Flight Crates

Flight crates are good items to purchase prior to flying with your pet. The only pets that have died on the trip have been those with pre-existing conditions. For optimal pet health outcomes, ensure your pet is properly hydrated prior to a take-off. Don’t feed right before the flight, but be sure to feed several hours prior. This is the best balance for mitigating nausea. Line the flight crate with newspaper scraps. Flight crates should be lined with non-toxic materials because pets scratch at them and it can unleash carcinogens that can be deadly. Metal crates are good conductors of heat so they can burn up, and your pet will overheat.

You can’t stash your pet in any old flight crate because the airlines must approve legitimate, air-worthy flight crates. The airport needs to know, and approve of, your flight crate. Proper ventilation is key. At least two sides should be fully ventilated. Most flight crates have heavy-duty plastic with four sides of ventilated mesh or air holes. The flight crate should also have sufficient feeders or water bowls. There are slight variations on crates for dogs, cats, and hamsters. Different sizes, amenities, ventilation schemes, and composite materials are used. Don’t get crates indiscriminately. Wooden crates, for example, are disqualified. There are over 500,000 animals that go by air every year; 99% arrive safely, but federal regulations is squelching out the 1% that does not with tough, strict, safe regulations.

Pet specialiasts recommend that the flight crate permit the pet’s movement, sleep, and sitting and standing positions. Your pet might need to stretch, and discomfort could ensue without this measure being addressed. Your pet might need extra rest, more treats, and plenty of protein after a long flight. Let him alone for a few days with a cat or dog bed. Pets shouldn’t be puppies or kittens that are too young if they’re being transported by air because this could be dangerous to their development and cause excess fatigue. Limit tranquilizer and sedative dosages because pets are often too sensitive to take them for extended periods of time. Flight crates are sometimes called sky kennels.