Traveling With Companion Animals

Using a Dog or Cat Carrier
Sounds simple doesn’t it? If kitty is comatose, it is. Or if your pooch is used to sleeping in the carrier or finding a cache of favorite treats hidden inside it. But if your animal companion is halfway functional and only used to going to the vet in that thing, getting him/her into the carrier without losing clawmark-size parts of your shoulder is as simple as making something edible out of garden mulch. You will have to call on your powers of persuasion and, possibly, deceipt.

Because dogs and cats can see, don’t parade around with carrier in hand or get it noisily out of the closet. Subtlety and speed are called for here. Plan your maneuver carefully first. And don’t smile too much. Your Rover or Fluffy’s no fool. Try to act as if nothing’s up.

1. Make sure the carrier bottom is comfy, not lumpy, barren, cold, or lined with thin paper. A warm towel makes a good floor covering.

2. Make sure the door works well and closes tightly. If necessary, oil the hinges. There may be a time and place for fumbling, but as on a date, this isn’t it.

3. Try to ever-so-quietly get the carrier as near as possible to your companion without him/her seeing it.

4. If your animal companion is a cat or a small dog, keep the carrier at chest level (such as on a table) so that you don’t have to bend down at a crucial moment.

5. Pick Tiddles up (again, if your animal companion is a cat or a small dog), facing away from the carrier and, talking gently to him or her, move backward, if necessary, until you are just in front of the carrier and then slide him or her in.

6. Slip a little treat (for all animals, including big dogs).

7. Latch. Cover the carrier with a towel. Pick the carrier up evenly (some people seem to instantly forget that there’s an animal onboard and start swinging it around, banging it into doors, holding it at weird angles, and otherwise misbehaving).

8. Depart. Do not be tempted, for any reason, to open the carrier until you are safely ensconced in a room somewhere.There. Easy, wasn’t it?

Getting Kitty Into the Car
Dogs may drool out the window, bark at bicyclists, and snort the air as it rushes past, but they are not cats. Cats regard even slow-moving vehicles in much the same way that claustrophobics view closets. Even the horn scares and disgusts them. A lot of this can probably be attributed to the fact that the only time most cats see the inside of a car is when their next sight will be the veterinarian’s office. But some cats were introduced to car rides for pure fun in their kittenhood and seem to actually enjoy them. This does not alter the fact that cats and cars are generally a bad mix. For example, if a vehicle backfires, a gun-shy dog may cower, but a cat will flee ( and in strange territory, chances of recovery are slim).

Cars also have windows and seats. While it may be impossible for a wolfhound or even a corgi to clamber out through a tiny crack in the window that lets the driver pay a gas station attendant or a toll, most cats could squeeze their way out of a toothpaste tube. As for seats, we have never heard of a dog getting caught in the springs under a seat or having to be cut out of the metalwork over the wheelbase, but both things frequently happen to cats. Extricating them wastes a chunk of a person’s life and sometimes a chunk out of the car. Worse, the cat may emerge physically intact but can suffer emotional scars that may never heal.

If you are going to put a tiger in your Taurus, here’s how to do it right:

1. Always use a sturdy carrier. Double-check that the carrier door is absolutely secure. Never let your cat loose in the car. PETA’s Paul Phillips says, “If, for any reason, you find yourself in a car with an unrestrained cat, don’t ever, ever, ever open the door or window until you have the situation completely under control. Countless cats have been lost at tollbooths and rest stops this way.”

2. Keep the carrier from wobbling by creating as flat an area as possible for it to sit on (pack a towel around the outside if you need to). Do not let Tiddles see that she is headed for the car—drape a breathable cloth over the carrier before heading out the door, place the carrier on the flat space in the car, then rearrange the cloth so that she can see you, if possible, but not out any window. The sight of the earth or sky speeding past causes most cats to panic, begin open-mouthed breathing, howl miserably, and contemplate suicide at the next stoplight.

3. Play the radio softly to drown out traffic noises (try a soothing classical music station).

4. Talk to your cat as you go. If he or she complains, always answer reassuringly.

5. Think about how frightened you are when you get into the car with your oldest relative, now retired to Florida, at the wheel? Don’t drive that way. Avoid lurching forward, brake smoothly, and imagine that you are delivering crystal glassware that will shatter if you do not look ahead and steer clear of manhole covers.

6. When you arrive at your destination, let kitty scope out the new indoor setting from the sanctity of the carrier, then offer him or her food, water, and litter outside it. In strange surroundings, ensure that all doors and windows are shut as tightly as can be before even one whisker emerges from that carrier.

Please also be aware of the dangers to animals left in hot cars.

Air Travel
Most domestic airlines in the U.S. permit animals whose crates are small enough to fit directly under the passenger seat to fly in the passenger area, which is the safest way to transport animals by air. Check with the airlines to see what their requirements are for transporting animals in the cabin directly under the seat.

According to the Airline Transportation Association, more than 5,000 animals are killed, injured, or lost on commercial flights each year. Horror stories include that of a dog named Enzo, who died of heat stress in the cargo bay despite the fact that his human companion repeatedly asked the airplane crew to check on him as the plane sat delayed for hours on the runway. Another dog named Jed was brought out of the holding bay not breathing and covered in urine, feces, and vomit. He had died of suffocation from a lack of oxygen. Still more animals froze to death or were injured from rough handling. PETA strongly advises AGAINST transporting your animal companion by air in the cargo area.

However, if you are have no choice (and we really mean absolutely no choice because, as we already mentioned, transporting your companion animal in the cargo area is dangerous, terrifying and can be deadly), please follow the guidelines on this PETA factsheet.

Actions to Take If Your Companion Is Mistreated by an Airline

1. Write a letter of complaint detailing the mistreatment and send it to the CEO of the airline. Please be sure to specify the date of the event and your flight number, and mention the names of the airline personnel that were involved. Write to PETA (Info@peta.org) for the name and address of the airline’s CEO.

2. Send a copy of this letter to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA works to make sure airlines and other industries are not operating in violation of the federal Animal Welfare Act.

USDA
Animal Care
4700 River Rd., Unit 84
Riverdale, MD 20737-12323. Warn others of the airline’s neglect in a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.

Next »