2Cats2_TO

Hi everyone,

We're moving from the UK to Toronto, where I'm originally from, and we are bringing our 2 cats along.

Well, we called several airlines and finally decided to change our moving date to 10th Octoer. We were originally going to move mid November, however, Air Canada are changing their policy on the 12th and will no longer allow pets in-cabin. As Air Canada are the only airline with direct flights to Toronto from Heathrow we went ahead with it.

Yesterday I spoke to a woman at Air Canada who insists that Air Canada's policy with pets is rather strict. A cat must be able to stand up fully in their carrier. I don't know ANY cats that stand at full height at 9". Jimi, our 5 year old cat, is a small-ish cat at 10lbs. He's not very big. He sleeps in his Sherpa carrier all the time at home and seems quite comfortable in it.

Our other cat, Sebastien, is only 7 mos. old and won't pose a problem in this respect.

Anyway, the lady advised that we go to Heathrow airport within the next 48 hours and make sure our larger cat is approved for in-cabin travel. I'm supposed to call her to let her know when this has happened.

Has anyone flown with their pet on Air Canada? What about internationally? Can someone offer some advice or words of encouragement? Even if you haven't flown with Air Canada but HAVE with another airline internationally.

We're very nervous because everything is arranged for our big move and I will not allow Jimi to fly in baggage/cargo.

I'm really hoping for some help, here and will look forward to your replies.

P.S. We're going to the airport tomorrow to find out what they say about allowing our cats. 4 hour drive, two cats in tow...Wish us luck.

PXYca

I recall seeing a cat from Toronto to Halifax on Air Canada - It was an average sized cat I'd say @10-12 lbs in a normal cat carrier.

I seem to recall the passenger telling me they were strict with the dimensions of the carrier as well as the pet needed to be able to turn around comfortably.

Hope this helps - seems the check point at the airport will be very helpful for you - I hope it all went well.

Kate_W

My husband just flew with our cat in-cabin from Toronto to Paris. The agents were quite fussy on the phone with us (in particular, the UK agents we had to deal with from France were a total hassle up-front; the Canadian agents were easier to deal with). Both talked about the "stand-up" rule and the 5kilos or less with carrier rule.

Once my husband got to the airport though, nobody fussed about anything. Certainly, no one checked to see whether the cat could stand up in her carrier. She can't, and, in any case, she was hunched down (probably because she was scared) and woe to anyone who would have reached into the carrier to make her stand up. We used a carrier made by Sherpa.

In France, no one wanted to see any of the papers my husband had spent so much time to get regarding the cat's status.

Don't worry about it.

By the way, two other options might be available if Air Canada is too much of a hassle or you want to change your moving date back to November: a) fly from Paris on Air France; or b) fly Virgin to New York and then find a pet-friendly airline to take you up to Toronto. It might require some extra paperwork (because of the extra country you're flying through), but it's another option. And I believe Virgin offers a "pet passport".

Good luck in Toronto! In which neighbourhood will you be living? Do you need a recommendation for a vet, or for anything else?

MerryTravel

When we moved to Hawaii, and again back to the Mainland, with our cat, we found that it didn't matter what we were told on the phone or what the United web site said, it came down to what the employee checking us in believed. Be as thorough as possible in your preparation, and if you do go to the airport and get an employee to say that the carrier and cat are approved for travel, try to get it in writing. Good luck!

elaine

see this duplicate thread for many more responses

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34687335