Do I have to pay more money for my plane ticket if I bring my pet dog on the plane?

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Ambrose

I have a german shepard and I need to travel internationally. do i have to pay more money for my ticket if i bring her?

In Panama

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Letitia

"To book with before you book your ticket - often they will only allow..."

Yes, you do have to pay extra for your dog to travel with you. Not all airlines allow you to travel with a pet. The rates will vary a lot between the airlines that do, and depending on whether your dog is small enough to travel in the cabin with you (usually the limit is 10kg for the pet), or travel in the cargo hold. There may also be different rates for dogs traveling in cargo depending on their weight - very large dogs may cost more. Check with the airline you wish to book with BEFORE you book your ticket - often they will only allow one or two animals to travel per flight, and if there is no room you may have to pay a penalty to change your ticket for one with space. Make sure you check the rules on pet importation of the country you are traveling to; most will require recent certificates of good health from a veterinarian, authentication by a government office, proof of rabies vaccination, etc. There may be mandatory quarantines in effect at your destination, either at an approved facility, sometimes in-home. There are also usually rules against traveling with very young animals, and during extreme hot/cold weather.

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Q. Has anyone ever snuck their cat/small dog on a plane without paying the airline fees?
i've traveled numerous times on planes with my cat in an approved carrier in the cabin with me. he does well flying and i get to spend the holidays with him. each time, i paid for a medical exam for him by my vet so that i'd have the medical certificate if they asked (they never did) and i paid the airline fees. two years ago, the first time i flew, it cost $50 each way for his "reservation" and $30 for the exam, for a total of $130. the next time, it cost $75 each way and $30 for the exam, for a total of $180. since i wanted to take him home for christmas this year, i checked the airline pet fees and nearly fell out of my chair! delta/nwa is now charging $150 each way for a pet and united is charging $175. the cheapest, usair, is still charging $100 each way, but i don't fly them because they're almost never the cheapest airline for me. i recently bought a ticket on delta for my flight home for christmas and payed $250 for a roundtrip, but my cat's "reservation" would cost $300, more than my ticket! if i was flying united, it would cost $350! now, i'm all for playing the rules, but this is crazy. and what's even more insulting, i pay all that money and my cat still counts as one of my pieces of carryon luggage! $300 and i don't even get to bring an extra bag! so i'm either going to board him (which now costs less than flying him even for a two- or three-week trip) or sneak him on the plane, but has anyone ever done that successfully? i wouldn't have to sneak him through security because the tsa people don't know and don't care what flight i'm on. how would they know if i have a reservation for him? and if i have a friend waiting to take him to a kennel in case my plan fails, what's the harm in trying? has anyone out there ever done this? ok, seriously, read the question. don't send a stupid, knee-jerk reaction answer. if you don't own a pet and have never taken one on a plane, don't answer this question. i don't plan to send my cat through the x-ray machine! i'd walk through with him like i always do. my "guess" is that the only people who know if your cat is booked on a flight is the airline on which you're flying. do the tsa guys know whether you've made a reservation for your cat? if not, why would they care if i have a cat with me or not?

"If you can't get it pass the ticket agent they'll make you pay the..."

TSA doesn't care if you paid for your cat or not, The fee is an airline thing. Once a passenger came throug with a cat trying to sneak it through and put it in a regular bag, and ran it through the xray. Being an animal person I was pist when i saw the cat on the screen, i asked to see the reciept for the pet fee they said they didn't have it so i made them go back to the airline to pay for it and told them when they came back up don't put through the xray. That's the only time i ever cared if someone paid for the fee, only cause they were a complete moron. Before you board, the ticket agent will probably want to see your reciept for your cat, so if you can't get it pass the ticket agent they'll make you pay the fee.

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