UAE summer is peak season for pet travel

ABU DHABI // Summer is not only the peak season for people travelling with pets, but also the most challenging for the animals, experts say.

“Summer is a very difficult time for travel for pets because of the heat,” said Mary Beth Melchior, founder of Where Is Jack?, a US-based non-profit organisation that advocates better pet-handling policies during air travel.

“Many airlines in the US won’t allow pets, such as small dogs and most cats, to travel anywhere except under the seat because the risks of putting them under the plane are too great.”

Some airlines will not let pets be checked in as excess baggage or cargo when the temperature at the departure or arrival airport is higher than 29C, according to pettravel.com, an online resource for international pet travel.

From May through September, many airlines impose a summer embargo on pet travel to certain cities and at certain times of the day because of the dehydration dangers associated with holding animals in tight cages for long periods of time in high heat.

“When runway temperatures are above 29C degrees at the departure airport, Etihad Airways may refuse to board your pet as cargo or checked baggage,” according to Pettravel.com.

From May 1 to September 30, Emirates SkyCargo may also reject snub-nosed animals and will only accept them on a “case to case” basis, according to its policy.

“These animals, variably, are susceptible to increased risk of heat stroke when exposed to stress or temperatures above 21C, breathing difficulties or increased travel stress) under indemnity and only in a container one size bigger than the animal’s normal measurements,” according to Emirates SkyCargo.

Ms Melchior said owners should consider keeping their pets home during the summer.

“We generally advise people to leave their pet with a pet-sitter, friend or relative if they are going to be away for a month or less,” she said.

But for many pet owners living in the UAE who are moving back to their home countries, leaving their beloved animals behind may not be an option.

“Summer is massive exodus, people are transitioning, a lot of people are finishing contracts in July, so from end of May to the beginning of August, we are just inundated with exports,” said Zoe Grimes, pet transportation manager at the British Veterinary Centre. “I mean every day we’ll be doing at least six or seven exports in terms of paperwork anyway.”

Mrs Grimes said the summer flight embargoes are typically not that disruptive. In the 10 years that she has been working in transporting pets from the UAE, she said she has had to delay or reschedule a flight “four or five time.”

“Most of our exports are at night time when it’s cooler, so we deliberately book night-time departures rather than daytime departures. It doesn’t really affect us — it can, but it’s not a massive issue.”