Just wanted to let people know about things that you might run into
flying dogs with Air Canada….

You probably already know that you can't fly your dog "with" you
anymore - as baggage. They have to be booked separately as cargo.

I flew 2 puppies in 1 crate from Prince George to Victoria. There
was a change of planes in Vancouver. Air Canada cargo insisted that
there be a 2 hr delay between flights so I booked my flights the
same way. They use small jets on these flights so when we got off
in Vancouver I stood at the bottom of the steps and waited to see my
puppys unloaded. The stewardess was very interested and went and
saw the puppies and talked to the cargo guys that were unloading
luggage. She even brought the crate over and we cuddled the puppies
but then had to put them back in the crate and hand them over to the
luggage guys. They just put the crate down on the tarmac. I voiced
my concerns about where they were going to go since they're next
flight wasn't for 2 hrs. The luggage guys said that "they usually
just leave them out on the tarmac till their next flight". You can
imagine my response (over my dead body!). It was 4C, damp and
windy. Talked to the staff who called someone. Meanwhile the crate
was put on a luggage carrier and driven off into a corner (they
thought) out of sight. The luggage guys walked away leaving them in
an uncovered luggage carrier. I was able to see them and became
more and more concerned that they would be left there. Finally,
someone came and took them inside a building. When I returned to
board the connecting flight it was the same staff and they assured
me that they would let me know when the puppies were loaded. I was
sceptical so again stood out on the tarmac and waited to see them
loaded. A luggage guy came and told me that they were just going to
get them. Then, after waiting and seeing nothing he came back to
inform me that they had been put on an earlier flight!!! Needless
to say, I was very upset. They had left an hour earlier, with no
one to watch how they were handled and no one to pick them up at the
other end. No one had phoned me to tell me that they were going on
an earlier flight. From inside the plane I called my friend who
lives just a few minutes from the Victoria airport, she headed over
to cargo to make sure that they were alright. The puppies were in my
name so no one else could pick them up.
The puppies in the end were fine. I was not.
So, please be careful when shipping dogs. Do not book connecting
flights with Air Canada unless you are there to watch them handle
your dogs.

Also, a reminder that if you want to use the alternate air carrier
WestJet, you need to be a "registered shipper". There is no cost to
becoming one but you need to get the form filled out well in
advance. Also, they require a certificate from the vet for 8-12wk
puppies saying that they are "fit to travel by air". The
certificate MUST say AIR TRAVEL. They will not accept an
International Health certificate. You can still fly dog WITH YOU
with no problems.

Denise McLean at Greyghost Weimaraners
Home of:
ATCCh, Ch. Christie, CD, AGN, AGI, AGX, ADC, AADC, AGDC, MADC, MSDC,
MGDC, MJDC, 1/3 FDJ, 2006 BC/Yukon Regional Champion, Agility Bronze
Award
Sunshine, CD, ADC, AADC, AGN (longhair)
Shadow, SADC, SAADC, SMADC, SMSDC, SMJDC (retired)
Keeper (wild Christie puppy)
Enzo Fur-rarri (fuzzy boy dog)
Porsche (fuzzy girl puppy)
Doug - husband and Keeper of the Hounds
www.greyghostweimaraners.com

Gone but not forgotten...
OTCH. Silver's Miss Oreo, TD, FD, ADC, AADC, VMADC
Ch. Big Bad Bart, CD, ADC, AADC
Rowdy, CD, CDX, VADC
Ch. Brighty, CD, ADC, AADC