Taking your dog on a plane

Aug 7 2013

Reader’s report: New, second pet relief area at Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI)

Since I visited BWI in December 2011, the airport has added a second pet relief area — happily, more centrally-located — and reader Gery sent me an excellent report about visiting it with his pup Alfie. Please note that the pet relief area Chloe and I visited (at one far end of the terminal, by the light rail station) is still there, and would be a convenient choice for passengers arriving on international flights.… Read the rest

Aug 5 2013

Reader’s report: Under-seat space on Delta CRJ-900, and pet relief areas in Salt Lake City (SLC) and Nashville (BNA)

There’s just so much useful stuff in the report loyal reader Heike sent me about picking up Seren, her new Havanese puppy, in Salt Lake City. She flew from Nashville, and they returned together, on a Delta CRJ-900, in First Class (here’s a seat map from SeatGuru for you).… Read the rest

Jul 31 2013

Reader’s report: Under-seat space on a Delta MD-90 (First Class), and Sherpa Delta carrier

Reader Lena sent me a message reporting on the under-seat space she and Penny, her Cava-Poo-Chon, encountered on their recent flight on a Delta MD-90. They traveled in First Class — always a potential risk, but it worked well for them. … Read the rest

Jul 24 2013

Reader’s report: Under-seat space on a United 757 (First Class), and a smart alternative to a wheeled carrier

I was surprised to read this message, since my husband’s walk-by view of a United 757-200’s under-seat space in First Class had been deeply discouraging. Reader Anne reports, however, that she and Erin, her black & tan Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, both traveled comfortably in First Class on a United 757.… Read the rest

Jul 22 2013

Reader’s report: Ralph in Paris (including ID tag approach)

Remember the photo I posted, one Friday, of Ralph the Bichon/Cavalier dressed for his upcoming trip to Paris? Reader Anne sent pictures from their visit, along with details about her solution for keeping Ralph’s ID current while they were out of the country.… Read the rest

Jul 18 2013

Seattle airport’s new outdoor pet relief area (South end of baggage claim)

It is always a pleasure to be contacted by airport reps and told about new pet relief areas. My post yesterday about the new location of Seattle’s indoor pet relief area must have caught someone’s eye at SEA, because I received a message from Perry Cooper, Sea-Tac’s Media and Public Affairs Manager, urging me to update my grumpy 2009 post about the airport’s only (at that time) outdoor pet relief area, a particularly nasty object at the north end of baggage claim.… Read the rest

Jul 17 2013

Air-side pet relief area at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)

This post replaces a much-edited earlier post about the indoor pet relief area at Seattle’s Sea-Tac airport. Quick recap: Sea-Tac, or SEA, has three pet relief areas, two outside baggage claim (including one I just learned about today) and another inside the terminal — the two I’ve seen are mediocre (indeed, the outdoor pet relief area at the north end of baggage claim is one of the worst I’ve ever seen), but it’s so rare to find a pet relief area on the air side of security that I’m unwilling to complain too vigorously about the new pet relief area’s faults.… Read the rest

Jul 15 2013

Reader’s report: Phoenix to Madrid on American and Iberia with Louie the Bichon

Long ago, reader Ana asked if I had any suggestions for airlines that fly from Phoenix to Madrid and have planes that allow in-cabin dogs under their Business Class seats. Nothing came to mind (all I could do was warn her that often the higher-grade seats don’t accommodate pets, since the under-seat space is occupied by electronics boxes for fancy features), and I asked her to let me know what she learned.… Read the rest

Jul 8 2013

Reader’s report: Modifying a Southwest Airlines carrier to be taller

In last Wednesday’s blog post, I mentioned that while the in-cabin pet carrier that Southwest Airlines sells is a workable option, it’s improved by a modification a reader sent me. In its “resting” state, the bag is 8.5″ tall. Unzipped, a gusset allows the bag to be 10.5″ tall — but the gusset has no support, so it tends to collapse back down on your pup’s head.… Read the rest

Jul 3 2013

Should I buy the in-cabin pet carrier my airline sells (or approves)?

An earlier version of this post is one of Dog Jaunt’s top hits — clearly, it’s a question that a lot of you have, but the info in the old post was getting dated. Here’s a re-do, with fresh information.

Nowadays, only two major U.S.… Read the rest