traveling with dog overseas
Jul 6, 2014, 6:02 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 1
traveling with dog overseas
i am traveling for the 1st time with my 27lb dog overseas with AA (NY to Brazil). i have 2 questions i was hoping to get thoughts on please:
1. does anyone know the benefits of using an "agent" to transport a pet. Many have suggested i would be wise to use an agent rather than do the transport myself but i am not fully getting what the benefits are.
2. if i am able to bring the dog on the plane with me (as an emotional support dog) rather than have him fly as cargo - should I? the dog has never traveled on a plane before.
many txs
1. does anyone know the benefits of using an "agent" to transport a pet. Many have suggested i would be wise to use an agent rather than do the transport myself but i am not fully getting what the benefits are.
2. if i am able to bring the dog on the plane with me (as an emotional support dog) rather than have him fly as cargo - should I? the dog has never traveled on a plane before.
many txs
Jul 7, 2014, 4:41 pm
#2
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: BSL
Programs: AA (EXP); among others :)
Posts: 2,532
With AA, you will check your dog as baggage: You drop him off in his carrier at the bag drop in JFK and retrieve him at the oversize baggage belt at your destination. There's no agent required, and no benefit at all in using one when traveling on AA.
Agents are only relevant and sometimes required if you were using an airline that required you to check your animal as cargo like US.
as to 2.) For the sake of yourself, your dog, the flight crew and your fellow passengers on this flight as well as all 'legitimate' service dog handlers who will appreciate not having the regulations tightened because the current ones are abused: Don't even think about this if your dog is not a trained service animal or at least behaves like one. Your dog needs to be able to lie still for ten hours even during food service, be able to not need to 'go' for eleven-and-a-half hours (between passing security in JFK and stepping outside in GRU/GIG) and be undisturbed by masses of people. You will be surprised how many passengers in airports and on planes will just stop and want to pet him, for example. Or you may get seated in the bulkhead row right next to a family with small kids who will interact with him in unpredictable ways.
That said, it's surely preferable for the animal to travel in the cabin instead of in the hold.
Should you meet the requirements and decide to take your dog on as ESAN, contact AA first and supply the documentation (pdf form) on time. Special Services will call you back once they have received the documentation and confirm things.
Seating tips, should you take him on in the cabin as ESAN (you unfortunately didnt disclose your destination. GIG gets a 763, GRU a 773):
Make sure you get an MCE window seat on aircraft that offer MCE (window, because you don't want to have the animal jutting out in the aisle). If you have the means, consider buying a second seat so your dog won't encroach on the legroom of the passenger seated next to you.
On the AA 763, row 13 is ideal as there's space behind the seats and the wall where the dog can lie without encroaching on anyone's legroom.
On the 772 in economy, Row 30 CDEFG is best with a dog (some crews may make you move for takeoff and landing). These seats have the most legroom apart from the exit rows which are off-limits with animals.
Should you fly business, any seat will do on the 772 and the 763, they all offer the same amount of (floor) space. If your dog is really good about staying put, these NGBC seats can be folded in a reclined Z position over the animal and you can get a decent nights rest despite the dog occupying your floor space, especially on the 772 where the seat and footwell is wider and theres more floor space. The 763 are similar but offer less floor space with a significantly narrower footwell.
The business class seats on the AA 77W are not dog-friendly at all. There's a two-and-a-half inch high 'step' on the floor below the footrest that essentially prevents any dog save some small breeds from lying down comfortably. Plus, a dog on the floor will effectively prevent you from putting the seat into bed mode and also restrict the amount of recline you can use without encroaching on the animal's space too much. If you have a medium-or above sized dog, I'd either upgrade to F or save the money/miles and go in MCE. I've seen one guy using some rubber foam to even out this bump for his dog with these seats.
First on both the 772 and the 77W is perfect. Tons of space in any seat.
Should your flight be far out and feature a renovated 763 with lie-flat seats in business, get A or J seats in rows 2,4,6 or 8. These have the footwell space on the window side which will prevent the dog to easily spill out in the aisle. I think that row 2 (the bulkhead) has the most space there.
Agents are only relevant and sometimes required if you were using an airline that required you to check your animal as cargo like US.
as to 2.) For the sake of yourself, your dog, the flight crew and your fellow passengers on this flight as well as all 'legitimate' service dog handlers who will appreciate not having the regulations tightened because the current ones are abused: Don't even think about this if your dog is not a trained service animal or at least behaves like one. Your dog needs to be able to lie still for ten hours even during food service, be able to not need to 'go' for eleven-and-a-half hours (between passing security in JFK and stepping outside in GRU/GIG) and be undisturbed by masses of people. You will be surprised how many passengers in airports and on planes will just stop and want to pet him, for example. Or you may get seated in the bulkhead row right next to a family with small kids who will interact with him in unpredictable ways.
That said, it's surely preferable for the animal to travel in the cabin instead of in the hold.
Should you meet the requirements and decide to take your dog on as ESAN, contact AA first and supply the documentation (pdf form) on time. Special Services will call you back once they have received the documentation and confirm things.
Seating tips, should you take him on in the cabin as ESAN (you unfortunately didnt disclose your destination. GIG gets a 763, GRU a 773):
Make sure you get an MCE window seat on aircraft that offer MCE (window, because you don't want to have the animal jutting out in the aisle). If you have the means, consider buying a second seat so your dog won't encroach on the legroom of the passenger seated next to you.
On the AA 763, row 13 is ideal as there's space behind the seats and the wall where the dog can lie without encroaching on anyone's legroom.
On the 772 in economy, Row 30 CDEFG is best with a dog (some crews may make you move for takeoff and landing). These seats have the most legroom apart from the exit rows which are off-limits with animals.
Should you fly business, any seat will do on the 772 and the 763, they all offer the same amount of (floor) space. If your dog is really good about staying put, these NGBC seats can be folded in a reclined Z position over the animal and you can get a decent nights rest despite the dog occupying your floor space, especially on the 772 where the seat and footwell is wider and theres more floor space. The 763 are similar but offer less floor space with a significantly narrower footwell.
The business class seats on the AA 77W are not dog-friendly at all. There's a two-and-a-half inch high 'step' on the floor below the footrest that essentially prevents any dog save some small breeds from lying down comfortably. Plus, a dog on the floor will effectively prevent you from putting the seat into bed mode and also restrict the amount of recline you can use without encroaching on the animal's space too much. If you have a medium-or above sized dog, I'd either upgrade to F or save the money/miles and go in MCE. I've seen one guy using some rubber foam to even out this bump for his dog with these seats.
First on both the 772 and the 77W is perfect. Tons of space in any seat.
Should your flight be far out and feature a renovated 763 with lie-flat seats in business, get A or J seats in rows 2,4,6 or 8. These have the footwell space on the window side which will prevent the dog to easily spill out in the aisle. I think that row 2 (the bulkhead) has the most space there.
Jul 7, 2014, 10:15 pm
#3
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: LHR / IAD
Programs: BA/AA/UA
Posts: 2,955
Whether in the cabin or in the hold...
Your dog needs to be able to lie still for ten hours even during food service, be able to not need to 'go' for eleven-and-a-half hours (between passing security in JFK and stepping outside in GRU/GIG)
Jul 24, 2014, 11:51 am
#4
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 121
Also, if you get your dog on the flight as a 'fake' service dog and it acts out, there's a VERY good chance it will either not be allowed on the plane at all/must be checked as cargo.
Probably best to leave Fido at home. Especially if he's never been on a plane before? 10 hours is NOT a good way to start...
Probably best to leave Fido at home. Especially if he's never been on a plane before? 10 hours is NOT a good way to start...
Jul 24, 2014, 12:54 pm
#5
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 4,736
Unless you have a genuine condition that requires the consistent need for an emotional support dog (and the necessary diagnosis and medical documentation) you should not game the system and falsely claim the dog as an emotional support animal.
The dog's comfort, or lack thereof, does not justify claiming him as emotional support animal. That category was created to assist those people struggling with very real disabilities.