My husband and I have two miniature poodles and our family owns a place in Florida, so traveling back and forth has became a lifestyle for these two little ones and they LOVE it! I wouldn’t say any dog actually loves the ‘traveling’ portion but seeing new places and letting them explore, makes their little hearts so happy!
Here are some tips to help when traveling with your pet, specifically small dogs!
- Call Your Airline
- You will want to contact your airline so you can get all the requirements and guidelines for traveling. Trust me, they are not always so lenient when traveling with pets. Most airlines have a list of rules for your pet and forms you may have to fill out prior to traveling. If you are traveling Allegiant, I will tell you they are pretty lenient and don’t really look them over when they give you the tags for the carriers.
- Talk to Your Vet
- Call your vet and ask them for some tips on traveling with your pet… more specifically with anxiety. Our Veterinarian suggested Benadryl or an anti-anxiety treat. We have hemp dog chews and it has worked wonders! (Especially when getting groomed!)
- Get Copies Of Vaccinations
- Make sure to get copies of the pets vaccinations for the airline or wherever your destination may be. Some require up-to-date shots to travel.
- Select An Airline Approved Travel Carrier
- This one was a struggle for us… the airline we fly to Florida is Allegiant. We love the fact that we can have one flight instead of multiple. Allegiant allows all domestic cats and dogs BUT the carrier has to be 9”H x 16”W x 19”D. It was a big struggle for us to find the perfect carrier that fits the measurements. After checking out on Amazon, we decided to go to the pet store and we found one by the Sherpa brand. The measurements were a little bit larger than the ones Allegiant required (11”H x 12”W x 18”D) but we never got questioned. As long as it fits under the seat (where your personal item belongs). One more thing to let you know about is the dog(s) are considered your personal item when traveling so if you are planning on having a carry-on plus a personal item (duffle bag) then I would suggest you try to fit it all in your carry-on.
- Play Time Before Traveling
- A couple hours before we leave for our flight we take the dogs outside and go for a mile walk then play fetch. This helps wear them out and they are less likely to have anxiety being in the carrier on the flight.
- Get Anxiety Treats
- We give our little Sophie girl anxiety (hemp) treats — when we take her to the vet, to get groomed, around 4th of July and New Years for the fireworks and when traveling via plane. It makes a WORLD of difference for her.
- Practice With The Carrier
- This is super important to practice placing the dogs in the carrier a week or so before traveling. It’s a new object for them and easing their anxiety is key when traveling. We leave the carriers out in the living room — open, that way they know it is a safe place. Placing toys in their helps as well. So everyday we place them in for 5-10 minutes… we praise them while they are in the carriers and after the time is up we reward them with a treat and give them lots of love! They do really well practicing with the carrier.
- Bring Treats/Water
- Make sure to bring treats and water with and praise them every so often being in the carrier (so they know you are still there and didn’t leave them alone), since the airlines don’t allow you to take them out on the duration of the flight.
- Limit Treats/Water
- Be careful to not give the pet too many treats or too much water as they have to hold it during the flight. Letting them go to the bathroom before the flight and immediately after will help them a ton. Most airports will have a dog potty area and trash bags to dispose of when they are done.
- Bring Toys or Comfort Blanket
- We always bring toys (non-squeaking) and a very small blanket so they feel at home (it helps if you have them sleep with it a week or so before the flight so the scent is lingering for them) and secure when we travel. It lessens their anxiety a ton.
Those are my 10 tips to traveling with a pet on an airplane and I hope this helps you with your flight! If you have any questions, comments or advice for others when traveling with a pet, leave it below! Atlas and Sophie say Hi, from Florida!!
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xo -liv
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