Puppy in the Plane?

Tomorrow (weather pending) or next weekend, we're probably taking the RV-6
to just north of Little Rock Arkansas to look at and probably buy a puppy.
Yeah, I know, there are plenty of puppies locally, but my wife is on a quest
to find a pup with the same bloodline (or at least some of it) as the dog we
lost last week...

Anyway, I've built a foam lined box (with airhole) to put the puppy in
because of the noise in the RV. Hopefully the enclosed environment and foam
will help the noise. Also, the box should catch any pee if the pup has an
accident.

Anything else I should do to protect the pup?

"Kyle Boatright" wrote in message
...
[...]
Anything else I should do to protect the pup?

IMHO, it's a bad idea to just toss a puppy into the plane and go. It has no
idea what's going on, and not only is it possible that the unfamiliar
noises, smells, and movements could severely stress the dog (potentially
creating long-term health or behavioral problems), it may well wind up
hurting itself trying to escape its box.

If you don't have time to acclimate the dog to the airplane environment,
it's my opinion that you ought to just sedate the dog outright. Make *sure*
it will be asleep for the entire trip; waking up groggy right at the end
could be the worst experience of all. Sedation has its own risks, of
course, but I feel they are the lesser of the evils compared to not exposing
a dog to the airplane gradually.

Of course, depending on the exact age of the puppy, and its own personality,
you may find the puppy to be a reasonably willing participant, or it could
experience even more terror than usual. A dog's "childhood" has several
"fear periods" during which they are especially affected by new experiences.

Also, I hope that "airhole" is just a typo for "airholes". There needs to
be ample ventilation, not just a single hole somewhere.

Do make sure the dog has water available in the carrier somehow. Water
dispenser, bowl of ice cubes (or just partially filled with water and
frozen), or even just a deep bowl with water in it.

Beyond all that, you've probably made the appropriate preparations. As long
as the dog is properly restrained (belted or in a carrier secured to the
airframe), and it is comfortable, it should be fine. Frankly, I don't
believe the volume of the noise to be of a particular concern, not for a
single flight.

Pete

I flew a new puppy from Minnesota in my Baron for a 1.5 hour flight without
any problems. I let him go to the bathroom first, and then gave him some
water in a bowl in his crate. I also put a blanket from his kennel in the
crate to give him a familiar smell.

For the most part he slept, and when he did whimper I was able to reach back
and touch him, which calmed him down right away. He tolerated the trip
without difficulty.

"Kyle Boatright" writes:

Anyway, I've built a foam lined box (with airhole) to put the puppy in
because of the noise in the RV. Hopefully the enclosed environment and foam
will help the noise. Also, the box should catch any pee if the pup has an
accident.

Anything else I should do to protect the pup?

Any idea how hot it will get in that box? If the puppy is excited it
may produce a lot of heat, and putting it in an insulated box in the
sun may not help...

Chris
--
Chris Colohan Email: PGP: finger
Web: www.colohan.com Phone: (412)268-4751

"Chris Colohan" wrote in message
.. .
"Kyle Boatright" writes:

Anyway, I've built a foam lined box (with airhole) to put the puppy in
because of the noise in the RV. Hopefully the enclosed environment and
foam
will help the noise. Also, the box should catch any pee if the pup has an
accident.

Anything else I should do to protect the pup?

Any idea how hot it will get in that box? If the puppy is excited it
may produce a lot of heat, and putting it in an insulated box in the
sun may not help...

Chris
--
Chris Colohan Email: PGP: finger
Web: www.colohan.com Phone: (412)268-4751

Probably depends on how high we fly. I prefer between 8 and 11 thousand
feet, so it is usually pretty comfortable in the airplane. In addition,
there is plenty of air movement in the cabin. I really don't see heat as a
problem.

KB

In article ,
Chris Colohan wrote:

"Kyle Boatright" writes:

Anyway, I've built a foam lined box (with airhole) to put the puppy in
because of the noise in the RV. Hopefully the enclosed environment and
foam
will help the noise. Also, the box should catch any pee if the pup has an
accident.

Anything else I should do to protect the pup?

Any idea how hot it will get in that box? If the puppy is excited it
may produce a lot of heat, and putting it in an insulated box in the
sun may not help...

No small plane experience here, but a fair amount of dog experience.
Based on that:

a) The more you can get the puppy bonded to the people involved and
accustomed to the box itself before the actual flight, the less
traumatic it's going to be for the puppy -- although puppies do vary a
lot in personality, and in how quickly and easily they adapt to new
circumstances.

b) Running his little tail into the ground just before the flight, so
he falls asleep exhausted, could help considerably.

c) A box that's an effective sound insulator is, almost by definition,
likely to be a very effect heat insulator as well -- something to worry
about quite a bit, even if the surrounding cabin space is cool. Good
air flow through the box could be important.

Kyle,
We had recently adopted a 6-month puppy, a Terrier/Lab/Pointer mix
from the shelter. In the last 3 weeks, Maggie had accumulated 8 hrs of
flight time. First, we gave her several rides in the car then we took
her to the airport just to smell the plane and hear the noises. It was
a no event for her first plane ride. She looked around a bit during
takeoff then promptly lied down and went to sleep. In all subsequent
rides, she slept most of the time in the plane and only got active when
on the ground.
We have owned several dogs but Maggie was the first dog to ride in
the plane. The other dogs were too big (a German shepard and a
Doberman) and too active to be trusted in a plane with thin plexiglass
windows.
I don't really think that dogs are bothered by loud noises. I also
know that puppies are shipped routinely by air. We almost adopt a pup
from Arkansas and they suggested us to ship it by American Airlines. My
sister got a pup from Lousiana also by air. I believe animals are kept
in small crates in the cargo area and there are rules regarding
temperatures.
The foam lined box with airhole is a good idea. You may want to keep
the box inside a small crate. An excitable puppy can cause a lot of
commotion in a small plane if not in a crate.
BTW, when we fly with Maggie, we also try to make our take off and
landing as gentle and smooth as possible and with very shallow gentle
turns.
We will be taking Maggie for a long cross country trip this
weekend from NY to Denver. We have no doubt that she will be an
excellent passenger.

Hai Longworth

"Longworth" writes:

I don't really think that dogs are bothered by loud noises.

....as long as they're not sharp (percussive). Plane noise seems to be
soothing.

I also
know that puppies are shipped routinely by air.

I haul rescue dogs by plane and don't have time to acclimate them. We
toss them in and go (especially when it's hot).
http://lairds.org/Kyler/photos/disk0...g/image_viewer
The only problem I've had was with a dog who was *nuts* about crates
(and significantly damaged a couple).
http://lairds.org/Kyler/photos/disk0...g/image_viewer
I think he would have been fine if I'd gone without the crate.

(BTW, that dog is passed out at my feet right now, biding his time until
I take him for a bike ride. Anyone want an *amazingly* good Husky?)

I'm tempted to design a pee-catching rigid tray with an attached pad for
the back but I've flown so many incident-free hours with dogs that I'm
inclined to assume it just isn't a problem.

--kyler