Answers to 16 questions about flying with your pet in the U.S.

Answers to 16 questions about flying with your pet in the U.S.

If you thought it was complicated to fly with your pet, you’re right. Just like traveling with family members, it can be stressful and confusing to coordinate your flights together. For our furry friends, getting in the air is not as simple as buying a ticket and showing up to the airport, even if you’re only traveling within the country. There can be certificates to obtain, medicine to be prescribed and fees to pay.

But it’s doable. Every year, more than 2 million live animals are transported by air, according to the Department of Transportation. Because cats and dogs are the most popular pets, they’re what we’ve researched.

To help you figure out a game plan for flying domestic with your companion, we got answers from pet professionals to the most common questions.

1How do I know if my cat or dog can fly?

Ultimately, the airline you’re flying will have final say. Your pet’s age, health, size and breed will all be taken into account when officials determine whether it can board a plane.

As far as age goes, the federal Animal Welfare Act from the Department of Agriculture states that dogs and cats must be at least 8 weeks old and weaned for at least five days, but airlines may have older age minimums. You’ll also have to provide a certification from a veterinarian that your pet is healthy enough to fly.

Then there’s breed. Snub-nosed, or short-nosed, dogs and cats, such as pugs or Persian cats, are more likely to die on planes in cargo than breeds with longer noses. Many airlines ban them from flying checked or in cargo. Owners of small snub-nosed breeds can arrange for their pet to join you in the cabin. Larger snub-nosed dogs, such as pit bull terriers or mastiffs, are too large for in-cabin flying.

2Can my dog or cat fly in the cabin with me?

Size plays a major role in your pet’s arrangements. If your pet is small enough to travel in a ventilated carrier that fits under an airplane seat (among other requirements that can vary from airline to airline), you can usually bring it onboard domestic flights for a fee. Note: If you bring a pet onboard, its carrier will count as your carry-on bag, so you’ll have to check other luggage.

Your other two options for pets big and small is to check them as you would luggage, or transport them as cargo. Heads up that some airlines have restrictions on crate sizes, which might mean that larger dogs won’t be allowed to fly.

3Do I need to let the airline know ahead of time?

Airlines may have a limit on how many pets can fly in the cabin, making it a first-come, first-serve situation. Register them with your airline early.

4How much is it going to cost?

The price varies depending on how your pet is being transported and which airline you choose. You can expect to pay roughly $75 to $125 each way for pets traveling inside the cabin and $200 for pets that are checked or in cargo. Prices can skyrocket to more than $1,900 for very large dogs, or for special circumstances.

5Does my pet need to go to the vet before we fly?

You’ll at least need to be in communication with your vet. No matter where you’re flying, you must check in with the vet ahead of your trip either in person or via email. Most airlines will require that you present a health certificate issued and signed by a licensed vet within 10 days (or shorter, depending on where you’re going) of your trip to prove your pet is healthy enough to travel, and won’t spread anything harmful upon landing. While electronic health certificates are acceptable, you should also print out copies of the required documents to have with you at the airport.

Make sure your pet is up-to-date on vaccinations, both general ones like rabies, but also specific ones for the place you’re visiting.

6What is considered an emotional-support animal? What type of paperwork do I need?

According to the Americans With Disabilities Act National Network, emotional support animals — a formal term, and sometimes called comfort animals — are not considered service animals, but rather therapy animals used as a part of a medical treatment plan.

“These support animals provide companionship, relieve loneliness, and sometimes help with depression, anxiety, and certain phobias, but do not have special training to perform tasks that assist people with disabilities,” the ADA website reads.

The federal laws that protect the use of service animals do not cover therapy animals; however, the Air Carrier Access Act does require airlines to allow both service animals and emotional support animals to fly with their owner in the cabin. Airlines usually require a passenger to submit a medical or mental-health professional form, a veterinary health form, and a confirmation of animal behavior form in advance of a flight to get the airline’s approval for an emotional support animal (usually dogs) to fly.

For anxious flyers, an emotional-support animal can be a godsend. However, pet owners have abused the category in the past to avoid paying standard fees or to keep pets nearby.

“It is a problem that we see, and I fly a lot,” says John Howe, president of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

7What kind of carrier do I need to use in the cabin?

Pets traveling in the cabin need to stay inside of a carrier. Carrier requirements may change from airline to airline, but dogs should be able to stand naturally and turn around inside of it without touching the sides or top.

8Can my cat or dog sit on my lap?

No. Pets are required to stay in their carrier throughout your domestic flight, stored under the seat in front of you.

9What type of crate should I use for a pet in cargo?

Check with the airline you’re flying to see its kennel requirements. By law, you must pad the crate with an absorbent material, such as shredded paper or a bath towel. The crate must be equipped with water dishes, something you’ll probably have to purchase, that can be attached to the crate door. However, you can’t stick anything else in there, such as a toy or a bone.

10Should I consider flight lengths when booking?

As you’re shopping for flights, take into account how long your pet will be in transit. For a shorter domestic jaunt, try to take a direct flight to limit your pet’s time on a plane. Pets should not be in the air longer than they have to be, and getting to the destination quickly has other advantages — it can be critical for pets traveling in cargo who have to arrive hours early to the airport.

11Does it matter what time of day my pet travels?

Yes, if your dog or cat is flying in cargo. You don’t want your pet freezing or overheating before or after the flight. If the weather forecast is too hot or too cold, an airline may cancel your pet’s travel arrangements.

“If it’s going to be warm weather, it’s probably better to get on an early-morning flight,” Howe says. “If it’s cold weather, maybe a midday flight, and always reconfirm the flight arrangements before you go to make sure there’s no unexpected changes.”

Once onboard, your pet should be in a climate-controlled environment.

“In many of the aircrafts, it’s the same air in the cabin that circulates through the cargo area,” says Sally Smith, a licensed veterinary technician, certified kennel operator and president of Airborne Animals, a pet-transportation and -moving company. “Captains are always made aware when there’s live animals onboard — how many and what kind and where they are in the aircraft — because they can control some of the air temperature and airflow in the bins, as they’re called, and in the cargo area.”

12How can I prepare my pet for travel stress?

If your pet will be flying in cargo, a critical step is to make sure the animal is crate-trained. Crates, kennels and carriers are more than a means for getting your pet on a plane; they’re a tool for keeping your pet calm when traveling. Remember, your pet will be going through the same emotional roller coaster as you are.

“Flying on planes is stressful for people and stressful for dogs or any animal,” says Derek Huntington, a former president of the International Pet and Animal Transportation Association and the managing director of Capital Pet Movers. “Crate training is vital, because that’s going to be the dog’s safe space during the travel time.”

13Should I tranquilize my pet before flying?

No. You might think that sedating your pet is a humane thing to do. It’s the opposite. Pet experts do not advise tranquilizing pets for travel, and airlines won’t accept them on flights, anyway.

A tranquilizer “depresses their heart and lung function. You don’t want that when they’re traveling,” Smith says. “The airlines actually will refuse anything that’s been tranquilized.”

Howe, the AVMA president, says that giving dogs or cats tranquilizers could lead to injury on a flight, particularly if your pet is flying as cargo.

“They need to be able to balance themselves,” he says. “If there is rough air or anything like that and [your pet is] tranquilized, they don’t have the best equilibrium, so they could theoretically get hurt.”

14Can I give my pet Benadryl?

Your vet is your best source for managing your pet’s anxiety through medication or supplements. No matter what you’ve read on Google, don’t give your dog or cat any drugs before consulting an expert.

“Sometimes that could be very detrimental,” Howe says. Travelers “should really talk to a veterinarian, because if you’re going to give [your pet] some over-the-counter medication, or even Benadryl, you need to know what else the dog is taking or what health problems the dog might have.”

Your veterinarian will be able to prescribe the most effective and safe medication for its anxiety needs, or recommend a more natural alternative, like pheromone products. Huntington recommends acclimating dogs to other stress-triggering elements of travel, such as exposing them to more people and loud noises.

15Should I give my pet water during the trip?

Your pet can’t use the lavatory, so limit its food intake before and during a flight. Howe says that owners shouldn’t feed animals anything within two hours of departure, saying that it’s better they have an empty stomach.

Your pet should be OK without food regardless of whether it’s a short- or long-haul.

“We don’t feed them during travel. We don’t want them having to defecate halfway through a flight,” says Smith, who runs the pet-moving company. “Pets are not going to starve even if it’s a 15-hour flight to Australia or Hong Kong.”

Water, however, is more essential. For flights under four hours, Howe does not recommend giving them water. On longer flights, give your pet some water, and if they’re in cargo, make sure its water dish is properly secured to its carrier.

16Where do I take my pet to the bathroom?

Airports should have animal relief areas, but the airport’s size will determine whether the area is either inside or outside of the terminals. If your pet’s traveling in a carrier, you may want to line it with absorbent, quick-drying pads in case of in-flight accidents.

How Patrick Herning Became a Leader of Size-Inclusive Fashion After a Career in Tech

Fashion was his "chapter two." But now, he runs one of the most talked-about retailers for sizes 10 and up.

In our long-running series "How I'm Making It," we talk to people making a living in the fashion and beauty industries about how they broke in and found success.

11 Honoré has become one of the biggest players in getting designers to participate in the conversation around size inclusivity. The online retailer caters to customers looking for high-end wares in sizes 10 and up. It's not only a destination for luxury for customers that don't often see themselves represented on the rack (or online, for that matter), but also a conduit for brands — established and up-and-coming — to get into the 12+ space: It has helped launch Cynthia Rowley, VEDA, Rachel Comey and, most recently, Diane von Furstenberg into extended sizing, among many others. And it's done so in only a few years.

11 Honoré officially opened for business in mid-2017. By 2019, it was hosting a Fashion Week show, dressing celebrities on the red carpet, growing its already-impressive roster of brands and getting an investment from Nordstrom. 

Through it all, founder and CEO Patrick Herning has emerged as not only a thought-leader in the industry, but a vocal advocate for a nuanced, comprehensive approach to serving a customer that has historically been ignored in retail. As he puts it, the question of size inclusivity isn't a "why" — it's a "when." 

For Herning, fashion is actually somewhat of a second act: He had been working in tech — and in San Francisco —for years before deciding to switch gears in life and work. That led him down to Los Angeles, into fashion marketing and, eventually, to 11 Honoré. 

Ahead, we talked to the entrepreneur about his career change, his interest in fashion and the event that sparked the idea for 11 Honoré (even if he didn't realize it then).What made you realize that fashion was a field you could build a career in? And why go the communications route?

It began back in 2006. Really, it was sort of chapter two. I had been in tech for about a decade and I moved to Los Angeles. It coincided with getting sober and also with some self-reflection on what I wanted to do and what I [felt I] wasn't doing creatively in the tech industry. It kind of began based on engaging my entrepreneurial and creative spirit. It was really through that process of launching what was at the time called Fathom Event Strategy — an opportunity for me to work on the West Coast.

I was from San Francisco, living in Los Angeles with this huge foothold in Orange County, which was a huge consumer market for luxury brands. We became the catchall agency for luxury brands wanting to do something on this coast, because I touched the alternative markets. It was really through pursuing my creative passion, doing something less academic than what I was doing in tech — and through being a voice of authority for luxury brands doing very targeted event marketing strategies — that chapter two evolved.

I have to give a shout out to my dear friend, Heather Vandenberghe — Heather, at the time, was the head of communications for Louis Vuitton. I was brought on to do a project in 2007 in Los Angeles, for the Murakami exhibit at MOCA sponsored by Louis Vuitton. It was really Louis Vuitton that became my first big fashion client. It just kind of took off.

What got you interested in event planning and marketing?

Towards the end of my tech career, I got involved in philanthropy in San Francisco. I was chairing opening nights for the young patrons group of the San Francisco Symphony. I was a member of the HRC and chaired their San Francisco gala. I really loved that piece of my philanthropic side and wanted to leverage what I was enjoying on the event marketing side. That's how the career really developed.

And you did that for a while in L.A.

Yeah, I did it from 2006 to 2010. [Around] the fall of 2009, I shared a client with HL Group. By summer, they bought my agency and I stayed on and ran their L.A. office from 2010 to 2015. I began consulting in the beginning of 2016 which, I didn't know at the time, was really the beginning of what grew into 11 Honoré.

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Herning at a dinner hosted by 11 Honoré and Eric Buterbaugh in honor of Ashley Longshore 

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What made you realize the opportunity that would become 11 Honoré? Was there a catalyst that made you want to go into a slightly different part of the fashion industry?

It was very similar to what happened in '06 when I left tech. I loved working with HL Group and loved running an office, but it was just time to pursue something more entrepreneurial. It's really about listening to your gut, trusting the universe and knowing that if you take that leap of faith, opportunities will unfold.

One of my first projects in 2016 was an assignment with Marina Rinaldi. My clients are like family to me. This one woman in particular, Kristine Westerby, who at the time was head of communications for Max Mara, had been my client [before] — she called me and said, 'Look, I need you to work on a project for Marina Rinaldi, their parent company owns Max Mara.' It was through that that the seed was planted. I worked with the brand, I worked with young influencers here in L.A. and I really saw the opportunity. Here were all these incredible, bright, brilliant, cool women and there's such little product out there for them. Marina Rinaldi, at the time, was really sort of the only elevated offering in the category.

Was there anything about that experience that confirmed to you that you could take that leap of faith and it would turn into something bigger?

Well, I just think you can't overanalyze any decision. One of my greatest skills is, I don't ever see anything other than the end goal and opportunity. I get very excited about doing things. And through that excitement and passion, I'm able to move really, really fast. I never saw it as an impediment. I was like, 'Oh, you're amazing women. Oh, there's nothing for them. Go fix that.' And that's how it all started.

Something you hear a lot — and something you've spoken about — is how, when talking about expanding sizes, some in the industry are apprehensive. What did you find were the challenges in selling the idea for 11 Honoré? Was there any specific concern voiced to you by designers that surprised you?

No. Again, I was very driven with the concept and was also very careful about who I spoke to about it. I kept a very narrow focus on the assignment and task — building the right team, pulling together the right investors. Because of my tenure in the industry, I had amazing access to incredible designers and many former clients, and I got resounding support for the concept.

I kept a very open line of communication with brands that may have said things that were inappropriate, brands that may have not agreed with wanting to dress this customer but have come full-circle and are dressing this customer now. We're meant to be an inclusive platform and with that comes a narrative of kindness. If you're not ready now, you know what? I'm going to continue to be persistent. I'm going to stay in your face until you're ready — but when you are ready, we're going to be ready for you.

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11 Honoré hosted a runway show during New York Fashion Week in February 2019 — which Laverne Cox closed.

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What have you found are the specific costs and decisions required to expand a brand's sizes?

What I learned early on is that we had to remove all barriers to entry. Any reason why a brand would say no, we had to have an answer to. And I spoke on a Fashionista panel with Tyler [McCall] back in 2017 — it was there that I met consultants that came on in the early days to help us with pattern development for our brand partners. We have since doubled down on that commitment and have all of those resources in-house. We really intend to play a role in creating some consistency around the nuances of extended sizing and be a partner to help these brands perfect fit, to ensure that things like arm holes and the length-versus-width are graded properly — all of these things that this customer struggles with when they experience poorly-fitting garments.

The company recently announced a new round of funding, which had partial investment from Nordstrom. You said it would allow for an increased focus on personal styling in the future. How has 11 Honoré been doing it and how do you hope to expand it?

We refer to it as client services, and it's really the core of our business. We launched initially in August 2018 and what we saw quickly — I mean within the first 30 days — was that this customer responds well to personalized service. So when we went out to fundraise, we had a thesis on the category of business, things like the AOV [average order value] reaches $2,500 when we touch our customer in their life and the return rate is less than 20%. We have this real-time communication and really understand what the customer wants, what works and more importantly what isn't working.

Now we have 12 associates in every major market, from New York to Chicago to Atlanta to Dallas to Los Angeles. As we remain a digitally-native brand, we have very high-touch personal styling and shopping network. No matter where you are in your fashion journey, if you are confident to order off the site without any help, great — if you want someone to walk you through certain styles, certain brands and understand fit better, we have that for you as well. We really want to provide a complete and comprehensive personal shopping service.

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Rebel Wilson wore a Jason Wu dress from 11 Honoré to the London photo call for 'Cats.' 

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11 Honoré is a very digitally connected company. Does your tech background influence the building of the company at all?

I think it's less about how it actually impacted [me] from a skillset perspective and more about [having been] a part of a startup that had a very successful exit that went public and a part of the Silicon Valley narrative. Understanding the culture of startups, the culture of venture was very helpful for me.

Now that you're a few years into 11 Honoré, what do you think is the next challenge that the conversation around size inclusivity in fashion faces?

More brands on the platform. We still have a tremendous amount of work that needs to happen. If you think of the brand matrix on Net-a-Porter or on MatchesFashion or Moda Operandi or Nordstrom, for that matter — you're in the hundreds. We have, I think, at any given time, a mix of 90 brands on the site. It's ensuring that we continue to build our brand matrix and that we're expanding into designers that our customer is asking for. From there, it's really working closely with brands to ensure that their fit is spot on. Then number three, we see a massive opportunity with developing our own brand, which we're in the process of doing and really excited to introduce that into the market.

Then, we have a huge opportunity with our new Nordstrom partnership. We're going to be working closely with them as we head into 2020. 

You mentioned an in-house brand. What gap are you hoping to fill with that?

We don't like the word 'basic' because there's nothing basic about it: It's wardrobe essentials that she wants to buy into time and time again. It's perfect fit. It's a really aspirational price point. It's meant to complement our existing brand partners. It really is fitting a need that currently doesn't exist on the site.

Does data factor into the development of the design at all?

Of course. Anything we do, it's rooted in data — but we also have access to so many customers through client services that it's also about listening to what the community is asking for, listening to what the customer wants. It's that engagement that's so critical to what will be the ultimate success of this brand. And we want our community and our customers to be a part of the planning process.

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Chrissy Metz wore a dress from 11 Honoré's upcoming in-house like to the 2020 Critics' Choice Awards.

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What do you look for when you're hiring someone to join the team?

Well, first of all, you have to live and die by the customer. Two, a natural curiosity, right? To just ask questions and ask why. Then pace. Look, this is a very intense company — you have to really, really, really want to create change and believe in creating change. But change doesn't come without a lot of hard work. So you have to be passionate about what we're doing because it takes a tremendous amount of effort.

Alright, my last question: What's the best career advice you've ever gotten?

Trust your gut. I know for a fact, personally, that when I don't listen to myself, that's when I make the biggest mistakes.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

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As Fed Meets, Treasury Bill-Buying Campaign Draws Investors’ Eyes

But the exact timing, and the balance sheet’s ultimate size, are anyone’s guess.

Mr. Carpenter at UBS expects the Fed to continue buying $60 billion into March before tapering off those purchases. Bank of America analysts expect the Fed will carry on buying $60 billion in Treasury bills through June.

But they note that “risks are skewed” toward slower purchases. Either way could matter to markets.

“Fed balance sheet growth has likely supported the recent risk rally, but is unlikely the dominant driver, in our view,” the Bank of American analysts wrote.

To be clear, no one is sure of the exact mechanism by which the growth of the Fed’s balance sheet pushes stocks up.

But for investors, the basic point is that over the last decade the market adage “don’t fight the Fed” has been one of the most effective bits of investment advice available. When the Fed was buying, investors had better be, too.

The flip side, of course, is that markets have grown acutely sensitive to any indication that the Fed would shrink the bank’s balance sheet. In 2018, as the Fed lifted interest rates four times while reducing the size of the balance sheet, an across-the-board sell-off of stocks, bonds and commodities followed suit.

And perhaps the most famous example of this dynamic hit the markets in May 2013, after then-Fed Chair Ben S. Bernanke hinted in congressional testimony that the Fed could start to cut back on its bond-buying programs sooner than many had expected. The markets panicked, with stock and bond markets selling off simultaneously.

The Fed is faced with a similar, if less dramatic, communication challenge this year.

“If the market perception is that the Fed is pouring in liquidity and that’s boosting asset prices, once they start to pare back these Treasury purchases and or the overall sizes of the repo operations, it could be that the markets throw a bit of a tantrum,” said Kathy Bostjancic, chief United States financial economist at Oxford Economics.