Travel with Pets - Advice for arrival at CDG with dog

After months of lurking, I have finally decided to post.

We are moving from Canada to France with our dog. My partner left today and I will be following with our dog in a month. Our journey will have a 2 day stop-over in Montreal to give our dog some time to settle before travelling further - after a discussion with our vet, we have decided not to sedate our dog. It's a long story, but the bottom line is, there are no straight through flights on airlines that will allow a dog the size of mine fly baggage at a reasonable rate. Air Canada wanted $1600 to fly her cargo. I laughed at the guy and said not a chance. She will fly Westjet to Montreal for $50 and Air Transat to Paris for $250. Both flights in baggage.

What I would like to know is if anyone has any advice for picking up dogs at the baggage claim at CDG. I have very limited French and I really want to keep her time in the crate as short as I can.

Also, can she be free from her crate and on leash once I get her from baggage, or does she have to remain crated through the airport.

I think I must be nuts.

I don't have sepcific information in CDG, but I have traveled with my cats as cabin baggage and as hold baggage within Europe and can tell you my experience.

When I traveled with the cats as hold baggage, I checked that cats in at the ticket counter and, after paying the fee for them, took them to the special baggage area where I had to takethem out of the carrier so that the carrier could be x-rayed. Then I put them back in the carrier and off they went. I was very concerned about them since this was my first time travelling with them as hold baggage. I checked at the gate to make sure they were loaded on the plane. Then I checked with the man who was on the jetway to be sure they were loaded on the plane. When I landed, the cats in their carrier were handed to me at the baggage carousel after all the other baggage was taken off the plane. I assume that it will be the same at CDG. You can ask - most people speak English there.

You will probably have to keep your dog in the carrier until you get outside the airport.

I have let my cats out of their carriers in the airport (they are on leashes), but I have been very discreet and since they are generally frightened by the strange place and all the people, they are not too interested in going anyway. Plus, the cuteness factor helps.

I have found that everyone is especially kind and helpful to me when I am traveling with pets.