Dog Jaunt's new pet travel book is now out! Buy it, or learn more about it here. And please review it on Amazon!

Crate fan, for those dog days of summer (remember them?)

I’m not calling this a product review, because it’s really just a note to say that we used the Metro Air Force crate fan (Model CCF-1) this summer, and were pleased with it. Although Seattle is cool enough not to make air conditioning a standard home feature, there are a couple of weeks every summer when I seriously consider putting A/C in myself, by hand, with a freaking Sawzall. On those hot days, I worry about Chloe in her crate (we leave her there as little as possible, but sometimes it’s necessary).

When the fan's going, I roll up the back "wall" of Chloe's crate cover, so the air can flow through. Normally it's down, for that full lair effect.

This fan doesn’t move a lot of air (the upside of that is that it’s quiet, on both of its speeds, and doesn’t seem to bother Chloe a bit), but you can certainly feel a breeze. Though plastic, it’s solidly built, and it’s a straightforward object — a fan enclosed in a box with two arms that swivel up and hook onto the bars of your dog’s crate (as you know from previous posts, Chloe’s home and travel crates are from Midwest, but it would work on the front of a Vari-Kennel too).

The fan is bulky (7.5″ x 6.5″ x 2.5″), and weighs about 3/4 of a pound, so you’ll be devoting prime suitcase space to it. In hot weather, though, it’ll really improve your pet’s comfort. Remember to pack extra batteries — it takes two D-cells (which makes this a good option for those of you who crate your dogs on car trips).

One last note for those of you who, like me, are anxious and have vivid imaginations: I had worried that either Chloe, from the inside, or our cats, from the outside, would get their paws/nails into the fan. The slats are positioned closely enough together, however, and far enough from the fan’s blades, that I’ve put that concern behind me.

Amazon link: Metro Air Force Cage/Crate Cooling Fan

Chloe’s Clicks: This week’s best dog travel links

Oh, it’s a mixed bag this week. I can point you to a totally charming story about dogs (and cats) cleverly using Russian and British public transit to visit favorite food sources — but I also have to tell you about an unpleasant incident on a London Midland train, where a passenger and her West Highland White Terrier were both bitten by “a small terrier” belonging to another passenger. Please note, by the way, that London Midland runs trains “throughout the heart of England, connecting London, the Midlands and the North West.” Here are the route maps — you’ll see that the system cuts a useful swath from London to Liverpool, taking in Birmingham and stretching west and south to Hereford and Stratford-upon-Avon — and here’s a link to the pet policy.

I’m cheering as Long Beach, CA officially embarks on its new “policy…to allow restaurant patio access to leashed dogs with the consent of the individual restaurant owner” (thanks to @marymad for the link!) — and I’m horrified by the injuries suffered by a waitress at Miami’s Van Dyke restaurant when she brought a bowl of water to a visiting black mastiff. The restaurant is located in South Beach’s Lincoln Road Mall, a pedestrian-only collection of shops and restaurants and entertainment venues that’s apparently known to be dog-friendly.

There’s food to tell you about — Bowser Beer (“a malty, non-alcoholic brew that replaces hops with chicken or beef broth“) is turning up in welcome packets offered by dog-friendly hotels, and on the menu at bars that have “yappy hours,” and my friends at A Brooklyn Dog’s Life pointed me to a post about Sunday brunch at Smorgasbord DUMBO — until November 18, you and your dog will find “somewhere near 60+ vendors offering everything from artisanal s’mores and homemade pop tarts to build-your-own hash browns and beef jerky made in Brooklyn.” For some travelers with dogs, though, that kind of gathering is a nightmare — here’s a thoughtful post from Kenzo the Hovawart, inspired by a stay with pups Kenzo and Viva in Hvide Sande, Denmark, about working around situations that make your dog uncomfortable.

Also posting from abroad is Gigi Griffis (and Luna!) — this time from Switzerland — and of course Montecristo, who lives in Ottawa, but has been visiting a bunch of lovely places in Quebec, including Mont-Tremblant. I’m delighted (codeword for “green with jealousy”) to see that The Road Unleashed team is, or recently was, in Venice, and found time to write a post packed with info, photos and video. Closer to home, the Take Paws team took in Portland, ME, and generously passed on their recommendations, including the very appealing Back Cove Trail.

That leads me to a collection of new Twitter followers with products that caught my eye: Hundbnb is joining Rover and Dog Vacay (referenced in a previous Chloe’s Clicks) in an effort to matchmake between dog lovers who want to petsit and dog owners who need to find a vacation home for their pets; Embarkly is trying to make it easier for pet owners to locate reputable pet boarding facilities around the U.S.; and 1-800-Pet-Taxi appears to be doing the same for “local and national pet transportation services.”

Speaking of pet transportation, I got a pitch from Pet Moves, which, among other things, promises to ease your international travel worries by getting your dog from the Continent to the U.K. for you (since pets are not allowed to travel in-cabin to the U.K., some travelers choose to fly to Paris or Amsterdam instead, then make their way to the U.K. by alternative means).

Finally, I was intrigued by ICE for Pets, an iPhone app that allows pet owners “to manage important information about your pet and alert an emergency contact to care for [your] pet[] if [you] can’t.” Its most interesting feature lets you set a timer, essentially, that sends a text message to your emergency pet caregiver if you’re prevented from returning to your pet by, say, a flat tire, or an airline delay. The timed text is sent even if you’re out of cellphone range (otherwise, you’d just call your back-up and let her know about the delay). After a recent trip driving through rural North Carolina, I can see the appeal of this product, especially for a pet with a medical condition requiring close timing for medication and/or food. The comments suggest that the product is still a work in progress, but perhaps you could supplement its current deficiencies by leaving your back-up caregiver with detailed notes about your pet’s diet, medications, exercise needs, etc.

Reader’s report: Pet relief area at Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO)

Reader Kate posted a note this week on Dog Jaunt’s Facebook page about the pet relief area at Reno-Tahoe International Airport, and kindly agreed that I could turn it into a quick blog post, so it wouldn’t disappear into the mists of Facebook. She reported that she and her daughter and pup Lambert located one of two pet relief areas at RNO (called, bless ’em, the “Gate K-9 Bark Park”):

There is one on each end of the terminal. The signage is really good and includes painted paws on the sidewalk outside. One is outside of the Southwest check-in area and one is down at the baggage claim end, near the hotel/casino shuttle buses. We used that one. It was very clean with a small pebble/sand ground, a water bowl, hydrant and nice, thick poop bags — also lighted, fenced and covered.

Kate said that they didn’t get to the one near Southwest’s ticket counter, so she doesn’t know if it has the same set-up. I suspect it does, or is possibly even nicer, because it’s newer — it was created in 2012, while the one Kate and team visited has been there since 2004. I get this information from RNO’s website, which wins huge points for (1) having an easy-to-find link to its “dog park” information, and (2) providing useful information about the facilities available at its pet relief areas, and how to find them. The airport map [PDF], too — and I’m weeping with joy  as I write this — clearly indicates where the pet relief areas are located.

Here’s hoping that other airports will follow RNO’s lead, and thank you again to Kate for letting fellow travelers with dogs know what to look for, and expect, at RNO! I’ve added this post to Dog Jaunt’s ongoing series of reviews of airport pet relief areas. To see others, visit Dog Jaunt’s handy guide to airport pet relief areas. 

Photo Friday: Chloe and the seaplane

I’ve known for a while that you’re allowed to bring pet dogs on Kenmore Airlines’ seaplanes (Kenmore’s fleet of Beaver, Otter and Cessna seaplanes goes all over the Pacific Northwest), but we hadn’t taken Chloe on a flight to Friday Harbor, on San Juan Island, until this August. In fact, the “we” is misleading, since I wasn’t there. My husband flew, and, as always, I drove a station wagon full of stuff — I keep assuring him that this load is absolutely, positively the last load ever, and from now on we’ll just flit lightly back and forth — but it’s a big lie. He sweet-talked another passenger into taking this picture:

Chloe didn’t need to be in her carrier — leashed is all that Kenmore requires — but she seemed more comfortable in there. She was a little surprised by the noise of the engines when they lifted off from Lake Union, in Seattle (my husband kept his arm in her carrier, and he reports that there was a great deal of licking during take-off), but she fell asleep during flight, and was not rattled by their second take-off at Roche Harbor.

You need to call and tell the Kenmore folks that you’ll have a pet dog with you, since there isn’t a place to make that note during the on-line reservation process. Only one pet is allowed per flight. And what if your pet isn’t lap-sized? No problem, as you’ll see in this Photo Friday post from August 2010, featuring Bentley the Boxer.

I’d love to see how you and your pup spent your time together this week — please post your photos on Dog Jaunt’s Facebook page so we can all see them! And three cheers for Kenmore Airlines, for welcoming pet dogs on board and for arranging it so passengers earn Alaska Airlines miles for their Kenmore flights.

Reader’s report: Requirements for taking an in-cabin dog to the Philippines

Back in July, I got a message from reader HippoFoxy Pomeranian (a nom de plume for two Pomeranians and their mom), saying they were planning a trip to the Philippines, and could I help them figure out the import requirements for in-cabin dogs. Well, I didn’t. I thought I did — I pointed them to the USDA/APHIS site (normally the best resource for current international rules and regs) and its link to the Philippines — but I didn’t click all the way through, and so I didn’t find out until just now that it lists rules for the importation of cattle, swine, horses, sheep and goats, but not for dogs.

Thank heavens HippoFoxy is a resourceful team, because the next thing I heard was that they’d “e-mailed the [Republic of the Philippines Department of Agriculture] Bureau of Animal Industry and [were] able to obtain instructions for bringing pets to the Philippines including the current fees.”

They kindly sent me the forms and instructions they’d received, so future travelers to the Philippines would have an easier time of it, and here they are. Quick recap: Two Pomeranians, traveling in-cabin from LAX to Davao International Airport (airport code DVO; also called Francisco Bangoy International Airport) for a 3-week stay in the Philippines.

Sir/Madame:

Attached is our service guide [Dogs, Cats, Exotic, Hogs, Horses (PDF)] wherein you can find the requirements on how to import pets to the Philippines and also the application form [Application Form to Import Pets to the Phils. (PDF)]. You may send this application after filling up the information  to this email address [[email protected]]. And as soon as we have process your application we will scan the original copy of the import permit and email to you an advance copy.

Permit is good for two months; it may be extended for another month if the animals have not yet arrived. Issuance of VQC to Import  is P100.00 and Inspection and Landing fee is P250.00 for first 2 hds. and P300.00 for each excess. Payments will be made upon arrival at the Port of entry.

Applications to import pet animals shall be subject to the following conditions:

  1. That the animals should be accompanied by a health certificate issued shortly before shipment by the proper veterinary authority of the country of origin stating that the animals have been carefully examined and found to be free from and have not been exposed to dangerous communicable animal diseases;
  2. That in countries not considered free of rabies, an additional certification is required to the effect that there are no cases or rabies within a twenty (20) kilometer radius from the point of origin during the last six (6) months;
  3. That the animals should be accompanied by a valid vaccination certificate against rabies, canine, distemper, infectious hepatitis leptospirosis, canine parvovirus or feline panleucopenia. For countries considered to be free from rabies, vaccination could be waived;
  4. That the animals were treated for internal and external parasites;
  5. If the animal arrived unaccompanied by said health and vaccination certificates or are showing signs of dangerous communicable animal disease, they must be quarantined and/or disposed of without compensation at the discretion of the Director of Animal Industry;

Note:

We are now accepting online application.  You may browse this link: http://www.bai.ph

Thank you.

National Veterinary Quarantine Services
Bureau of Animal Industry
Visayas Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City
Philippines
Tel. No. (632) 920-0816
Fax No. (632) 920-0815

Thank you so much, HippoFoxy, for your patience and restraint (in not pointing out that my “answer” wasn’t the slightest bit helpful), for your resourcefulness, and for your generosity in sharing this information with other travelers with pets! This is yet another example of how Dog Jaunt’s readers keep this blog afloat.

Reader’s report: Pet relief area at Ottawa/Macdonald-Cartier International Airport (YOW)

Reader Gery wrote to me following a month-long business trip to Ottawa — he had to leave his wife and pup behind, but he was thinking of his family (and fellow travelers with dogs) as he passed through Ottawa/Macdonald-Cartier International Airport, and he looked for YOW’s pet relief area. The airport’s website [click on “Pets”] says that there is an official, “clearly marked” pet relief area “across the street from the passenger terminal (level 1) near the south end of the parkade” — but the clearness of the marking is questionable, since Gery reported that he did not notice any signs for a pet relief area.

However, he ended up finding a suitable “large area with grass and trees” at just about the place where the official pet relief area is located — “follow signs for car rental,” he said, and exit the terminal. “Cross the street towards the parking garage and you are there.”

Airport roadway; portion of the “parkade;” official pet relief area to the right, just beyond the pictured bit of lawn

The official pet relief area is just to the right, or south, of the picture Gery sent. Keep walking to the right along the sidewalk you see, and look for the indicia of a pet relief area: “[P]lastic bags and garbage containers are available for disposing of waste.”

If you’re in a crazy rush, Gery says “[t]here are also some good places just outside the door on the lower level.” Here’s an example:

As Gery points out, “all bets are off however from Nov. to April with two meters of snow on the ground. :-)” In that kind of weather, you’ll be looking for the nearest place to the terminal that grabs your dog’s attention. Be sure to carry your own poop bags!

Please note that YOW is one of the rare airports that allows pet dogs to walk inside — leashed, to be sure, but anytime a pet dog is allowed out of her carrier in an airport is a cause for celebration.

Many, many thanks to Gery for this report — I find pictures showing the access routes to pet relief areas particularly helpful, and I love it that Gery mentioned some workable alternatives to the official pet relief area. I’ve added this post to Dog Jaunt’s ongoing series of reviews of airport pet relief areas. To see others, visit Dog Jaunt’s handy guide to airport pet relief areas. Please also note that fellow blogger Montecristo, a well-traveled Chihuahua, has also written about Ottawa/Macdonald-Cartier International Airport — click here to see his report.

Update on Hartford’s Bradley International Airport (BDL) pet relief area

You may have seen my disgusted review, back in May, of the pet relief area at Hartford’s Bradley International Airport. David White, BDL’s Operations Manager (Landside), recently sent me an e-mail assuring me that things have changed. Here’s the info: BDL now has two pet relief areas, one located in a corner of the lot pictured in my May 2012 post, and the other is at the opposite end of Terminal A.

I have just spent over an hour on the web, unsuccessfully trying to find a map showing BDL’s baggage carousels. It is my strong belief that the lot I showed you in my last post is located near Terminal A’s Baggage Carousel #8. Here’s what the new pet relief area now looks like:

As you can see, the lot has been weeded, and a corner has been gussied up with a partial, decorative fence, bark, a small trashcan, and a post with poop bags.

The other pet relief area is located just outside Terminal A’s Baggage Carousel #1, and David White tells me “[t]he two areas look identical.”

I am assured, too, that there is now signage for the BDL pet relief areas: “Once outside the building look for the green sign that says Pet Relief Area. From there follow the paw prints (will be painted next week) on the sidewalk to the Pet areas. Once outside the door, on each end of the lower level will be less than a 10 second walk to the areas.”

There was nowhere to go but up for BDL’s pet relief areas, and I appreciate how close they are to the terminal, but it would have been better — particularly given how much space is available! — if the areas were larger, completely (and effectively) fenced and provided with a bench for a pet owner’s luggage. If your dog has no interest in bark, or gravel, recall from my earlier post that there are useful patches of lawn across the airport roadway, outside the parking garage. Be sure, of course, to carry your own poop bags (or pick one up  from the official pet relief area) and clean up after your pup.

Please note that I had asked Mr. White for detailed directions to the pet relief areas with transiting passengers in mind — when you have only a brief layover, every moment counts — but he tells me that BDL “does not have connecting passengers, we are an O&D airport (origin and destination).”

My thanks to Mr. White for sending me the news about BDL’s improved pet relief areas, including a photo, and for responding so quickly to my follow-up questions. I am updating my earlier post about BDL with this information, and including this update in Dog Jaunt’s handy guide to airport pet relief areas.

Pet relief area at Greenville, SC’s Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP)

Southwest flies into the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport, so I chose to fly there for a recent trip to Asheville, NC (the scenery between Greenville and Asheville was so lovely that the hour and a half drive felt much shorter). There is no mention of a pet relief area on GSP’s website, and when I inquired at the airport police station, I was told just to use one of the many patches of grass outside.

You’ll deplane on the upper level of the airport. Walk towards baggage claim (which is on the same, lower level as the ticketing counters) and descend the escalator. In front of you, you’ll find this water feature:

Bottom of the escalator in the lower left corner of the picture

Over the boy’s right shoulder, you’ll catch a glimpse of your destination — the flagpoles and outdoor fountain across the airport roadway.

Flagpoles visible between (indoor) palm branch and (outdoor) wheelchairs; fountain visible to right of red bus in the background

Turn left, and then exit the terminal by the door across from the United and U.S. Air ticketing desks. Cross the street, and you’ll find lovely swathes of grass around a clump of three flagpoles and, beyond, around the outdoor fountain.

No problem walking across this airport roadway -- it's small, and there's a well-marked crosswalk.

Be sure, of course, to bring your own poop bags. The airport is tiny, so leaving and re-entering through security, if Greenville is not your final destination, should take very little time.

This post is part of an ongoing series of reviews of airport pet relief areas we’ve visited. To see others, visit Dog Jaunt’s handy guide to airport pet relief areas.

Scraps: Notes for a future Asheville, NC trip

This post should probably be an entry in Dog Jaunt’s Facebook page, since it’s just a couple of ideas for a future, more thorough Asheville visit, but Facebook entries scroll away into oblivion, and blog posts don’t. Please (please!) feel free to add your own Asheville notes and ideas in a comment, for other travelers with dogs.

I spent a little time in Asheville, NC last week en route to, and returning from, a session at Penland School of Crafts. I kept the exploring to a minimum, because I want to return to Asheville with my husband and with Chloe (who was not allowed to join me at Penland), and I think it’s more fun to discover stuff together. Even with blinders on, though, I noticed that several restaurants allowed diners to sit on patios with dogs at their feet, and that many stores had water bowls in front.

The most enchanting place I found was the Battery Park Book Exchange & Champagne Bar, located in the exquisite Grove Arcade (walk through the arcade, for sure, but the entrance to the book store is outside, at the corner of Battery Park Ave. and O Henry Ave.). This place hits every button I have: It’s full of used books, organized into a series of cozy nooks packed with couches and armchairs, and which you can read while sipping wine and eating tasty nibbles; it has wifi; and dogs are welcome. To get to the bar to buy my out-of-print book on Lithuanian cooking, I had to meet Cooper, an adorable black Labrador:

A truly terrible picture (there was pressure! people were stacked up behind me, waiting to pay for their purchases!) of wonderful Cooper, calmly surveying the Book Exchange from a corner of the bar

Cooper and I shook hands, and when I asked the cashier if pet dogs were indeed as welcome as they appeared to be, she assured me they were — and in fact, they’re allowed on the furniture. Here’s a picture of the interior. We’ll be moving in.

Bar in the foreground, view through a bookshelf to one of many, many cozy nooks

When you think of Asheville, you also think of the Biltmore, “America’s Largest Home” — and here I have some good news and some bad news. Good news: Leashed dogs are welcome in the Biltmore’s extensive grounds (“Experience the grounds of our estate at your own pace with our extensive network of nearly 22 round-trip miles of hiking trails. Enjoy a walk along the French Broad River, through lush green forests, or the open meadows of Deer Park. Take a stroll on the 2.5 miles of mulched paths in our manicured gardens. Stop by the Bike Barn or Outdoor Adventure Center in Antler Hill Village for a detailed trail map and orientation.”). Not-so-good news: An estate admission ticket, required to walk in the Biltmore’s grounds, costs about $50. Click here for pictures, from friends Amy & Rod Burkert, of their Biltmore visit with pups Buster & Ty. Please note that the Biltmore has “a very limited number of outdoor, unattended pet kennels…. They are self-service and available on a first-come, first-served basis.” I have not seen them, so I can’t tell you if they’re clean, shaded, provided with water, and secure — or not. When we return, we’ll check them out and report.

Bad news: Pet dogs are not allowed inside any of the buildings on the Biltmore estate, including the Inn on Biltmore Estate. When we return, we’ll be staying instead at the Biltmore Village Inn, a lovely and highly-rated B&B located five blocks from the main entrance to the estate. “Well-behaved dogs of a moderate size” are allowed in two of the rooms in the Carriage House, for $25 per night/per pet.

Please note that Biltmore Village is a small community located south of downtown Asheville. The two areas are driving distance apart. We might, therefore, decide to stay in a downtown Asheville hotel, and if so, we’ll likely choose between the Hotel Indigo (we’ve had good experiences with a Hotel Indigo in Sarasota, FL) or the Haywood Park Hotel.

One last note: The Grove Park Inn, a gorgeous and historic resort located five miles from Asheville, also welcomes pets.

Flying with an in-cabin pet: Under-seat measurements for Southwest 737-800 planes

Returning to Seattle from a week in North Carolina (which explains why things have been so quiet on the blog recently), I flew for the first time on one of Southwest’s new 737-800 planes — so new, in fact, that it smelled like new plane, which is just as pleasing as new car. You’ll like them, when you get on one — the top half of the bulkhead between the first row and the flight attendants is gone, and in general the plane feels wider and more open; the overhead baggage compartments hold more stuff and are easier to close; and the flight attendant call button is located far, far away from the reading light buttons.

Anyway, it’s a new plane to me, so I grabbed my tape measure and threw myself on the ground. Here’s what I learned. As on other Southwest planes, the depth of the under-seat space (measured from the rail just behind the heels of the person in front of you to the nearest end of the bracket supporting the seat in front of you) is 17″. There are packets under each seat holding a life jacket, but they are soft, and can be pressed upwards — the under-seat height, therefore, is 11.5″ to 12″. The aisle seats have one of those pesky bars running around the under-seat space, reducing the available width to 14.25″, but the middle seat space is a generous 20″ wide, and the window seat space is a very respectable 18.5″ wide.

If you compare these measurements to Southwest’s 737-700 measurements, you’ll see that the middle and window under-seat spaces on the -800 series have more left-to-right room, and the change from a hard to soft enclosure for the life jackets means that all of the under-seat spaces are effectively 2-3″ taller. If you walk on a Southwest plane and can see the first port-side row from the door, start smiling — you’re on a 737-800, and your pet’s carrier will fit way more easily under your seat than you’re used to.

This post is part of an ongoing series recording under-seat measurements of the various planes we fly on. Keep in mind that most domestic and international airlines have rules about the maximum size of in-cabin pet carriers they allow on board (see Dog Jaunt’s handy charts under the “Taking your pet on a plane” tab above).