What is the best airline to travel (internationally) with my cats?

belynbannist: What is the best airline to travel (internationally) with my cats?
I am moving my 3 cats to Germany (from California) in August and I am wondering which is the best airline to use for their transport – both in the cabin and in cargo. My spouse and I will be together, so I’m assuming we can each keep a cat in the cabin and we’ll have to put one in cargo.

Does anyone know which airline is the best with animals? The safest? Best treatment? Best prices?

Thanks so much!

Answers and Views:

Answer by joanne
Do not use AA! Delta was wonderful to my cats in the cargo hold and the pilot (I had a few stops) always told me they were fine before we took off. At one point I got called to look at one of my cats as the pilot was concerned! The cat was fine, his mild sedative wore off and he was upset. That cat had an attitude. I could also see the baggage handlers from my seat when we boarded. The cats were the last to load. They would take off there gloves and give them a quick pat through the carrier bars and gently place them on the plane. My cost from Alberta to Louisiana was $ 360 for both cats in individual carriers.
For going overseas your best bet is to contact the airline directly. They will also have to have certain immunizations no greater than 30 days before leaving and may have to be quarantined for a period when you arrive at your destination.

My sister has lived in Germany for over 40yrs. She travels back and forth frequently. All I will say about Luftansa-is be careful, keep ALL your ticket stubs and don’t let them take any papers that you really think you should have. IE: your boarding pass before you board. And make sure your pets are in the cargo hold BEFORE the plane leaves. Ready for another thumbs down.

Canadian Perspective: I don’t mean to be discourteous but my reply is based on fact not statistics.
Eighteen years ago when a bunch of Canadian nurses moved to the south, pets were brought along. Most of us travelled by AA because of their “statistics”. More than half of us had to find a vet within 24 hrs of landing. Next time I tried Delta as did a few others with no problems.

Which ever airline you choose-make sure they do have your cats best interests at heart, that is what matters. To add travelling with in ones country differs greatly in regards to immunizations and quarantine when you cross international borders such as the US and Canada or the US and overseas.

Answer by CanadianPerspective
My daughter traveled on AirCanada from Vancouver, British Columbia to Toronto, Ontario. She was allowed to keep him in the cabin and was charged a pet fee of $ 50.00 and she was happy with the service. Personally, I’d fly on Luftansia because of their high customer satisfaction and safety standards. https://www.lufthansa.com/de/en/Animals#ancAbT2
AmericanAirlines https://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInformation/specialAssistance/travelingWithPets.jsp#PetsTravelingInTheCabin
Travel Tips: https://www.google.ca/search?q=flying+with+cat&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&client=safari
https://www.petflight.com/airlines
https://www.pettravel.com/airline_rules.cfm

Answer by Anthony Carroll
Porkey?