Two PETS questions

Hi, this board has provided a wealth of information as I plan to finally rejoin my dog at the end of this month, but I have two last minute questions that may or may not be answerable. My wife and I relocated here in September but we didn't have a full 6 months to work with, so the dog has been staying with her parents. We're heading back to the US for Christmas and to get our dog. We do have all the paperwork planned or taken care of, but I'm trying to iron out some last minute details.

1. The crate. We are flying BA from Chicago to Heathrow. We have a Boston Terrier, and when I called to make sure I had everything I needed to make the booking next week (flight is on the 30th), they said that due to the breed they need "10 inches clearance instead of the usual 6 inches." This was news to me. I didn't even realize it "usually" six inches for BA, seeing as the information on their own website only says that there needs to be "some" clearance. Unfortunately, this means our 24" crate won't work. Our dog is 16 inches to the top of the head and 20 inches to the top of the ears, and they go by the ears. Long story short, they are insisting we get the 30" tall crate. I'm willing to play by the rules (even though it adds $600+ to the booking), but I don't have a crate. I'm worried if we order one from online it won't be delivered in time, and I'm worried if we wait until we get back to the US on the 19th that we won't be able to find an approved crate that large in a store. We really don't even have room for that large of a crate in our flat. No one rents crates for this kind of thing? Any ideas?

2. Assuming we have that enormous crate with us, any tips on the best way to get back to west London from Heathrow? We don't have a car, and I doubt that size crate would fit in a cab. Are there car services that can have a minivan and driver show up at the Animal Reception Centre?

Thanks for any help you can give.

Maybe call around to find and reserve a crate ahead of time?  Will some one do the leg work for you if time is short.

I got mine from PetSmart - they were the bargain brand, but met the specs.  And they've held up really well.  Two of them are serving as a base for my clothes hanging rack (so I can store shoes etc).  I just went ahead and bought metal nuts to go beneath the plastic fasteners.

When you call to tell the cab company you are bringing an animal (which they will need to know), they should send a van.  They don't want you to mess up their nice vehicles and will send something appropriate.

Another idea is to have a smaller carrier available and dissassemble the big one at the ARC.  Or even just a leash, if that is allowed in a cab?

You can keep the crate dissassembled until you need it.   Something flat should store behind a couch or under a bed.

If the breed has a snubbed nose, they may be concerned about his being able to breathe normally at altitude, which is why they are requiring the larger crate.  My suggestion would be to find out if there is a Petsmart or PetCo near where you are picking up the dog, and see if you can't order a crate online for in-store delivery.  That way you know that they have what you need exactly and it will be there waiting for you.

Also, before I knew that my DH had rented an estate car (station wagon) to come and get me and my two cats, we had anticipated just deconstructing one of the crates and packing both cats into one.  In your case, depending on how your dog does in cars, you could just deconstruct the crate to get it in the car once you've got him in there (make sure he's/she's leashed, though).

I had a last minute panic with my cat, ran out and got her a dog-sized carrier (it was the bargain brand at PetSmart, too -- something like "budget kennel" -- but it was as good as the others, as far as I could tell). The lady at Virgin Cargo laughed when she saw it. It was a bit...spacious.

Thanks for the help so far. I found this online:

newcomer link: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3195394 [nonactive]

Maybe this is the same petsmart discount brand? I'm going to try calling some of the local petsmarts to see if they have it in stock or can special order one before our travel date.

On the other question, any recommended companies to call for the trip home from the airport, or just pick a random one off the internet?

That's the one! It was a perfectly good carrier -- metal door and everything. If it didn't say "bargain" in the productname, I couldn't have told it from the others.

We hired a driving firm from our desination, rather than London. Six of one. I would call around, though -- we found significant difference in prices.

I bought one of those bargain hound carriers a while ago when it was on sale in Petsmart. I got the 28 x 20.5 x 21.5 one as my cat is quite big and the smaller one was cutting it a bit fine. My concern is that the top and bottom rows of squares on the door are bigger than the internal squares (have a look on the picture on the link, the second biggest kennel - you'll see what I mean), and definitely big enough for my cat to poke his paw through. I read somewhere that they shouldn't be able to fit their paws or nose through any gaps in the carrier. Has anyone else encountered this problem, and if so what did you do? Do you think I could tape over the outermost squares or something to block them?

Thanks for any advice!

I had those exact carriers for my kitties when I moved them over here, and yes, they could fit their paws through those bottom holes in the door.  However, I didn't have any problems at the airport, and I think that the little blankets I had in the carriers kind of blocked them a little bit. 

You could do something if you were really concerned about it, but I think that they are going to be so scared about the trip they'll stick to the back of the crates.

One thing to watch for: mine didn't come with all the screws (actually, I think it was my fault, because I bought two sizes to see which was a better fit, and I may have mixed up the screw packs when I went to return one) but that's just something to watch for before you leave the store.

I got my pet crates for two cats from here. The service was great, I literally had both crates the day after I ordered them (although that might just be because we're in the same state they ship from)

http://www.classypets.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=CPTS&Product_Code=CRT001&Category_Code=PTSCRT

I have a very large cat as well as a normal sized one.  They each flew over in one of these kennels:  http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3196957 and it worked really well.  I was a bit nervous as my fat cat was right at the size limit.  Currently, both kennels are disassembled and stacked on top of a wardrobe.  I ordered it online.

We flew into Heathrow, as well, and organized a minicab from the Animal Reception Center once the cats were cleared.  We asked for a van, but the driver turned up in a big mercedes.    I was stunned, but 2 kennels, 2 people and 6 suitcases did fit.   :oi