Updated/Edited Message:
Any very recent expats w/pet can give guidance on this? Only one of the three pet relocation services that have replied to me has listed this in their To Do lists. I followed up with the rep who'd painted a rather nightmarish story indicating that if I don't fill this form out prior to my arrival, I would be charged for the fair market value of my bulldog, VAT, and assessed an additional customs fee. They specifically stated that this is a Brexit-related policy.
Original Message Below:
Hi all -
Could use some help here.
Almost all carriers refuse to permit bulldogs for air travel. A key linchpin in my xfer to UK, though, is that mine must be coming with me.
I'm Seattle based. Lufthansa does permit bulldogs but, at least on their website, does not fly to London/AMS/Frankfurt direct: always through a partner carrier (which bans bulldogs as cargo) to another major int'l airport.
Lufthansa main reservation desk in Frankfurt furthermore said that they are embargoed from pets to UK now - however -
A professional pet relocation service that wishes to charge an obscene amount of money claims that Lufthansa does fly to Frankfurt direct, will take Rook, and after a 4+ hour layover in FRA he will be xferred to London-Heathrow flight and I can pick him up there. All of this contradicting information is really wearing me down.
In the optimal scenario, I would relocate on the same flights as Rook is on, leaving via Seattle.
I've read the Defra pages but it looks like, from reading other threads, there are hidden stipulations and fees all over - from requiring a 3rd party handler to additional import fees not mentioned on Defra info page. Can anyone help me here?
I've no problems making calls worldwide to different services for a path forward.