Taking Him Home

AnnieFace

Hello Everyone!
I have been a lurker until now. I was hoping you all could help me out with something. Maybe Birds knows the answer to this. I have been studying in Bangalore and will continue to do so until May. Recently I adopted a small orange tabby kitten then I found wandering the streets, hungry and infested with small creatures. Being a student here for a short amount of time, I would not normally bring in an animal. It just so happened that my cat at home with my parents passed away the day before I found this kitten. This was also the first kitten that I had even seen in India (I had see cats of course). To make a long story short I took this little guy home because the neighbors where I was, wanted nothing to do with him. Vet says hes about 7 weeks old and his name is now Raja.

My question is this; I would like to bring him home in December when I travel home for winter break. I know this is a LONG flight for a little kitty, but I feel this would be a better option than leaving him behind in a country where dogs and cats are not looked highly upon. I will be flying Jet Airways from bangalore - Mumbai- Brussels and then New York.
Does anyone know how I should go about doing this. I have read the forums and seen information on bringing a pet to India but not vise versa. This is the info I found on Jetairways.com
"Pet in Hold: Pet animals can be carried on Jet Airways flights as passenger baggage or shipped cargo. Pets such as Dogs, cats , household birds, rabbits, canaries are allowed only in the aircraft holds. Live animals should be carried in escape proof containers of proper size with ample ventilation. The container must be strong i.e. not made of chewable material. One passenger can check in maximum of 03 containers.
Charges : Excess baggage is charged for the live animal including the weight of the container irrespective of the free baggage allowance of the passenger

Note :

* On Domestic flights live animals are not carried in ATR flights
* On International flights for UK pets are not permitted as baggage and must be sent as cargo.
Health and vaccination certificates must be in order."

Hope someone can help!

wonderwomanusa

I've flown with cats within the US; they have to have a health certificate from a vet and rabies vaccinations. You might call the airline and get some info from them.

Orange kitties are so great ...

__________________
The map is not the territory. --Alfred Korzybski

iwanttogoback

does america have a federal quarantine service? if so it would probably be worth checking their website for whether or not your cat might have to serve a quarantine period.

the nicest cat i ever had was a big old ginger tom cat we got from the cat home.

wonderwomanusa

I don't believe we have a quarantie here, IWTGB.

vireya

It is always a good idea to check information from reliable sources, rather than relying on comments on an internet forum.

Here's some info from the Centres for Disease Control, which seems to imply you are going to need more information from your particular airline and state:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dq/animal/dogs.htm

"Importation of cats

"A general certificate of health is not required by CDC for entry of pet cats into the United States, although some airlines or states may require them. However, pet cats are subject to inspection at ports of entry and may be denied entry into the United States if they have evidence of an infectious disease that can be transmitted to humans. If a cat appears to be ill, further examination by a licensed veterinarian at the owner's expense might be required at the port of entry.

"Cats are not required to have proof of rabies vaccination for importation into the United States. However, some states require vaccination of cats for rabies, so it is a good idea to check with state and local health authorities at your final destination.

"All pet cats arriving in the state of Hawaii and the territory of Guam, even from the U.S. mainland, are subject to locally imposed quarantine requirements."

edwardseco

Hawaii does have that requirement..

theyyamdancer

What a good deed you are thinking of doing, AnnieFace. I wish you all the best for your kitten. Having travelled in between Greece and France quite often with a cat, I'd advise that you purchase (from a vet) a tranquillizer tablet for the kitten, Raja, so that he will not be too traumatized by the trip. If he is not too heavy you may be allowed to carry him in a suitable container (cat carrier) on your lap. This is best for both of you, if it is allowed, but do check with the airline. Good luck!

Valini

my orange kitty who i brought back from India has gone missing..........

Ive written many messages on other threads all about il, my sweet Mowgli and the process i went through to bring him back to France. I know the rules for the US are different but make sure you prepare in plenty of time, blood tests and so on tka e time especially if you have to send them to another country for testing. (as i had to). Check the age limit too. I had to proove Mowgli's age, and the time after his injections of rabies (its supposed to be 3 months).
anyway if i can help at all just pm me!

birds

Hi AnnieFace,

Great you are taking care of this little lucky kitten .

I am sorry for the late reply but I was traveling the past three weeks.

Unless you go to the UK and Australia (thanks Vireya for pointing this out!), taking an animal out of India is easier than taking it into India. To take it out you need to follow all the rules and regulations which are different per country but as long as you follow these exactly there are no problems. You will have to contact you embassy to ask what the rules are. Make sure you leave plenty of time to prepare.

The smaller the animal is the easier. Most airlines will allow you to carry animals below 5 kilo in a carrier as hand luggage with you in the cabin. This means that the whole experience is less stressful as your kitten can hear your voice and you can give it food and water. So phone JetAirways and ask whether they allow this.

Should you run into trouble you can contact Stichting Aai (www.stichtingaai.nl)for advice as they have lots of experiences bringing animals from one country to another.

birds

Has he gone missing in France or on the way between France and India?

I really hope you find him soon.

vireya

Add Australia to that list. The only way you can bring an animal from India to Australia is if you can find some other country, such as Singapore, willing to take it for 3 or 6 months quarantine (sorry, don't remember the exact amount), then it can come to Australia for another 3 months in quarantine here.

I know this info isn't relevant to the OP in this thread, but I didn't want any Aussies to get carried away and think they could bring an animal home with them.

birds

Good point! Thanks! If anybody know of any other countries following similar rules please let us know.

Valini

Thanks for your concern Birds...

He went missing here in France! It's incredible really, after surviving a 6 floor fall in india and all of the hassle getting his pet passport and blood sample results ands o on, he came to Bordeaux and loved it. everything was wonderful, he spent his days either on the sofa, on the wicekr chair in the garden, playing in the vines, and having fun then suddenly one day he vanished!!!!
There have been posters all over the place (it's rural) at the vets, the boulangerie and so on, even in the local newsletter but no luck.
It's so upsetting, to lose any animal but after all of the effort I went to to bring him back and offer him a realxed lifestyle it's even more upsetting!

I'm still hoping though.... I have to be positive.

theyyamdancer

Valini, how long has he been missing? He may still show up. Don't lose hope, because cats can survive on their own for a long time. Especially since you are in the wilds of the French countryside, Mowgli (cool name) will be able to go hunting. Maybe it is all too exciting and he has just gone walkabout in the forest.

AnnieFace

Hi Everyone!
Thank you all for your response to my post.
I think I have figured most things out for bringing little raja home.
Jetairways has a mandatory rule that pets must be kept in cargo. They have a separate section for animals that is regulated. If I provide food/water then staff will make sure he is fed. *fingers crossed*.
I dont need proof of any vaccinations just a health certificate from the vet saying that he is fit to fly.
Hopefully everything will go well!