Cat carrier

Hi All,

Does anyone have any particularly strong recommendation for durable pet carriers? I've been to a bunch of pet stores near me (petco, petsmart, etc.) and everything seems to be cheaply made and capable of being bumped open if the handling is even a bit rough (or if the cat freaks out too much). I'm resigned at this point to buy something online, but I'm not sure I trust the reviews on most of the online shops, as the purchasers probably use them more for vet trips than international travel. Any recommendations would be appreciated. =)

Thanks!
Aaron

I've always used the plastic airline-approved carriers.. no problems.  I prefer the ones with snaps instead of screws, as we lost a nut in an airport one time, and they're fiddly anyways.  (Sometimes security wants the cat taken out of the carrier so they can X-ray it, and my cat really wouldn't go out the door.)  If you're coming to the UK, you might want to be looking at dog carriers, too.  My tiny 9 lb cat needed a mid-size dog carrier for the DEFRA 'standing room plus ear space' rule.

If you really do have a small tiger, ask your vet and the airline/DEFRA/ whoever about custom made crates.  I saw a few wooden crates arriving at Heathrow when we got in.

If you really do have a small tiger, ask your vet and the airline/DEFRA/ whoever about custom made crates.  I saw a few wooden crates arriving at Heathrow when we got in.

My cat weighs 20lbs, so thanks for the tip!   I use a "small dog" soft-sided carrier for trips to the vet and in the car that he loves, but I'm going to guess a soft-sided carrier wouldn't work for the airline.  (it has reinforced sides with metal tubes, but it's still made of canvas)

My cat weighs 20lbs, so thanks for the tip!   I use a "small dog" soft-sided carrier for trips to the vet and in the car that he loves, but I'm going to guess a soft-sided carrier wouldn't work for the airline.  (it has reinforced sides with metal tubes, but it's still made of canvas)

20lbs! Thats more than two of my cat who weighs a scrawny 9lbs and still manages to have a little pudge on his belly.   

My cat weighed 25 lbs when I brought him over! I used a hard clip-together carrier, but had to get a dog-sized one. As well as DEFRA, the airlines have pretty strict rules about how big the carrier has to be. I flew BA and they had guidelines - the carrier had to be x-inches longer than the length of the cat, x-inches higher, etc. Your best bet is to contact both DEFRA and your airline just to make sure you're doing the right thing. The carrier I bought (from PetCo) had a tag on it saying it was Airline Approved. I don't know if that's just a marketing ploy or a real thing, but it put me a bit more at ease about using it.

The cat carrier we used I bet you could fit a small to medium size dog in the carriers. Our Siamese was 13 pounds at the time he looks so funny in the huge carrier just for him our other cat she was barely 10 pounds she looked even funnier than our other cat in her carrier. but I was glad they had plenty of room to move around an do whatever they wanted in carrier & still be comfortable.

Here is a website that has a carrier similar to what we used when our cats came over to the UK in March 2005.  its was the Vari Kennel cages size 2.  Each cat had there own carrier.

http://www.doggiesolutions.co.uk/erol.html#1X0

I prefer this style of carrier to the Vari-kennels:

http://www.ukparrotcages.co.uk/airline_approved_dog_pet_cages.html

I don't have that brand, but the snaps really are better.

(The link to vari kennel isn't working for me, so here's another):

http://www.ukdogguards.co.uk/vari-kennels.html

This is the first type I bought.  See those screws?  PITA.  Unless you have a docile kitty who will use the door.

Petmate is the brand we used and they held up fine.  We got some ones that are really for dogs since the airlines want animals to have more room.  I got them at Petsmart and I think they would be just fine for a 20lb cat.

20lbs! Thats more than two of my cat who weighs a scrawny 9lbs and still manages to have a little pudge on his belly.   

He's really not a fat cat though, he's just a big/long kitty.  (small tiger!)

Thanks all for the advice. =) We ended up preferring the bolt-like construction of the vari kennel style - I didn't really want it to be easy to assemble/disassemble in transit and I worried that, with the snaps, there weren't enough lock points and a bad bump might knock it open. We settled on this model:



It looked to be one of the better ones and meets the various FAA regulations for ventilation and durability.

Cheers,
Aaron