Moving sh*t TZU to London, Help

Have read through most posts some additional questions please! am moving from Lake Tahoe, CA to London..just me and my sh*t Tzu and have never been...a little nervous but excited.

1. Stella is only 10lbs, can she fly with me in the cabin? Can we fly Air France as I have taken her to Paris b4 in the cabin no problem?  Have read some comments that I need to fly only British Airways?
2.  She already has a current rabies shot (6 months old) do I need to get another one?
3.  She is already microchipped, if the vet scans it documents it etc., is this ok?
4.  I have downloaded the 998 form from the thread on this site...is it still current?

Animals can't fly in the cabin into the UK.  I know of one poster here who flew in Paris and took the train over because she didn't want her dog, who weighs about 10 pounds, flying in cargo. 

You need to go through the whole pet passport.  I am not sure how it works, but if you search there are plenty of threads on it. 

Firstly, its Shih Tzu...

Like Bookgrl said, she cannot fly in the cabin on any flight from the US to the UK regardless of size or weight.  You dont NEED to fly British Airways unless they are the only approved carrier from Lake Tahoe to London.  Only certain routes are approved by DEFRA for the PETS scheme.

As long as she is up to date on her rabies vaccination, then she does not need another one. She *should* still have enough antibodies in her system to get a high enough result on the titer test.

The current microchip is ok - just make sure the microchip number is recorded on the rabies certificate for safe measure.

Yes, the EC998 form on the previous thread here still is the current one.

The current microchip is ok - just make sure the microchip number is recorded on the rabies certificate for safe measure.

The only catch with this is that DEFRA is pretty anal about the microchip having happened prior to the rabies vaccination. If you have documentation of both events and the dates are shown proving that the microchip was done prior to the vaccine, you should be able to just add the microchip number to the rabies certificate as mirrajay said.

If not, you're probably better off re-vaccinating since they could say that they have no way of knowing whether you followed the correct procedure as far as getting the microchip inserted first and then following with the vaccination.

thank you so much everyone!!..So I went to the vet this morning and rechipped her as her old home away chip would not work in London if she gets lost as they use different scanners now than the older ones...home away will now link the two chips in their database, I also had her new questions...

1.  How long do I need to wait to do the rabies test?  I saw someone said about four weeks but my vet thought it could be as little as two??  The sooner the better anyone have the exact requirement here?

2.  Also Stella's has a heart problem and is small so no way can I put her under in cargo I will have to fly her in the cabin to paris and take the train to London, anyone have any experience or advice in this area?  How long does the train take, should I wait in Paris a couple days b4 doing this?  What train should I take?  Will the train let me take a 10lbs dog on and what will I need to show them etc.?  When/how will I need to show all of my dog papwerwork and to whom?

Thx!

sorry it cut off for my first question...I had her revaccinated today...how long do I need to wait to get her test done?

1.  How long do I need to wait to do the rabies test?  I saw someone said about four weeks but my vet thought it could be as little as two??  The sooner the better anyone have the exact requirement here?

My vet recommended 21 days. Both my pets had been vaccinated (3yr vaccine) 6 months prior, and I waited 12 days after the re-vaccination and they more than met the minimum requirement. So in theory you could do it today, but I would think 10+ days would be fine.

2.  Also Stella's has a heart problem and is small so no way can I put her under in cargo I will have to fly her in the cabin to paris and take the train to London, anyone have any experience or advice in this area?  How long does the train take, should I wait in Paris a couple days b4 doing this?  What train should I take?  Will the train let me take a 10lbs dog on and what will I need to show them etc.?  When/how will I need to show all of my dog papwerwork and to whom?

You won't be able to do the train direct from Paris for two reasons: 1) the train only allows guide dogs 2) the PETS process isn't approved for train travel from Paris. When I was looking into it, the "sanest" option seemed to be: fly to Paris, train to Calais, P&O Ferry (the one company that's PETS approved, as far as I know) to Dover, train to London. I think it's about 7-9 hours of travel time, probably only 6 hours of actual time but then you have delays between plane/train, train/ferry, ferry/train. Given that, you may want to stay the day/night in Paris post-plane and then do train/ferry/train the next day to break it up a bit.

Dogs are allowed on trains in the UK and Europe so that should be fine. I would think you would need to show some paperwork when you land in France (they mainly just care about rabies vaccine, so the PETS paperwork should be plenty) and then the DEFRA folks will clear your dog when you land in Dover. After that you just get on the train to London.

For what it's worth - I don't know what heart problem your dog has, but my cat has a heart murmur and he handled the plane just fine.

Hope that helps.

For what it's worth - I don't know what heart problem your dog has, but my cat has a heart murmur and he handled the plane just fine.

We moved our two geriatric (12+) cats about 18 months ago, one of whom has a heart murmur and is generally a real scaredy cat who is easily frightened.  She's quite tiny and a little on the frail side.  After examining (over and over and over) all of the options, we ended up deciding that the least stressful option for the cats was to fly them in cargo.  It took the least time and would involve the least amount of hassle for them. 

Both cats were just fine!

There's also the Queen Mary 2 option, but in our case, we wanted to get the cats to London and into their new home in the shortest possible amount of time.

Thank you everyone this site has been so helpful!...Seems I should put her under the cabin..makes me very nervous but the ferry/train etc., sounds worse...anyone do this and give their pet any sedative etc.? to help them relax?

Thank you everyone this site has been so helpful!...Seems I should put her under the cabin..makes me very nervous but the ferry/train etc., sounds worse...anyone do this and give their pet any sedative etc.? to help them relax?

They're not allowed, for the pet's safety. Since figuring out the correct dosage is tough enough with animals, adding in the complications of cabin pressure, change in routine, etc, means that airlines refuse to fly sedated pets for fear that they'll react negatively to the sedative.

I know there's a hormonal spray for cats (Feliway) that's supposed to help calm them down (you would just spray it on the blanket that goes in the crate, so that it's environmental). There may be something similar for dogs.

Also, the airlines have plenty of experience with handling pets. The cargo area that the pets are in is climate controlled and pressurized, just like the passenger cabin. They keep it dark because that encourages the pets to go to sleep. My dog and cat had never flown before and they handled the trip just fine. My cat actually handled it far better than I expected - he loathes being in a crate, and he was much more blase about it than usual when I picked him up! It did take him a few days to get back to normal (eating/sleeping/etc), but my dog just needed food in his bowl to feel right at home.

I will be honest that my VERY nervous 11 year old dog had a tough time with the travel.  She was a bit traumatized when I picked her up, even more so than I expected.  She also has a minor heart murmur and health-wise made it through absolutely fine.    You should speak to your vet about any health risks for your pet, but if she has traveled in the cabin of a plane before, she *should* be fine traveling in pet cargo.

They're not allowed, for the pet's safety. Since figuring out the correct dosage is tough enough with animals, adding in the complications of cabin pressure, change in routine, etc, means that airlines refuse to fly sedated pets for fear that they'll react negatively to the sedative.

I know there's a hormonal spray for cats (Feliway) that's supposed to help calm them down (you would just spray it on the blanket that goes in the crate, so that it's environmental). There may be something similar for dogs.

First of all, there are no tranquilizers or sedatives that will last the full amount of time that your pet will be traveling (including time in the airport and at the animal reception center, maybe 15+ hours). And I want to reiterate that although most of the tranquilizers that we use are very safe (heck, I take a whopping dose of alprazolam - or xanax - when I fly with no ill-effects) since the animals cannot be monitored and altitude can change hemodynamics, it is really not a good idea to sedate them for air travel.

If it makes you feel better, one of my cats has HCM (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) and has a heart murmur - I have no concerns at all about the effects of air travel on his heart disease (of course, your vet will need to evaluate your pets ability to get through travel safely). The biggest concern I have is the stress of the change in environment.

The absolute best possible thing you can do for your dog is to start now getting her used to the crate she will be traveling in - so that when she is in it, it is her "safe" place. Feed her in it, put soft wonderful blankets in it for her to sleep on, give her treats in it. Make it the BEST place EVER and that will do more to alleviate her stress than anything else you can do, honestly.

As Equestriannerd mentioned there are hormonal compounds that have been shown to relax/help alleviate stress. For dogs - there is something called "DAP" or Dog appeasing pheromone. It can be pricey, but you should be able to find a spray of this stuff at petsmart (or your vet might carry it). Spray it on blankets and in the carrier and this will help make it a happier place. 

Good luck!!!

thank you everyone, great advice I am going to get her crate asap and get her used to it just like you recommended!..

If you don't mind the extra expense, you can also buy a larger crate (the airlines have specific requirements as to minimum size, but they don't care if you use a crate that's over that size, they'll just charge you more to ship it). This could help your dog feel comfortable in the crate with the extra room.

Come to think of it, this may be why my cat was so chill about his journey - we had the minimum size crate and the airline made us go buy one size up, so he had plenty of room in there.