more I saw no evidence of any kind of extra service or protection for my dogs. They were left out in the baggage area unattended for two hours.
What really pissed me off, though, was that they changed their policy without warning pretty much the week before we went to Japan to pick up our dogs. I posted about it here: http://nihonken.org/forum/index.php?p=/discussion/7149
Whats more I read a very sad story about a disabled vet flying with his service dog on United. The airline lost his luggage, including his medication and dog food, and his connecting flight was delayed. He was having trouble concentrating or communicating because he didn't have his meds and because he was fatigued. He asked for help and they wouldn't help him, calling him nasty names. One of the United flight attendants actually kicked his dog -- twice -- saying she was "afraid" of dogs and it was the dog's fault. He was literally left huddled, stranded, and helpless in the airport terminal for almost a full day. Finally someone from a different carrier came and helped him. The dog was so traumatized from the whole affair she had to be evaluated whether she could continue her role as a service animal. This story is not heresay, but video blogged by the vet himself. It included cell phone footage of his dog freaking out from the mistreatment.
Now, if you're planning to ship the dog as cargo anyway and not fly with the dog, then my complaint is irrelevant. Use whatever carrier you prefer.