Seymour's on a Pre-Travel Schedule - UPDATED

We are actually cutting it close now with getting Seymour ready for our trip. We are leaving in about 7 weeks. He got his new microchip last Friday. Today he had to get another Rabies vaccination - even though his last one hasn't expired yet. One of these days, I hope countries will all agree that Rabies vaccines should only be given once every 3 years - at the most. I just read that most vaccine companies say that the vaccine actually lasts seven years. I believe that the less drugs in the system, the better.

We already scheduled his next visit which has to occur in 30 days. That is when he gets his blood test to show that his "rabies neutralizing antibody titre is greater than 0.5 IU/ ml". (We don't have to understand it, we just have to do it)

Then it takes about 2 weeks after the blood test to get the results.

We will then have to go back to the vet to get the Health Certificate signed. The airline health certificate must be signed within 10 days of travel.

One thing I want to mention again is that the dates on all of the pet health forms must be written in the European style of DD-MM-YYYY. The best way to do it would be to write "12 July 2011" to make it clear. I had to rip up 3 forms because I kept forgetting to write the date that way!

Lastly, I will take EU form 998, which will be signed by our Vet, IN BLUE INK (yep, has to be blue), to the USDA, with a check for $36.00, so that they can certify that our vet is an accredited veterinarian! I just left a message with the local USDA office to be sure I can just make an appointment to take in the form and have it certified instead of having to mail it. I don't want that form to leave my hands if possible.
UPDATE: I heard back from the USDA and I don't need an appointment to go there because I can only drop off the form with a stamped self-addressed envelope and they say the turn-around time will be 24 to 48 hours. I feel my heart racing already. We can't cut it much closer to our departure date - and mail delivery to my house is always late. We'll see!!!

And here I am, getting on a plane not needing any certification that I am healthy (mentally or physically) or have current immunizations. Interesting -

But, we are doing everything they tell us to do to get Seymour to Italy.

Flight Reservations Have Been Confirmed - I Think

Today I had to pay for my flight reservations so I called AirFrance - one more time - to be sure that Seymour was confirmed on all legs of the trip. They said he was, but I didn't get the name of the person I talked with. I'm going to trust this time. I hope these aren't "famous last words".

When I got online to pay for my flight and put in all of my credit card information, I got back a response saying that their Reservation service wasn't working at this time. Great! I signed out and back in and it said that my reservations were confirmed but I haven't received a receipt yet. Do I believe that I am confirmed or do I call and check -one more time? I have three more hours that my reservations could be on hold so I will wait another hour to see if I get a receipt. If not, I'll call. I should know that 1-800 number by heart by now.

This week, I will make Seymour his first appointment with the vet. We will probably need to go 2-3 times. First, for the new microchip, then for any immunizations he needs and then he might need to go back to get the health certificate signed before I hand deliver it to the Area Veterinarian in Charge with the USDA to be endorsed approximately a week or so before we leave. The health certificates/Pet Passport are good for up to 4 months for travel in Italy, so we should be covered for getting back to the USA.

Some airlines require a separate health certificate signed by the veterinarian within 10 days of travel but I did not see that requirement on the AirFrance website. We might get it done - just in case.

My biggest worry is that we will get to the airport and Seymour won't have all of his paperwork in order - but then I am an excellent, practiced worrier.

The "Trying Times" Have Started

I called the AirFrance/Delta customer service line today to see if they had approved allowing Seymour onboard and found that no one had put in a request. Lesson 1 - get the name of the person you talk with and get specifics on how AirFrance will be notifying you about accepting the pet.

I found that although AirFrance and Delta work together, they have 2 different computer systems. They were able to get the AirFrance approval while I was on the line but could not get the Delta approval (which I was told had already been done last Monday) because the connecting flight was "not a valid connection". AirFrance stated that when you have a pet traveling in cargo, you need at least 2 hours between flights. Since Seymour is traveling with me, we don't need that much time, but the Delta system would not allow them to put Seymour on the flight.

After over an hour of being transferred from one person to another, one airline to another, Quincy from Delta said "Not to worry, he is confirmed on all of the flights - but I can't give you anything in writing". For some reason, I'm still worrying. Especially since I am purchasing non-refundable tickets to save money. I don't pay for Seymour until I get to the airport to take off. I know I have to show that I have all of his paperwork and microchip information up to date before he can get on the flight, but I am still questioning if Delta and AirFrance have actually figured this connection stuff out. It doesn't seem that I would be the first person to fly with a pet having connections between Delta and AirFrance, but it sure feels like it. I will probably call back on Monday (the last day I have to pay for my tickets) to be sure he really is confirmed.

So on Monday, I will cross my fingers and pay for my airline tickets and then get Seymour set up for his health exam. I also need to start working on getting Seymour used to being zipped in his crate for 8-9 hours at a time. Hopefully our first hurdle has been jumped!

Italy Plane Reservations Made - Almost

OK, now this is feeling more real. As I have been doing for the last month, I went to the AirFrance website to put in different dates and check fares. Last week, the fares for the date range I had been looking at increased $200! I was about to kick myself (not easy for an older woman to do that, I must say) when I checked another website for the best days to purchase airline tickets. They said Friday was the worst day and midweek was the best. Just for the heck of it, I checked airfare today and found the price went back down to the original fare so I booked it - sort of.

As I mentioned previously, you have to book your flight before you can call to book your pet. You can delay payment for a flight for up to 24 hours but unfortunately AirFrance has up to 72 hours to let you know if there is room for your pet on board. So, luckily they have another option where you can pay $20 to hold your reservation for 1 week. I paid the $20 to hold my reservation and am now waiting to hear from AirFrance. Delta has already stated that there is room for Seymour on their flights that I will be taking to and from Atlanta. They agreed with a previous Delta person I talked with, that I can bring another carry-on so I should be able to travel without checking luggage. That will make our travel so much easier and quicker.

Now it's a waiting game. Once I receive an answer from AirFrance I will make my reservations at the Language school in the Tuscany area.

I'm getting nervous and excited! Seymour is sleeping.

More Pet Travel Updates - Updated

I have to admit that I've been slacking off a bit in my planning for our trip to Italy. I have finally printed the right forms that need to be completed related to Seymour's health status. I called my vet and found out that he is an accredited vet through the USDA. That is very important - make sure the vet you go to is accredited - not all are since accredited is different than licensed. When I called my vet, they told me that when I make an appointment, I need to let them know to which country we will be traveling because they do their own research on what tests, etc. need to be completed. They won't rely on the information I have. I like that.

I'm still concerned about the microchip. One piece of information I read said that the pet MUST have a 15 digit non-encrypted microchip operating at 134.2 kHz. Seymour has a 10 digit microchip. But I also saw that if they don't have the 15 digit microchip, you must bring your own scanner. I hope the latter is true because it will be easier than thinking about putting 2 microchips in him. Other information (besides the microchip stuff) related to bringing a dog to Italy includes:
1. Dates must be written in the DD-MM-YYYY format on all forms.
2. Dogs over 3 months must have had their rabies vaccination more than 21 days prior to departure.
3. Inoculation record must include name of vaccine, manufacturer of vaccine, batch number, date administered and expiration date of the vaccine. (I sure hope we have all of that information somewhere because I did change vets)
4. Only the rabies vaccination is mandatory but the follow are recommended: Distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, parovirus and parainfluenza. My vet was telling me about the parainfluenza vaccination but I opted not to get it; I might have to change my mind.

After the vet fills out the EU form 998 within 14-21 days of the date of departure, then I have to take the form to the area UDDA/APHIS/VS office with a check for $36
to get the form certified.

I also found a farmstay website where you can stay on a farm in Italy www.italyfarmstay.com I emailed them to see if Seymour could stay and they promptly wrote back and said "yes, but he would need to stay outside." That won't work for me since Seymour is not an outside dog, so I'm glad I asked.

UPDATED: I just received an email from Antonio at farmstay and they said that since Seymour is so small that if I rented a private room, it would have an outside door so Seymour could stay in the room. BUT he shouldn't sleep on the bed. I appreciated their flexibility with this and said I would get back with them when I made a decision.


Wow, getting Seymour ready for this trip is much more work than getting me ready! I am gathering clothes and necessities to bring with me. I am purchasing some quick-dry clothes so that I can wash things and have them dry overnight since I am planning on bringing very few items. I'm sure that by the end of 3 months, I'll be sick of the clothes I brought. I have heard that people have left the clothes they don't want where ever they were traveling but others have said that it isn't proper. I'll just make that decision when I'm there. I'm also planning on bringing some inexpensive bracelets to give as gifts to people we stayed with. They will take up little space in my backpack and I hope will be a nice gesture. Of course,I know that money is always accepted as a thank you.

Next step - getting those plane reservations made. I found the cheapest dates to travel but I will need to call AirFrance to be sure there is room for Seymour on those flights. Once I have those reservations made, this trip will be more "real" to me.

UPDATE: In one day, the cost of the flight increased about $200. Now I'm going to wait until next Wed or Thurs to see if the price goes down. I read that the worst time to buy an airline ticket was Friday or Saturday, but I have a feeling it is probably going to be the same price (and hopefully not higher) next week. Another lesson learned!

Still Planning for Italy with Seymour

My current planning steps include getting everything I need lined up for Seymour's Pet Passport and getting the travel gear Seymour will need. What I've done so far related to his Pet Passport:
1. I downloaded the paperwork I need to take to my vet from the USDA website: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_welfare/pet_travel/pet_travel.shtml

Part of the paperwork is in Italian so I think I have to get it translated but I haven't gotten that far in the process yet.

2. I updated Seymour's chip information because I hadn't done that since I moved and I wanted to add an emergency number.
I now have to contact the Animal Shelter that put in the chip to see what type of scanner they used. If they don't have an international one, I have read that I have to bring my own. I have to say, that doesn't make sense because if he does get lost in Italy, he won't have the scanner attached to him. Again, I need to do more research on this.

Then I started looking for Seymour's Travel gear. I think I'll be able to start my own Pet Travel Store with all of the stuff I'm getting and probably won't use. Hopefully, I'll save others from making the same mistakes.

My first concern was finding a carrier that is airline approved and is the right size. I went to Pet's Mart and also checked on Amazon.com and eBay. After reading great reviews about a rolling pet carrier, I purchased one similar to the attached picture

The chihuahua in the carrier looks a bit like Seymour, but Seymour wasn't as happy as that dog when he tried it. He was willing to go into the carrier and have me roll him around, but he was bracing himself because the carrier was at a 45 degree angle when rolled. I then unzipped it and left it on the living room floor to get him used to it - and he wanted nothing to do with it. Although it was for pets up to 15 pounds, he looked gigantic in it. It was also not very comfortable because when it's laying down, the metal handle is folded under it.

I then checked on the carriers that the different airlines sold and decided to get one similar. It's a Sherpa carrier, size medium with 3 mesh sides and a back pocket. It is a little bigger than the rolling carrier.

Seymour seemed to like this carrier a little better because he would go in by himself but wouldn't stay in long. It has a nice Sherpa pad but when I pushed on the bottom of the carrier, there was a very hard floor under it and the pad is very thin. I couldn't see Seymour being comfortable in it for 8 plus hours. I took out the floor and put him back in the carrier, zipped it up and carried him around. His body weight made the bottom droop a little, but overall, he seemed satisfied with it. I plan to make another Sherpa-type pad that is a little more cushy for him and will zip him in it when we are in the car so he gets used to being confined. This is the carrier I plan to use - I just hope I don't have to put that hard floor back in it. The other thing I do like about it is that I can make the strap long enough to be able to carry it across my chest - so it's hands-free.

Next I checked on carriers I can use when I take him in stores. etc. but it needed to be very fold able since I am only carrying one small carry on suitcase with me. I found a Outward Hound Sling that said it was for pets up to 15 pounds. I purchased it and tried it out while we walked around an outdoor festival last weekend. He was pretty comfortable and I did like that there was a strap inside that I can connect to his collar and a Velcro strap that goes across the opening. He felt pretty secure in it.

But, the bad news is that it is bigger than I expected - it really is for pets up to 20 pounds so Seymour swims in it. It is sturdy and folds up but is a little bigger than I wanted. Luckily it was only $19.99 because I decided I needed a different one. This trip is getting expensive and I haven't even purchased our airline tickets yet!

I found a smaller Outward Hound sling. It fits in a small pouch - included - and is for pets up to about 7 pounds, which is close to Seymour's weight. It hasn't come yet, so I haven't been able to test it. I really hope that this one works because it would take up minimal space in my suitcase. The only thing that makes me a bit nervous is that they show the carrier with a stuffed animal in it!



If it doesn't work, we will go back to the larger one.

The other thing they mention in the pet travel site regulations is that dogs are supposed to have muzzles, in case they need them. Now, I tried a muzzle on Seymour and he hated it. He is so little, I am hoping no one will say anything because I just can't see putting his little snout in one!

As to other things I will bring for Seymour, he will have a couple of sweaters, a couple tee shirts, a raincoat and a harness. He is just about packed and ready to go!