Looking for feedback if you did NOT use a pet relocation company

I'm sorry I missed this! We are going Orlando to Glasgow so if anything direct we'd do Manchester and drive...however. I'm going to continue with the Newark flight (they will walk them on the layover and I'm hoping my pups will be ok...one is a nervous dog, so hoping it's just a normal, nervous day for him! And the other is completely oblivious!),

I've got their enormous crates (they require the dog to be able to stand up without touching the top!)

I've called Glasgow reception center and they DO have a chip reader for my non compliant 9-digit Avid chip and I'm just a few weeks away! The final steps just being to get the health cert done by my vet a few days before they fly? I'm getting nervous I'm missing something big.

Yes, you may find that the Animal Reception Centre will let you email all your paperwork in advance and assure you that it's all okay.   

Great news about everything else.  Trust me, you will be WAY more nervous than your pets will be!  Try to have some Xanax on hand.   

I've called Glasgow reception center and they DO have a chip reader for my non compliant 9-digit Avid chip and I'm just a few weeks away! The final steps just being to get the health cert done by my vet a few days before they fly? I'm getting nervous I'm missing something big.

JessMed, I assume you've arrived by now?  How did it go?  Did you get them treated for worms within 4 days of arrival, as I've seen on the Pets to UK customs website?

JessMed, I assume you've arrived by now?  How did it go?  Did you get them treated for worms within 4 days of arrival, as I've seen on the Pets to UK customs website?

Yes it did go fairly well. I was stressed out about it but we got the forms from the web site. There is a longer form as well as a health certificate (the Glasgow ladies emailed them to me--you can also find them online on usda site) -- I spoke with USDA APHIS (don't know what it stands for but it's the animal people)--vet fills them out then sends off to USDA they approve them and send them right back. Once they're back you go back to vet for the worm check. The tricky part is just making sure you have all the timing correct. Can't get the first part done sooner than 10 days of arrival yet it must get shipped back and forth (we just did ups next day prepaid because I was nervous) --USDA is quick though...because you need the final sign off again within those last 4 days.

Flew United. Total bill was like $1300 with them...then a few hundred at reception in Glasgow (plus crates and paperwork vet bills etc) I think it can be done. Just very intricate timing.

ETA: the worm treatment happens on the US side.

I did the paperwork myself to bring my German shepherd mix dog from NY to London a few years back. We flew on the same Virgin flight, and I found them exceptionally(!) helpful. My flight was $600; Star's was $1,800. She came bouncing out at the ARC as though she'd not noticed a thing.

I made a timeline of all steps, lined up the vet, did the USDA stuff, etc. Whilst a bit stressful at times (eg, they sent her paperwork to the British isles -- like, somewhere in the Caribbean! The hell..?), it actually wasn't that hard in the end.

Admittedly, I actually was so nervous about the whole thing that I bought my own chip reader...which is currently in a closet in my flat, should anyone want it!

I did the paperwork myself to bring my German shepherd mix dog from NY to London a few years back.

Yeah, besides waiting for word on my visa application, getting our cat and dog moved over from the USA to England is my biggest worry.  I looked up kennel sizes based on our dog's measurements and I'm worried that the largest IATA that I can find might not be big enough... She's a Catahoula Leopard Dog (comparable in height & length to a German Shepherd) and based on her measurements & the calculator on the IAG Cargo site (they work with British Airways), she needs a kennel that is 42" long on the interior!  The PetMate Sky Kennel is recommended, but the dimensions of their "Giant" sized crates are questionable.  Apparently the inside of the kennel only measures 39" long at the bottom, but is an acceptable 44" long in the middle.  Did you have any issues finding a large enough kennel?

Giant:
Outer Dimensions: 48"L x 32"W x 35"H
Inside Dimensions: Bottom 39"L x 24.5"W x 32.5"H, Middle 44"L x 29"W x 32.5"H

https://www.petsupplies.com/item/petmate-sky-kennel-pet-carrier/101554/ [nofollow]

I had two small dogs and using United's policy, they required i get a medium...my dogs are Cairn terriers...they are literally used as "the example dog" for a small. They wanted the dog to be able to stand without hitting his head. So I arrive to drop off with my giant crates and the person shipping what appeared to be a golden retriever and a small toy dog had crates that were way too small according to the rules and they didn't say anything to them. :/ Not suggesting you skirt the rules as it could be just a chance of who you get. But if it's close I think you'd be ok.

Just be sure you get all metal screws.
They were big on that.

Chewy.com sells an airplane kit I bought..had stickers and stuff too. They also did great deals on crates. Check different days...different ones will be on sale each day.

I know I'm a bit late to this party, but I flew my two cats from Cleveland to Glasgow just back in March, so about 2 months ago, without using a third party company.

I booked through United and contacted their animal handling team through the United website. They provided me with information on the cost ($1300 plus any fees incurred in Glasgow) and gave me the contact information for Pets on the Move (which someone else mentioned above as well). The airport itself does not process any pets coming through; they go through this animal reception centre. Just note, if you arrive on a weekend there's an extra fee! No one had warned me about that when I did the paperwork. It cost me £440 for the customs clearance and fees in Glasgow, beyond the $1300 I paid to United. That balance had to be paid when I went to pick up the pets.

Find a vet who deals with international pet moves. Many of the vets I spoke to won't do the paperwork because it's so complicated. You will need to have your cats microchipped (because Scotland requires it, beyond the requirements in England) and have a rabies shot more than 21 days before arrival. The shot must be done after the microchipping. Then the paperwork must be completed within 10 days of your arrival in Scotland. This paperwork needs to be signed by the USDA. I had to overnight my papers to the office (it was a couple hundred miles away) and include return postage. All these papers and a C5 form were scanned and emailed to Pets on the Move, who confirmed before I left that it all seemed to be in order. The hard copies were given to the airline when the cats were checked in.

I still have most of my emails from arranging this if you'd like any specifics.

ETA: I think the crate requirements vary between airlines, but for United they had to be quite large. I bought mine on Amazon because my one cat is a hefty boy and needed a larger crate than PetSmart or PetCo had. Your "normal" carrier is probably not airline-approved.
You also cannot sedate the cats. I suppose it's too risky, since there isn't a vet traveling in the hold with them!

I know I'm a bit late to this party, but I flew my two cats from Cleveland to Glasgow just back in March, so about 2 months ago, without using a third party company.

I booked through United and contacted their animal handling team through the United website. They provided me with information on the cost ($1300 plus any fees incurred in Glasgow) and gave me the contact information for Pets on the Move (which someone else mentioned above as well). The airport itself does not process any pets coming through; they go through this animal reception centre. Just note, if you arrive on a weekend there's an extra fee! No one had warned me about that when I did the paperwork. It cost me £440 for the customs clearance and fees in Glasgow, beyond the $1300 I paid to United. That balance had to be paid when I went to pick up the pets.

Find a vet who deals with international pet moves. Many of the vets I spoke to won't do the paperwork because it's so complicated. You will need to have your cats microchipped (because Scotland requires it, beyond the requirements in England) and have a rabies shot more than 21 days before arrival. The shot must be done after the microchipping. Then the paperwork must be completed within 10 days of your arrival in Scotland. This paperwork needs to be signed by the USDA. I had to overnight my papers to the office (it was a couple hundred miles away) and include return postage. All these papers and a C5 form were scanned and emailed to Pets on the Move, who confirmed before I left that it all seemed to be in order. The hard copies were given to the airline when the cats were checked in.

I still have most of my emails from arranging this if you'd like any specifics.

ETA: I think the crate requirements vary between airlines, but for United they had to be quite large. I bought mine on Amazon because my one cat is a hefty boy and needed a larger crate than PetSmart or PetCo had. Your "normal" carrier is probably not airline-approved.
You also cannot sedate the cats. I suppose it's too risky, since there isn't a vet traveling in the hold with them!

lol glad to know I am not the only ones with emails to Pets on the Move ladies. I think by the end I had like 20+ back and forth! I'm sure they were glad to process my dogs and get me off their backs!! They were so nice though. Way nicer than the USDA lady here. Ugh.

How's Glasgow? I'm getting very excited for our move but my visa is taking longer than I had hoped. Hoping end of June we will be there .

How's Glasgow? I'm getting very excited for our move but my visa is taking longer than I had hoped. Hoping end of June we will be there .

It's very Glaswegian hahaha
Weather's actually been pretty good, so it's been a nice spring. I'm sure if you make it for the summer we'll manage to find some sun for you!

Also a word of advice, try to pay Pets on the Move in cash or bank transfer. Credit cards have a surcharge (I think it was 4%?) and then two days later they claimed their bank couldn't accept the payment. It had already cleared on my end and was all a bit strange, so I had to go through a credit dispute with my bank. Headache.

It's very Glaswegian hahaha
Weather's actually been pretty good, so it's been a nice spring. I'm sure if you make it for the summer we'll manage to find some sun for you!

Also a word of advice, try to pay Pets on the Move in cash or bank transfer. Credit cards have a surcharge (I think it was 4%?) and then two days later they claimed their bank couldn't accept the payment. It had already cleared on my end and was all a bit strange, so I had to go through a credit dispute with my bank. Headache.

Lol. Yeah thankfully the pets are there already with my husband. He said it has been unusually dry! Hoping to get there soon. And yeah, we had to use a cc there. Stinks but we are spending so much with everything else, just another drop in the bucket!

I've learned so much already from this thread. Thank you everyone!  We are planning our relocation and I'm doing the research now. We live in CA and will be relocation sometime one the next few months to the Greater London area.  I was given the name of a local relocation service by our Vet and called about 1 months ago. They have for some reason not yet gotten us the quote.  The woman I spoke to was very helpful though and explained that we would need a ToR number to avoid being charged fees (customs fees I think) on our pets (as well as our belongings) upon arrival. Did any of you do that?  I see that some of you were charged fees upon arrival. Would having a ToR have allowed you to avoid those?

PS I'm shocked by the numbers that you've all been sharing. Since I never received the quote from the relocation company, I had no idea what I was looking at. 

The woman I spoke to was very helpful though and explained that we would need a ToR number to avoid being charged fees (customs fees I think) on our pets (as well as our belongings) upon arrival. Did any of you do that?  I see that some of you were charged fees upon arrival. Would having a ToR have allowed you to avoid those?

I arrived in the UK literally the week they started using the ToR forms. So when I brought the cats in, I used the old C5 form (because I filled it out a few weeks before I left). I did have to pay a customs clearance fee to the airport reception centre but I don't think they were going to waive that for anything. I'm afraid I can't tell you if the ToR would waive fees. I did complete a ToR, but it was only for my household goods, not the pets.

I've learned so much already from this thread. Thank you everyone!  We are planning our relocation and I'm doing the research now. We live in CA and will be relocation sometime one the next few months to the Greater London area.  I was given the name of a local relocation service by our Vet and called about 1 months ago. They have for some reason not yet gotten us the quote.  The woman I spoke to was very helpful though and explained that we would need a ToR number to avoid being charged fees (customs fees I think) on our pets (as well as our belongings) upon arrival. Did any of you do that?  I see that some of you were charged fees upon arrival. Would having a ToR have allowed you to avoid those?

PS I'm shocked by the numbers that you've all been sharing. Since I never received the quote from the relocation company, I had no idea what I was looking at.

Yes, it's not cheap shipping pets! But obviously, worth every penny!

Whether or not you choose to use the relocation service, you should get on with the microchipping and rabies shot (in that order), if you haven't already done so, so that at least that part is out of the way.

The ToR 01 form is needed to avoid paying VAT, you will need it anyway for your belongings. It takes about 10 days from when you e mail it off to getting a reply. It's just an e mail with a ref number, you give that number to the customs agent as the airport your pet comes in to.

We just moved our dog here a few weeks ago, did everything ourselves
and probably saved $2500. Its still fairly fresh so I can answer and ? anyone may have

Yes, it's not cheap shipping pets! But obviously, worth every penny!

Whether or not you choose to use the relocation service, you should get on with the microchipping and rabies shot (in that order), if you haven't already done so, so that at least that part is out of the way.

Yes Thank you Larabee.  I did the microchipping immediately (both were previously chipped but on had to be reshipped with the correct 15 number chip) and will have the reshipped kitty vaccinated asap.