If your air travel plans include your pooch or your kitty, check with your airline well in advance. Airline policies vary widely, from those that enact an embargo in times of extreme weather, to those that do not transport animals, except for guide dogs.
Because of a proposed FAA rule, many travelers fear that airlines may stop transporting pets.
Michael Wascom is vice president of communications at the Air Transport Association, a Washington, D.C., trade organization for major U.S air carriers that promotes the industry and advancement of airline operations. Wascom said the issue came to the forefront because of legislation introduced a few years ago by Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) titled the Safe Air Travel For Animals Act.
The legislation would require the airlines to submit paperwork to government officials whenever animals are scheduled to fly, to install heating and cooling systems in cargo holds, to train personnel to handle animals, to notify animal owners of handling plans and safety records, and to report figures on how many animals are lost, injured or killed in flight. Wascom said that though airline personnel make every effort to handle animals with care, on the rare occasion that the death of a dog or cat does occur, the industry does not object to reporting the incident. “But should we also be expected to open up every box of pet boa constrictors to see if they’re all alive? It’s a physical impossibility,” he added.
The legislation was, according to Wascom, the result of a misinterpretation of an Air Transport Association briefing paper that stated more than 99 percent of the estimated 500,000 dogs and cats that the airlines handle each year reach their destination without any problems. Wascom said the statement was mathematically transformed to suggest that the other 1 percent (5,000) are killed, lost or injured.
“In using the term `without any problems,’ the word `problems’ means such things as a dog or cat being turned away by an air carrier [for a variety of reasons],” Wascom said.
The reasons for not accepting an animal may include the passenger failing to advise the airline in advance and the full flight being unable to accommodate the animal, or the animal not having proper certification. “There are many additional issues that fall into the `problems’ category which have absolutely nothing to do with a pet being lost, injured or killed,” Wascom said.
Dr. Ronald Kipnis, a veterinarian at the Lombard Animal Clinic, Lombard, agreed that animals flying will rarely encounter health problems.
“We have a number of clients who fly with their pets,” Kipnis said, “and the majority do very well. There are steps people can take to make the experience more comfortable for their pet, and if they’re aware of some potential problems, things should be fine.”
Kipnis advises clients to make sure the animal travels on an empty stomach, and to be especially careful of traveling in weather extremes of heat and cold. “Especially for snub-nose breeds of dogs, where they can have respiratory difficulty in hot weather,” he said.
Allowing the animal to become familiar with his carrier or kennel before traveling will help make him feel more at ease, said Kipnis. “If the animal will be in the baggage area, I’m against tranquilizing them, as it depresses the body temperature, and in a colder cargo space, it could cause a problem. Plus, the effects of tranquilizers are not always predictable.”
Wascom concurred. “On the rare occasion when a pet becomes ill aboard a flight, over-sedation with tranquilizers is most often the cause of illness,” he said.
Kipnis also advised potential travelers to make sure pets have identification on their collars in case they should get out of the carrier. “If there’s no ID, nobody knows where that animal belongs,” he said. “Proper identification can avoid a lot of heartbreak.”
The National Animal Interest Alliance, Portland, Ore., is an association organized to protect and promote humane policies and the relationship between people and animals. The alliance considers itself educational rather than activist and supports the imposition of reasonable regulations, but President Patti Strand said animal rights activists groups are misrepresenting information that has stemmed from publicity about the proposed rule.
“If the perceptions fostered by groups such as the ASPCA [American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals] were true, we’d all support the Lautenberg amendment,” Strand said. “Who would not support a bill that could prevent the loss, injury or death of 5,000 pets each year? The problem is, the campaign for this amendment relies on misrepresentations of existing pet transport problems, and if passed, could actually cause more harm than good.”
Wascom contends that the issue of problems in transporting pets has been overblown. “The pending FAA rule would likely cause some carriers to stop carrying pets altogether, despite the convenience that this service offers to customers,” he said. “The proposed rule was poorly drafted, and instead of applying only to dogs and cats as originally intended, includes all animals–snakes, rats and so on.”
“The industry is crying wolf,” said Tim Yehl, chief of staff to Sen. Lautenberg. “The bottom line is that Americans do not want to risk their pet’s lives when they travel. The FAA is taking appropriate steps to implement Sen. Lautenberg’s legislation.”
The proposed rule is in the review stage by the FAA. “Currently, we are reviewing the comments we’ve received about it,” said FAA spokesperson Elizabeth Isham Cory, from the FAA’s Great Lakes Regional Office. “We’ve received over 3,000 comments. This is a standard rule-making procedure before we issue a final statement regarding any rule being implemented.”
“Ultimately, if consumers will simply follow the guidelines established by the airlines and the U.S. Agricultural Department,” Wascom said, “problems would be minimal, and we probably would not even be debating this topic.”
The guideline publication, “Air Travel for your Dog or Cat” can be found at www.airlines.org under “Publications” or by calling 800-487-3326.
