You care about your pet and want to take him/her with you on your flight – what’s the best way to assure a safe and comfortable flight for your pet? Ensure that you have a safe, airline-approved pet carrier for the flight; otherwise, you may not even proceed past the ticket counter.

To ensure that you have an airline-approved per carrier, call the airline and ask what their requirements are for airline-approved pet carriers. Don’t rely on policies and guidelines from earlier travels because policies and regulations change. Contact the airline and ensure that you pet carrier meet the most current guidelines and requirements. After determining the correct specifications, you should purchase an appropriate carrier that meets both the needs of your pet and the airline specifications. What are some of the needs of your pet that you should consider when choosing a carrier?

Choose a carrier that is the right size and that can accommodate your pet. While smaller animals may be allowed to travel with you in their carrier as carry-on luggage, larger animals must travel in a separate compartment. You must ensure that your pet has enough space to lie down and enjoy some limited movement. To ensure your pet’s comfort, you should also give him/her a short period of time to adjust to the carrier prior to the flight.

Take some time before the trip to familiarize your pet to the airline-approved pet carrier. You may place your pet inside of the carrier, and then take him/her on a short ride in a car to help make him/her more comfortable with riding inside of the carrier. In the event that you have purchased a carrier that is not airline approved, you may purchase an appropriate carrier from the airport, but you will not have the same opportunity to introduce your pet to the carrier and assure that the carrier is adapted to your pet.

Also, provide pet identification in case the carrier is somehow misplaced or the pet escapes. Place a collar on your pet that has current information. You may or may not include an identification chip. Make some arrangements for locating your pet in case of any mishaps or misplacement.

One of your main priorities is ensuring that you have an airline-approved pet carrier. Without airline approval, you cannot even begin the flight. You should also ensure that your pet is comfortable inside of the carrier. Your pet will spend some amount of time in the carrier, so you should ensure that the pet is comfortable.