BA World Cargo? Any experiences or recommendations?

My dog's 6 months is almost up and he will be able to (finally) join us at the end of this month. It looks like BA is going to be who we will go through since Virgin says you have to go through a Pet Agent with them. Has anyone brought their dog over with BA? If so, how was it? And if not, who did you go with?

My dog/cat flew BA from Dulles -> Heathrow in April 2010. They handled it great, and the BA staff were friendly and helpful (as well as the ARC staff at Heathrow). You do need an agent with BA (I believe the only option is James Cargo), but there's no extra cost (or wasn't when I did it) and it consists of faxing a description of your animal to them - I believe they facilitate the transfer of the animal from the plane to the ARC when they arrive.

Oh great, thanks for the help. I have no idea what a pet agent evan does.... And the girl who answered the phone at BA yesterday was of no help. I will look them up. Thanks again.

I am in the process of starting the required testing for Hannah so we both can come over next year. Sadly she lost her nail on her back hind paw last night so I took her to a vet closeby who put on a soft wrap and gave her meds. I mentioned about going to England and he has handled many overseas to be pets... phew! Heathrow does require a pet agent. If you look at http://www.britishairways.com/cms/global/pdfs/travelprep/petpolicy_comair.pdf

Don't know if this will help but. . . We brought over our English Bulldog in Sept of 2009.  We went through Air Canada, from the Orlando International Airport.  They were a great carrier.  Also, they were one of the least expensive.  Don't know where ur flying ur dog from.  We did not use a Pet Agent.  The ones that I looked into were very expensive. That meant that we had to get the USDA stamps etc ourselves. (Family helped.)  DEFRA is very strict about the amount of time that a dog can be in transit. Also, the crate measurements have to be perfection. We bought ours from PETCO but it needed to have holes drilled in the back wall.  They required ventillation in all 4 sides. And, they stick to thier guidelines like glue.  Gracie arrived about an hour early to Heathrow and had to be kept there til the next day. All of the staff that handled her there were very helpful.  We even got a call to say that she had arrived too early and that they would have to keep her for the extra day. I realize that you are doing all of this 2 yrs after us but, it can be a headache.  Hope this helped a little. Good luck!!

I think people get a bit confused on what an "agent" is.  James Cargo, the agent for BA at Heathrow, is simply a company that takes your pet from BA and transports them to the ARC.  In this reference, an agent is not a pet transportation company (like UKHillbilly mentions) who handles all the paperwork and sets everything up for you.  So, just as Equestrianerd said, BA does require an agent, but in my experience (in late 2009), you never had any contact with them except faxing them a piece of paper.  BA Cargo will organize the pick up of your pet by James Cargo for you.  You will not need to make two seperate reservations.

Indeed. BA refers to them as an agent, but they're not a "pet relocation agent" in the hand-holding/extra fees sense. I believe some people have posted that some airlines/airports in the US are requiring one of those at the US end, but with BA, all they need is the James Cargo transport-style agent.

Out of curiosity, does anyone have experience with their pets landing at Gatwick?

I was told that Heathrow was the main entry place for pets.

I was told that Heathrow was the main entry place for pets.

It is, but you can fly into Gatwick (on certain airlines/from certain destinations), or other airports in the UK.

Wow...... this is all so complicated. Thanks everyone for your help. I am calling BA today to make the reservation. I really  hope this all goes smoothly. I feel so helpless because I'm not in Omaha to make sure everything goes smoothly on Tyson's end. So I hope my friends and ex-roommate are taking my advice technically and not letting anything slide. I don't want there to be problems. Bleh.

Good luck!  I'm sure it will all be fine.  We left our dog with friends and family to help organize everything and she got here safe and sound. Bet u can't wait to see him. 

@ukhillbilly no I cannot. He's going to be so excited. But me more so than him. Lol.

Out of curiosity, does anyone have experience with their pets landing at Gatwick?

I flew into Gatwick with Continental from Newark. The ARC is not located at the airport, you have to drive there. By the time I went though customs, got my luggage, met my friend and drove to the ARC, they were ready to go! I just signed some forms and we were off!

I flew into Gatwick with Continental from Newark. The ARC is not located at the airport, you have to drive there. By the time I went though customs, got my luggage, met my friend and drove to the ARC, they were ready to go! I just signed some forms and we were off!

Ok so you had a good experience with Continental? They're so much cheaper than BA but they require a pet agent here in London.