Suggestions for flying your pet out of India

There seems to be a lot of confusion over what is required to fly a pet out of India. I adopted a stray from Bangalore and just flew with her to the US. I'm providing the details in the hopes that it will clarify the process for others and encourage people to adopt strays.

I found this dog on the street over the summer. She had a terrible skin infection, so I took her to an animal shelter for treatment. After her skin cleared up (mostly), I started looking into the process of taking a dog outside of India. There are a few threads on India Mike that list a more complicated process than what I went through. If anything on those lists in not mentioned in my post, it's because I was not asked to follow those steps. If you are going to leave India with a pet, my advice is to not use my list or anyone else's as your personal checklist, but rather contact the airport you will be flying out of, all airlines you will be flying with, and look up the regulations for entry into your country.

Requirements:

I called the Bangalore International Airport asking regulations, and they said they had none, that I should contact the airlines directly. I contacted Jet Airways and Lufthansa, and both said I only need a health certificate from any government vet. This seems to be the point that has most of us confused. Some people have said that there is one special vet, such as a quarantine officer, who needs to approve the certificate. I was told by an expat in B'lore that I needed a particular form and a stamp costing 3000 rupees from a particular vet. Lufthansa assured me that this was not the case. I got an international certificate from the Veterinary Hospital for 500 rupees, and all airport officials were satisfied with that. Find out what your country needs to see on the certificate. On the US side, it's important that it's issued within 10 days of the flight, that it shows proof of vaccination against rabies and inspection for screwworm. The rabies vaccination should be given at least 30 days before the flight. I got this information from the US Center for Disease Control. Before getting the certificate, you should ask the airline what information they require on the certificate and make sure the vet includes that as well. Lufthansa wanted it written that the dog was not pregnant. At check-in, they asked to see her vaccination card. On arrival in the US, I was asked to go through customs for agriculture and show the health certificate.

Lufthansa also asked me to get a microchip for my dog, which I did at the Vet Hospital for 1000 rupees.

Booking:

Before buying my ticket, I called Lufthansa to make sure that I could book my dog on the flight I wanted. If you are using a non-Indian airline, I advise you to call an office outside India. As much as I love India, employees seem to be unhelpful and poorly informed. I called Lufthansa in India hoping to book my dog and myself on a same day flight. The employee told me some crazy story about how I had to wait 4 days to book because I had to mail them some letter about my dog, but because of the holiday weekend it would take several days for them to receive it, blablabla, so I hung up and called Lufthansa in New York. Within 3 minutes, my dog was booked on the same day flight. I then booked my flight on Expedia.

Cost:

I had to pay $250 for my dog at the oversize baggage counter. I was told that this would take my dog from Bangalore to Frankfurt, Frankfurt to Newark, and Newark to Raleigh. The first two flights were carried by Lufthansa. The domestic flight was listed as Lufthansa operated by Continental Airlines. Even though I had a receipt stating that the $250 should take the dog all the way to Raleigh, Continental said this was not so because it was a different airline. They charged me another $217 for Newark to Raleigh. I kind of expected this to happen since it was a different airline after all. I believe the Lufthansa employee in India who gave me the receipt was uninformed when he said that I wouldn't have to pay Continental. Try to get a flight that is operated by only one carrier. That way you will only have to pay once.

In the end, it wasn't as complicated as I thought. If you stick with the same carrier, it should only cost you around $250, plus the cost of the health certificate. Make sure you have the right crate too. Check the airline's website for that.

If there are any questions, please ask!

I should have mentioned that the Veterinary Hospital I went to is part of the Veterinary College in Bangalore. That's what makes it a government vet, as opposed to a private practice. The header of the certificate reads "Karnataka Veterinary, Animal and Fisheries Sciences University". It was stamped by an Associate Professor in the Department of Veterinary Medicine.

Hi Trinley,

I am surprised that no one has replied to this very informative summary to the question of 'how to transport a pet from India to the US' that keeps getting asked every now and then, but I'd like to thank you for posting this. It would be really nice if you could include an email address (maybe one created specially for this) or something where someone with a lot of questions could contact you. I plan to transport my pet from Bangalore to San Francisco in December and will very likely contact you about it.

Hi zdrenalin ,

Did you take your pet to San Fransisco? how was your experience?

Yep great post, that will be of great help to others.

Was there anything on the US side to know about? Anything with customs, quarantines, anything like that?

So when you "book" a flight for your pet, you simply have to call and inform the airline the pet is flying on a particular date? I'd also like to use a site like Expedia to book our flights (where I can find the exact same flights for around 30% cheaper than directly with the airline), but I've also heard you need to "clear" your pet's travel with the specific airline before buying your tickets. Is there a particular way/need to link the two?

That kind of sucks, as unfortunately we don't have that option! It seems kind of extreme to have to pay twice, especially when the rest of your (excess or otherwise) baggage is only checked through once. Hopefully not all airlines have this policy!

Hi, Thanks a tonne for all the information. I am presently in US and my dog is in India,with my parents.They are visiting me shortly,and they are getting my dog along with them. I understand that pet cannot be taken in the cabin.

Pls. tell me ,if it is safe for the pet to travel in the Cargo ..pressure,temp,noise etc.Was your pet scared when you got him /her out.Also, during the Visa interview,do you have to inform that you are travelling with a pet?

It is relatively safe for a pet to fly by cargo. Of course there are always some risks but this is with any mode of transport you take. Make sure you go with a reputable airline which has experience with animal travel (KLM and Lufthansa are both considered very good). In any case, talk to the cargo manager before you fly to discuss the case with him.

Sure the dog will be a bit scared because all is new and they do not understand what is happening. However, after a little while most dogs while just lay down and fall as sleep until arrival. I would never take a dog on a flight if it is just for a holiday or short period of time but if it is to move permanently, I think it is a small price to pay for your dog to be with the person he loves.

Make sure is cage is comfortable, the cage should be big enough that he can stand and turn around. Put a piece of clothing in the cage that you wore the day before so your smell is close to him. He should have access to water but not too much because he will just sit there with a full bladder (so walk him just before you put him in the cage). Make sure the dog and the cage are labelled with your contact details in the US and India

Lastly, DO NOT SEDATE your dog. I know some vets recommend this but that is wrong. Occasionally dogs get motion sickness while on the flight and they may vomit. If they are (even partly) sedated their swallow and spitting reflexes may not work fully and they could choke on their own vomit and die. If they are not sedated they will just vomit and feel much better afterwards.

Good Luck!

Oh, yes, there is no need to mention during your visa interview that you are flying with your dog, it may just add to the complications.

I hope you are not planning to put your dog through all this just for a holiday or so!

Hi Birds,

Thank you so much for your prompt response.

I am based in NY,and couldn't bring my dog when I came ,due to stuff like accommodation,car ,new place etc.

But my parents are coming for a visit now,and can get my dog with them.And yeah,it is permanently.

And thank you for the bit on sedation-I was planning to do so..but your advise seems well informed,and makes a lot of sense...so I will make her fly without the same.She is a big GSd-I am sure she will manage for 15 hours.

I was planning to fly her Continental,direct 15 hours flight.Any advise on that??

Rgds

Prism

Hi Prism,
Not sure if your pet is now with you or not.
In any case, I used Lufthansa to transport my GR 2 days ago and was super happy with their services.
Lufthansa has high ratings as far as pet transport is concerned.
Cheers,
Madhu

Where were you shipping your pet to/from? How much (approx.) did it cost? I've heard good things about shipping pets with Lufthansa also, and I was wondering what they charged.

Thanks!

We shipped her from Delhi to Los Angeles.
They charged us by weight (dog + crate).
It was about $8 per kilo. Cost us $400.

Thanks for the info!