The PetSafe program is a dedicated system set up for animals. They are shipped counter to counter with or without their owners flying on the same flight. They have vans that take the animals to the plane after the passengers and luggage are already loaded and they have a separate pressurized room just for them, so they are not in with the regular baggage. At the other end there is another van that takes them from the plane directly to the cargo counter. They don't sit on the tarmac or in the plane while it is on the ground. The only thing that changed is that rule about third party's arranging cargo and if you check you will find that is also a requirement for coming INTO the US. it has raised costs for those coming to the US with their pets and for those importing personal dogs from other countries. That is not something that the airlines have control over unfortunately.

One side of this issue which seems to get ignored - what about the safety & rights of passengers who are deathly allergic to our companion animals? We have 2 dogs and 2 house rabbits. However, my husband is deathly allergic to cats - more than an hr in the same space as a cat means a trip to the ER, oxygen, high doses of steroids for weeks afterwards -- things that a simple benedryl pill or epi-pen would do little to prevent. When he has to travel for work, airlines are less than hospitable. No matter when he makes his reservation, he still has to call the airline 24 hrs in advance of his flight and IF there is a pet scheduled to travel on his flight, HE has to make other arrangements, and again, calling 24 hrs before that new flight to see if there is a potential deathly problem. The airline cannot tell him if the traveling pet is a dog, cat or hamster. He has to show up even earlier for his flight and watch all the passengers boarding his flight to verify that somebody with a cat isn't boarding his flight in case the customer service person he spoke with earlier didn't look on the right screen for pet reservations With some airlines, they don't note in their computer systems what type of pet will be traveling in-cabin, so he has to subtly watch for all pet carriers.

There HAS to be a middle ground - a safe way for our companion pets to travel with us without breaking our bank accounts AND a way for humans with allergies like my husband's to be able to travel, knowing that they will be able to return home without waiting days for a "safe" flight. Perhaps allowing those traveling with any type of pet to travel in a special "human cargo" area, with its own air system would help. Or reserving some flights as human-only so that those with allergies can travel without this huge hassle.

This is a topic that is right up there on the top of my priorities right now as I am a snow bird and my dog accompanies me between Chicago, IL and Scottsdale, AZ every spring and fall. For the past 2 years I have been fortunate enough to be able to fly my dogs on Pet Airways. While it was considerably more expensive and less convenient (off site facilities,) I was happy to know that they were being closely attended to. Unfortunately Pet Airways cancelled my flight 3 times in November so I had to fly my dog as luggage on United.

His trip went fine but, as I have tried to research this topic many times over the years, all I can find is that the treatment and care of one's animal (aside from temperature regulations and document requirements) is almost entirely dependent on who happens to be working at that particular time. What a frightening thing to know.

I am happy to hear of United's new policy change in that your description seems to indicate that it will implement more of a protocol with the result of giving the animals more consistent and dependable care and attention while they are in the charge of the airline staff. I have no problem whatsoever with paying a bit more for that improvement in care.

I flew my whippet, Olivia, from Washington, DC to Los Angeles last October (and back again) with Alaska Airlines. I was on the flight and Olivia was placed in a special cargo area that was temperture controlled and quiet.

I can't say enough about how well Alaska Airlines handled Olivia's transport and how well organized they are regarding pet travel. They had a separate check-in area, which also made my check-in a breeze. It was also a lot less expensive to fly her than I thought. Alaska Airlines has it going on regarding pet travel.

There is an airline that specifically transports pets - pet airways. A much safer way and less expensive to fly your pet.

http://blog.petrelocation.com/blog/pet-friendly-airports/behind-the-scen...

This is helpful.

I flew United last year under the old baggage policy, Toronto - Buenos Aires return. Luca flew as checked baggage for the usual fee of $275 each way. I dropped him off at the passenger terminal along with my luggage and picked him up at the Ezeiza airport in the baggage area as usual (this was his 3rd trip, 2 previously on Air Canada). No

Petsafe is HORRIBLE. First of all, just try phoning them. The do not answer and after about an hour you are cut off. Secondly they do not communicate with United so that twice I had reservations for Luca which turned out to be non-existent. I had to rebook my own flight twice and ended up with a return fare of $1800 instead of the rate of $905 that I wanted (all inclusive). Then the horror of dealing with cargo. At Pearson in Toronto I had to appear at the cargo terminal, many km away from the passenger terminal, at 6:30 a.m. for my 11 a.m. flight. I had to go to Swissport, not United. This is in an area full of large trucks and forklifts buzzing around the parking lot. I was charged $514 ONE WAY. At our second stop, in Houston, I asked the people in the baggage office if they could confirm that Luca had arrived. They treated me like dirt. They finally gave me a phone number for Cargo but it was out of service. One lazy woman, busy showing off pictures on her phone to her colleagues, told me that Cargo is a different department so she had no idea where to find the number, then berated me for letting my dog travel without having that number. Imagine the gall! This was witnessed by others in the baggage area who reassured me that this woman's behaviour was outrageous. Luckly I ran into the woman who had sat on the flight next to me. She calmed me down and stayed with me for about an hour until she found the phone number and was able to confirm that Luca was there. I was charged $103 for his overnight stay -- which I don't understand, because I had my other dog with me (Titan is smaller and travelled on board) and had arranged for a hotel near the airport where he was welcomed with open arms and he had no problem entering Argentina after being in Houston. No problem

Later I paid fees at Ezeiza, in three different locations, totalling another $500 with no explanation (United said it was for "local handling" and the cargo people said the same for their take). I had to run around to three different places, with my luggage in tow, and if it weren't for the fact that I speak Spanish well I would never have found him. It was unusually hot that day. I'm a senior with a heart condition, diabetes, difficulty walking at the best of times, and other issues. I could have died doing this -- with NO HELP WHATSOEVER from Petsafe. With my suitcase, my other dog, and my carryon luggage I was not allowed to enter the cargo area to get Luca. I went to a second United office where the Argentinian personnel were kind enough to let me drop off my bags, including Titan, who barked the whole time (2 hours) that I went around trying to locate Luca, each time paying more for the experience. When I finally found him he was in his kennel barking and crying, clawing at the bars, with a hostile guard dog barking at him. After more bureaucracy and running around to get a certificate in one place, pay in another, another certificate -- for which I paid the agent 500 pesos ($120) behind the office building where he works -- I was finally able to drag Luca's oversized kennel to the exit. But remember that my bags and my other dog were about a km away at the second United building. Taxis were not allowed to enter the area where I was. The security guards at the exit were kind enough to watch Luca while I staggered off to get Titan and my bags. I asked one of them to ask exiting truck drivers if they would be willing to take me downtown to my apartment with the dogs and luggage for the usual taxi fare and at last I arrived. My plane arrived at Ezeize at 9:30 a.m. and I got to my place at 3:30 p.m.

I believe that Petsafe is nothing but a scam that requires me to transport Luca all on my own with a third party carrier, and then charges extra for that!

Petsafe is a Rip-Off

Let me reinforce the post of Mr. Smyth from Toronto. My experience with PetSafe has been horrible. In January, 2011 we took our lab to Ecuador with then Continental's petsafe program from Washington DC through Houston to Quito. Our dog had to be checked in at the cargo area of Dulles airport at 6:00 am and she only arrived in Quito at mid-night: 12 hours in the cage. We paid extra for her to be taken out in Houston, walked and watered but we have no idea whether this was done. When she arrived in Quito the customs office was closed so she stayed in the cage and warehouse all night. The next morning we went with the freight forwarding agent whom Continental has recommended and spent all day running from desk to desk, paying bribe after bribe, to get the dog out. The total cost of the unofficial "fees" was $500 and the freight forwarder an extra couple hundred. This was in addition to the transport charges of $500.

In January, 2012, we took the same dog to Buenos Aires on United. For the BA flight United had not yet adopted the PetSafe program. We checked our dog in at Dulles airport main terminal, she was put on the plane, and arrived at the baggage carousel in Buenos Aires, and we walked her through the customs in 30 minutes with no problems or bribes. The total cost was $500 transport, no additional fees.

Now (September, 2012) we want to go back to Buenos Aires with the dog. United has now adopted the PetSafe program and requires that we use a third party freight forwarder. The estimate of the charges for PetSafe is well over $1,000 in Buenos Aires exclusive of the transport charge of $500.

The bottom line is that the PetSafe program is charging a lot of extra money to customers for no better - actually worse - service. The extra money doesn't even go to United but to the greedy hands of freight forwarders who know that the passenger has no real choice and is most concerned about the health and well being of the animal.