Dog Jaunt

May 12 2009

Continental Airlines: On-line in-cabin pet booking

Continental Airlines also allows on-line reservations for pets that will travel in-cabin with you — and unlike Northwest, Continental allows you to add the pet to your initial Flight Search, so that the list of flights that are ultimately offered to you for consideration can all accommodate your dog (the flights that aren’t eligible for in-cabin pet travel are marked in red).

Here’s what you do: At Continental’s home page, click on the “Reservations” tab and select “Make Flight Reservation.” The resulting “Flight Search” page is organized as a list of questions; the third question is “Who is traveling,” and includes a box to check if you want to include a pet in your reservation. The next page (“Add Pet”), asks for the number of in-cabin pets you propose bringing, and then you’re on your way. The system is blessedly easy to use — three cheers for Continental!

May 11 2009

Northwest Airlines: On-line in-cabin pet booking

Normally, if you’re traveling with a dog you plan to carry on you either have to make your entire reservation over the phone to ensure that there’s space on your plane(s) for an in-cabin pet, or make your reservation on-line and call back to add your dog to your reservation. The first option is expensive (a lot of airlines now charge a fee for phone reservations) and the second option is a bit risky, because you don’t know if there’s actually room in the cabin for your dog when you commit to your reservation.

Northwest Airlines has not solved the problem, since you still need to make your reservation first before going back in and adding your in-cabin pet. However, they now allow you to add a pet to your reservation on-line, instead of calling customer service. It’s a small, but nice, step forward — at least you don’t have to grapple with the airline’s phone system and wait for a customer service representative to become available.

Here’s what you do: After you’ve made your NWA reservation, go back to the website and log in. Find the “Reservations” tab and click on the “Manage My Reservations” option, which will take you to a “Travel Reservations Summary” page. Click on the “Details” button next to the trip you want to add your dog to. On the page that shows up next, you’ll see an “Update Reservation/Add Information” option. From that menu, choose “Add carry-on pets,” then click the GO button. NWA’s pet policy comes up, and at the bottom of the page there’s a place to enter the number of pets you want to bring with you in the cabin. Continue to the next page, where you will enter details about the type of pet you’re bringing (dog or cat) and about your carrier, and make payment by credit card.

I suggest printing out the receipt they offer you and adding it to your travel documents, so that you have proof in hand that your pet’s reservation has been made and paid for.

4/12/10: Alas, this post is now moot, since Northwest has been acquired by Delta, and Delta does not allow you to book your pet on-line when you make your own reservation. Instead, you need to make your reservation, then call to add your pet to your reservation.

May 11 2009

Traveling by Boston public transit with a small dog

Photo by David Paul Ohmer

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) shuttles passengers around the Boston area by subway, bus, boat and commuter rail. The MBTA representative I spoke to said that “T” refers to all four transportation systems, which was news to me — I thought it was just the nickname of the subway. (Please note that poor Charlie was trapped on the “MTA,” which stands for Metropolitan Transit Authority and is what the MBTA used to be called.)

The MBTA’s pet policy is as follows:

Service animals are allowed on the T at all times.

During off-peak hours, non-service dogs are allowed at the discretion of T vehicle operators. Dogs must be properly leashed and are not allowed to annoy riders or take up a seat. For safety and convenience during rush hours, small domestic animals must be carried in lap-sized containers.

I confirmed by phone that this policy applies to all four transportation systems run by the MBTA.

As always, I strongly recommend that you put your small dog entirely into her container and keep her there for the entire journey. The MBTA’s language doesn’t specifically say that your dog’s head can’t poke out (compare Washington D.C.’s public transit pet policy, requiring that your small dog be “in a secure container as long as there is no possibility that the pet can get free”), but putting her in a carrier with a zipper (and using it) may save you a tedious discussion with an uninformed T employee or fellow passenger. For the same reason, I also suggest that you print out the MBTA’s pet policy and tuck it into your carrier.

For other posts about traveling with dogs on public transit, take a look at Dog Jaunt’s handy guide!

May 10 2009

Travel book review: Dog Lover’s Companion series — Seattle edition

In an earlier post, Dog Jaunt praised the eleven books in the Dog Lover’s Companion series of dog-centric travel guides. I was happy today to come across a twelfth — the newly-published The Dog Lover’s Companion to Seattle (May 2009). It turns out to be a subset of The Dog Lover’s Companion to the Pacific Northwest (May 2009), so if you already own the Pacific Northwest guidebook, there’s no need to buy the Seattle guidebook as well — unless, like me, you live in Seattle and would like to tuck a slimmer book into your car’s glove compartment for quick reference.

Amazon link:
The Dog Lover’s Companion to Seattle: The Inside Scoop on Where to Take Your Dog

May 9 2009

Hip pack for walks and dog parks

When I set out for a walk with Chloe, my pockets are stuffed with treats, a clicker, the house keys, a roll of poop bags, my phone, deterrent spray and a Gulpy. If I’m going to the dog park, I might also wedge in a mini tennis ball. At night I add a flashlight. All’s well (or well enough) when it’s cold or raining, because I have jackets with endless pockets. But when the summer rolls around — and it does, even in Seattle — things get awkward. Then I’m down to two pockets (or none, if I’m wearing a skirt), and our walks become a juggling act.

I generally sneer at hip packs, but I’ve never regretted buying my OllyDog Walker. It has a built-in poop bag dispenser, a holster for a water bottle, and a small zipped pouch with a mesh outer pocket. I carry a toy, treats, Kleenex and a flashlight in the pouch and put my phone in the mesh pocket. The Walker came with a water bottle, which I promptly gave to Goodwill and replaced with a Gulpy (which fits perfectly). There’s enough room on the fabric portion of the product to clip on a small can of citronella dog deterrent spray. [4/25/10 Unfortunately, the OllyDog Walker is no longer available. The company now offers the OllyDog Hiker, which is bigger (it holds two water bottles), but would still be my choice.] [1/12/12 And I’ve just noticed that the OllyDog Hiker is no longer available either — alas!]

It’s a bit bulky, but every time I leave it behind, I regret it. I’ve seen a sleeker alternative — DOOG’s Walkabout Waist Pack — but I’m happy with my choice. I want a holster for the Gulpy (hanging it off my waistband is annoying), and I don’t need a handiwipe dispenser (I don’t pick the poop up with my bare hands, after all).

My only gripe with the OllyDog Walker is that although it provides a clip inside the zipped pouch for a key, the clip isn’t on a tether, so you either have to press your belly close to the keyhole to get your door open, unclip the key altogether (and that’s one stiff clip) or remove the whole belt (which then becomes a heavy and awkward key fob), or fashion a lame-looking tether from a random piece of elastic you have in your sewing basket (my solution).

Amazon link:
Doog Dog Walking Utility Belt

May 7 2009

Traveling by Seattle public transit with a small dog

Photo by City of Seattle

King County Metro Transit has a long list of transportation services, but the ones you’re most likely to use are Seattle’s buses and the King County Water Taxi. Metro’s pet policy for its buses is as follows:

All dogs that are not service animals must be on leash.

Dogs are not allowed to occupy seats; they must remain either on the floor or sit on their owners lap.

Small dogs who remain on their owner’s lap ride for free. All other dogs pay the same fare as their owner.

Other small animals including cats, rabbits and small fur-bearing or feathered animals, are allowed on the bus as long as they are in an appropriate container or carrier. Fare is not required.

The transit operator, at his or her discretion, may not allow you to board with your pet if there is a concern for the safety or comfort of your fellow passengers.

I couldn’t find any language about pets on the water taxi (which has a seasonal route between Seattle’s Pier 50 and West Seattle, and a regular weekday route between Pier 50 and Vashon Island), but the two Metro representatives I spoke to said that dogs are allowed to travel on the water taxi, for free. (They couldn’t give me any more specifics than that, and I got the impression they’d never been asked the question before. The captain is the final arbiter of any pet-related issues that arise on board the water taxi.) [5/18/12 Alas, the website now addresses the issue, and says that pets are not allowed on board the Water Taxi.]

Please note that Seattle’s waterfront streetcar line has been out of service since late 2005. Some Metro buses have been painted to look a bit like streetcars and are labeled “Seattle Waterfront Streetcar Line” (their less romantic designation is Route 99). These buses serve “the downtown Seattle waterfront, Pioneer Square Historic District and Chinatown/International District.” The Metro pet policy applies to these buses.

The Seattle Monorail, a beloved vestige of the 1962 World’s Fair, is actually a privately-run business. The Monorail travels between Westlake Center in downtown Seattle and the Seattle Center; the trip is a mile long and takes about two minutes. Dogs, either leashed or in a carrier, are allowed on the Monorail.

Sound Transit operates buses (ST Express Bus, serving nearby cities including Everett, Issaquah, Tacoma, etc.), commuter trains (Sounder, stretching between Everett and Tacoma) and light rail (Tacoma Link, serving downtown Tacoma). The light rail system is currently in the process of expanding from Westlake to Tukwila, and on to Seatac Airport. On all Sound Transit transportation systems, “Pets may ride if they are carried in small containers.”

Seattle Streetcar runs the South Lake Union line of streetcars (its early, popular acronym, SLUT, seems to be here to stay) from downtown’s Westlake Center to the corner of Fairview and Ward. Leashed pets are allowed: “Guide dogs and companion animals are allowed on leash only.” [2/24/12 This language has disappeared from the streetcar site, but the customer service rep I spoke to told me the policy is the same as on Metro.]

Community Transit operates local bus routes within Snohomish County, and commuter bus routes linking Snohomish County with the University of Washington, downtown Seattle, and the Eastside. Community Transit will soon launch a bus rapid transit system called Swift, serving “a 17-mile stretch of the Highway 99/Evergreen Way/Rucker Avenue/Pacific Avenue corridor between Aurora Village Transit Center in the south and Everett Station in the north.” Community Transit’s pet policy, disappointingly, allows pets on local buses but not on commuter buses:

Only service animals are allowed on commuter buses. Non-service animals are allowed on local buses with the following rules:

Dogs must be on a leash and wear a commercially-produced muzzle that covers the mouth and is secured behind the head.

Small animals such as reptiles, birds or cats must be in a confined carrying container and held on the owner’s lap or at their feet.

Animals cannot at any time wander or annoy other passengers.

For other posts about traveling with dogs on public transit, take a look at Dog Jaunt’s handy guide!

May 5 2009

Traveling by Paris public transit with a small dog

Photo by Rous

The Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP) runs Paris’s Métro, buses and the commuter-rail RER (Réseau Express Régional) lines. It also runs Paris’s tramway (connecting the 13th, 14th, and 15th arrondissements and the southeast suburbs) and the Montmartre funicular. The RATP’s policy regarding traveling with a pet is as follows (translated below):

“Les animaux ne sont autorisés sur les réseaux de transport en commun que dans les cas suivants:

Les animaux de petite taille, convenablement enfermés dans des sacs ou paniers, à condition qu’ils ne puissent ni salir ni incommoder les autres voyageurs (dimension maximale des sacs ou paniers : 45 cm);

* * *

Sur le RER, les chiens tenus en laisse et muselés.

Attention : Pour un chien muselé et tenu en laisse voyageant sur le RER, vous devez être en possession, en plus de votre titre de transport, d’un billet a tarif réduit correspondant au parcours réalisé et validé lors de l’entrée sur le réseau RER. Dans les autres cas, l’animal voyage gratuitement.”

I’ve left out the provisions relating to service animals. Very roughly translated, the policy states that animals aren’t allowed on public transit except small animals in carriers (no larger than 18″), or, on the RER, leashed and muzzled dogs.

~~As in the U.S., I strongly recommend that you put your dog completely into her carrier before entering your chosen form of public transit, and keep her in there until you depart.~~ [10/15/13 We’ve been using the Paris metro pretty heavily for the past couple of weeks, and the three other dogs we’ve seen with their owners, all small, have been on leash rather than in a carrier. If a metro official was moved to, s/he could make a fuss, but what are the chances? From the smiles and interest we’ve been getting, I get the impression that using a carrier is actually unusual. We’ll keep doing it because I think Chloe’s happier in it than she’d be in the open — the metro can be noisy and very crowded, and she’s not adept with hopping onto train cars and dealing with closing doors.]

For other posts about traveling with dogs on public transit, take a look at Dog Jaunt’s handy guide!

May 4 2009

Travel book review: Traveling with Your Pet — The AAA PetBook

I just bought the 11th edition (2009) of this guidebook, published annually, and I’m thrilled to death. What a great book! It won’t keep you awake at night with a cliffhanger ending, but it’s densely-packed with really useful information. The bulk of it is a list of pet-friendly AAA-approved hotels across the U.S. (and Canada too). Some are in major metropolitan areas, and those are interesting but not crucial (it’s easy, after all, to do an online search for pet-friendly hotels in San Francisco). What I love are all the listings for pet-friendly hotels in small and lesser-known towns. On a road trip to your parents’ house and need a dog-friendly hotel in Xenia, OH? You’re set!

Although the book includes some truly glorious hotels (e.g., The Greenbrier), it’s pretty heavily loaded with more modest (and affordable) hotels like Best Westerns and Comfort Inns. Since they’re all AAA hotels, though, they’ll be safe and clean.

The book also includes very helpful lists of emergency veterinarians, dog parks and dog-friendly major attractions and national parks. They may not be exhaustive (the attractions list, for example, does not include Colonial Williamsburg), but they’re darned good.

Amazon link:
Traveling with Your Pet, 11th Edition: The AAA Petbook

May 3 2009

Traveling by car with a small dog: Ready, set…

Photo by ♡Blackangelツ

You’ve seen it, of course: an adorable, small dog either standing on her owner’s lap while her owner drives or with her front paws on the passenger-side door panel, nose blissfully out the open window and ears flapping in the wind. She loves it! She’s in heaven! She’s also really, really unsafe!!

If I’m describing you and your dog, believe me, I know you’re a terrific driver. Hey, I am too. But remember all those crazy drivers you shake your head at? At some point, one of them is going to hit you and when they do, your dog will suffer. In my last big accident, I was sideswiped at highway speed and spun into a concrete barrier so hard that, despite my seatbelt, the steering wheel bruised my chest. If a dog had been on my lap, she would either have been flattened between me and the steering wheel or she would have ricocheted around the car’s interior. In my current car, the airbag would have killed her (they deploy at about 200 mph!). And keep in mind you don’t have to crash at highway speed for your airbag to deploy — a frontal collision at only 20 mph may do it.

Other hazards? If your dog sees an irresistible squirrel, or another dog, she can be out of even a half-open window in a moment. A sudden swerve or bump can launch her out the window. And that open window is unsafe for reasons you may not have considered: a dog with her head out the window will get pelted in the eyes and face with grit, the wind will dry out and harm her eyes, and the joyous ear-flapping damages the blood vessels in her ears. Keep your windows closed, or just cracked, and use the A/C instead (and remember to disable your car’s electric windows with the child safety lock, so your dog doesn’t open a window, or close one on her own neck, by standing on the control).

So now you’re convinced that some kind of restraint is needed. What are your options? There are three options for small dogs: (1) a harness and strap that latches onto the car’s seatbelt structure, (2) a padded platform, strapped in with a seatbelt, with another strap that attaches to your dog’s harness, and (3) a carrier, strapped in with a seatbelt.

Please note that no matter what option you choose, your dog should ride in the back seat, not in the front passenger seat, for the same reason that parents don’t put their babies in the front seat: in an accident, your car’s airbag will injure or kill your dog. (Owners of the tiniest dogs do have the option to buy a car seat that straps to the console between the front seats.)

Option #1: Harness-and-strap

Take a look at Dog Jaunt’s earlier post about the harness and strap option. It’s convenient if you’re on a road trip away from home (that is, if you aren’t in your own car and you started your trip somewhere other than your own driveway), because the harness and strap occupy so little space in your luggage. It’s not ideal for a small dog, since although some choices allow her to lie down comfortably, she can’t actually see out the window and a view helps some dogs fend off carsickness. (Remember to bring a towel or pad for her to lie on, to protect her from a hot seat — and to protect the seat from her fur, drool, etc.) (more…)

May 2 2009

Traveling by Washington D.C. public transit with a small dog

Photo by David Paul Ohmer

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s (WMATA) pet policy for the Metro and for D.C. area buses is as follows:

The only animals that are permitted on Metrorail are service animals that assist people with disabilities. Pets are not permitted to ride Metrobus or Metrorail. However, a pet can be transported on Metrorail and Metrobus in a secure container as long as there is no possibility that the pet can get free.

My spirits took a dip when I read the second sentence, but revived with the third sentence. Translated, the policy appears to be that unleashed dogs and dogs restrained only by a leash (whether muzzled or not) are not allowed on D.C. buses or the Metro, but dogs in carriers are.

[6/12/11 I was happy to re-visit the WMATA pet policy today, and learn that it’s been tidied up. Here’s how it reads now: “Service animals that assist people with disabilities are the only animals permitted to ride unconfined on Metrorail and Metrobus. However, a pet may be transported on Metrorail and Metrobus, provided it is carried aboard in a secure container from which it cannot escape.”]

“Secure container” is not defined, but, practically speaking, it means a carrier that zips closed or (if it’s a hard-sided carrier) has a steel latch closure. That, in turn, means that the carrier also has to have sufficient ventilation panels (since your dog can’t stick her head out for air).

As always, I strongly recommend that you put your dog entirely in her carrier and keep her there for the whole journey. I also recommend that you print out the WMATA FAQ page I’ve given you a link for and tuck it into the side of your carrier, so that if an uninformed Metro employee or fellow passenger questions you, you have the actual policy to show them.

For other posts about traveling with dogs on public transit, take a look at Dog Jaunt’s handy guide!