- In this video, I got a whisker in my mouth.
We're gonna be talking about what you need to do
to prepare for your trip during your flight
as well as when you get to your destination.
All with a pup.
It's you Atlas, this is all about you.
But before we get into this video,
don't forget to subscribe if you're new to this channel.
Right Atlas, tell them.
(barking)
(growling)
That's right you listen to him.
(upbeat music)
My name is Kristen Sarah.
If you're new to this channel hello
and welcome to the Travel Tribe.
This here, Atlas, we're recording.
This here is Atlas AKA Atlas Adventure Pup.
And he is the newest, not newest,
second newest addition to our travel family here.
We adopted this little cutie in California about a year ago.
And he has traveled all across Canada.
Across the states.
And we went to Portugal.
And we have so many more adventures this year ahead of us.
So this is all about traveling with your pup
because it's one of the best experiences.
It's such a different way of traveling
and it's so rewarding.
Right bud?
Can I have a kiss?
(gasping) How rude.
A lot of you watching and a lot of people in general
have dogs other than kids right?
Their dogs are their kids and they want
to also travel the world.
And don't want to leave their little babies at home.
So we are going to break this video up into three sections.
One, prepping for your trip.
Two, flying with your pet.
And three, what to do with your pet, your dog,
once you get to your destination.
Pre work.
Everything you need to do before you board that flight.
Prep, the prep is key because there's
a lot that you have to do before you travel with your dog.
You have to make sure your pup is up to date
with his or her vaccinations.
Specifically rabies is really important.
As well as having a microchip.
Your dog has to have a microchip.
Another thing you have to do is visit
a vet and get a health certificate
for your dog ahead of time.
And this has to be done within a certain time frame
and it depends on the country.
So you want to make sure you research this.
Some countries it's within 30 days.
Others is 15 or even 10 days.
You have to get the health certificate.
And this health certificate basically says
your dog is good to travel, up to date with their vaccines,
rabies, microchipped, everything that you need.
You have to have this document with you
because they will ask for it
upon arrival in your destination.
Another thing about this certificate
is it's only good for a certain time frame.
So every time you travel,
you have to get a new one.
And if you're traveling within a country
for a long period of time.
Let's say Switzerland and you're there for a month,
you might have to actually visit a vet
there to get another certification before you come home.
The vet check up was super fast, super easy.
It took like 10 minutes.
Basically she came in, she checked him.
And then checked his vaccination records
and pretty much signed off.
Before you decide on traveling anywhere with your pup,
you're gonna want to check the rules
of that country when it comes to traveling with your dog.
Because some countries require your pup to be quarantined
before you can travel with them.
So there are countries where you have to leave
your dog even if they're up to date with their vaccines.
For up to a month.
And personally I would not want to do that unless I had
to because I was moving permanently into a country.
But if you're just traveling for a short period of time,
even a little bit of a long period of time.
That's something you want to consider.
If you're traveling to a certain country
and your dog's quarantined,
something that you're going to want to know ahead of time.
If you plan to travel with your dog
in flight as your carry on,
then they have to be a specific size and weight.
So some airlines require them
to be no more than 20 pounds.
And that includes the carry on case
that you're bringing them in
and other airlines are a little bit higher.
Even a little bit less.
So it's something you definitely have to look into.
And as I said, your dog is your carry on
so you can't bring in another piece
of luggage that you would typically bring
if you were packing just a carry on suitcase.
Your dog is now your carry on so consider that as well.
If your dog does not fit the weight requirement,
then you are going to have to check them into cargo
which means they are going to be put
into a crate and put under the plane
where the luggage area is.
When you are choosing the right pet carrier
you want to make sure it is certified
for flying with your pet.
You'll see like a little airline tag on it
that lets you know that has the right specs
for your pet and for the airlines.
Also certain breeds are not allowed to fly.
They're like bulldogs, different terriers,
pit bulls, rottweilers.
So if you have one of those dogs,
a lot of the airlines will not let you fly with them.
Once you book your flight,
you're gonna want to call the airline
and tell them you're traveling with your dog
because they only allow a certain amount
of pets on board and you want yours to be one of them
and also you won't be able to sit in certain seats
on the airplane like the emergency exit.
When you are flying with your dog,
there are additional fees that you have to pay
unless your dog is a service animal.
And in that case you don't have to pay fees
and your dog can be any size.
It can be the size of a chihuahua, or a Great Dane.
Although I heard that they are cracking down
on that a bit for certain airlines.
Again that's something to check into.
But another thing about having a service dog
is your dog can sit with you in the seat
rather than being in their carry on case underneath
the seat in front of you.
Which leads me in to this point.
Your dog has to be in their carry on case
when you get to the airport.
Until you get to security you would take them out.
But for the rest of the experience,
and as well as in flight,
they have to stay in their carry on case the entire time.
If this is your dog's first time flying,
I would recommend taking a flight that has layovers.
That way you're getting breaks in between
and it just gives them a time to relieve themself.
Kind of relax a little bit because they can
be quite anxious their first time.
And it's just a way to ease that.
You're gonna wanna your dog out before the flight.
Get them really tired.
It eases their anxiety.
It relaxes them more.
And they might even sleep their way through the flight.
Right Atlas?
Yeah.
Call the airlines ahead of time
or research online to see if the airport
that you are going to be flying to,
if you have a layover let's say.
Or the airport you're departing from
has a dog relief station.
A lot of airports have these.
Allow the dogs to go out and go pee,
do their business, do their poop.
Whatever they have to do before the flight.
You're gonna want to get to the airport 30 minutes earlier
than you typically would.
Because you're gonna want to talk
to the airline you're flying with to make sure
they know that you are traveling with your dog.
Which you would've told them ahead of time.
Just to make sure and they'll want to weigh your dog
and the carry on bag.
You're gonna want to board early if possible
because once you get in flight you want
to be the first one in your row.
So you can put your little puppy underneath your seat
before other people use that area for their bag
so you know you have enough room for your little guy.
The flight experience.
Everything you're gonna wanna know
about flying with your dog.
All right you have done plenty of research.
You have everything you need.
You're on your flight, you're with your pup.
You're ready to go.
This is what you're gonna need.
You want to have with you something like carrots
or a hard treat that your dog can chew on specifically
when you are ascending or descending
to help them equalize and pop their ears.
So they don't have any issues.
I also like to bring pee pads
and even that fake grass if your dog
is used to going on that which this guy does.
If you have a long flight specifically,
you're going to want to try
to make them use the toilet.
What I did was I just took Atlas
to the handicap washroom on the airplane
which was a bigger washroom.
I put the pee pad down and let him use it if he needed it.
The thing with him was he was a little anxious.
It was his first and only flight so far.
So he did not pee until we got to our destination
which was like seven hours later.
Right you didn't pee.
But we know for next time
to bring the grass because we did not
at the time we went to Portugal.
And he's used to going on it now
so he'll more likely use it if he really does need it.
I was told by a vet that it's not good
to sedate your dogs which I, really makes sense to me
because it doesn't last long.
So if you have a long flight it's gonna wear off pretty fast
and it's actually gonna leave your dog
more anxious than beforehand.
So I would try and just go natural if possible.
Do other things like work them out ahead of time.
Bring a favorite treat.
You can even bring a piece of your clothing
that has your smell on it and put it in their carry on.
And it will just help them to be
a little bit more relaxed throughout the flight.
When you get to the country you're traveling to,
you're gonna have to pay a fee.
We had to go when we went to Portugal,
into this special room with a veterinarian there
that again checked Atlas.
Checked all of his paperwork.
And then we had to pay her I think it was like 50 euros
in order to let him pass through the doors into Portugal.
Right, yes.
When you're filling out custom forms on your way back home.
The section where it says are you bringing in any livestock.
We're so used to saying no
that we actually clicked that box.
This guy is livestock.
He counts as livestock.
So you want to make sure you click that box
because it can cause you some trouble.
You will want to bring food with you.
Most countries you can get dog food when you get there.
But it's good to have enough food
and even more so on the flight in case you have
a layover and also you want to feed your dog.
We brought one of those portable water bottle things
that you can make smaller and then like pop it out
for this guy to make sure that he stayed hydrated.
And speaking of food you want to avoid giving
your dog a full meal right before the flight.
About a couple hours before as well as after
because it changes up their metablolism
and it can make them sick.
What to do once you've landed.
Okay this guy is like my time is up.
Atlas come back.
Come here, come here bud.
Come on.
We're almost done.
What the hell?
Okay let's talk about when we arrive in the destination.
When you get to your destination,
it's time to travel, it's time to have fun.
This is the best part.
And traveling with your dog
is a whole different way of seeing a country.
It leads you to different places you might not
have thought of ahead of time.
Dog friendly places.
It really connects you with the locals
'cause everyone wants to pet your dog.
It's a great way to connect with people.
There will be times when you may want to visit
a place within the country you're visiting
that doesn't allow pets.
And in that case there's an amazing app called Rover.
Download it right now.
If you have a pet download it.
It's basically like a babysitter slash Airbnb for your pet.
It costs a fee and every person is different
so you can find something within your budget.
Best option when exploring a place is to get
a rental car I would say when you're traveling with a dog.
And you want to make sure ahead of time
that the rental car company allows you to have a dog.
So again a lot of preparation ahead of time is important
when traveling with a pet, traveling with a dog.
And yes so we traveled through Portugal
with our dog in our rental car
and got to see so many different places
because we had the rental car.
Public transportation in different country varies
if you're allowed to bring pets it varies.
So you're gonna want to make sure you research that
ahead of time as well.
If you're planning to take a taxi or an Uber
from the airport to your hotel,
then you're gonna want to also make sure
that they allow dogs.
Speaking of accommodations,
Airbnbs are the way to go when traveling with a dog.
You're gonna want to choose an Airbnb that allows dogs.
And some hotels also allow dogs where others don't.
It's harder to find dog friendly hotels
rather than just hitting up an Airbnb that allows pets.
All right if you made it through this video,
congratulations and I am assuming that you
are really interested in traveling with your dog.
It is so rewarding.
It seems like there's a lot that goes with it.
Which there is, especially the preparation.
But seeing the world with your doggy best friend
is one of the best experiences
and I'd say if you're thinking about it, do it.
Because it's very rewarding.