Is there any way to ship a kitty from the West Coast to Boston

[yy4me]

in a way that would be safe and affordable for the kitty? You all know I had to give up the shelter cat I adopted because she was attacking me. That is over and I feel that I let the kitty down but had no choice. She was quarantined and has a new home with one of the shelter workers who has 2 kitties. I hope that goes well.

I am north of Boston and can get to the airport easily. My sister is in California near San Diego.

For the 8 months they have lived there, an adorable stray has been living on their back porch on the chair cushions and in the little padded cage/house that my sister made. She is fed twice a day and cared for. The cat is friendly and spends all her time on anyone's lap who happens to be in the yard.
She cannot come into the house because my sisters house cat hates the stray, considers her a trespasser and hisses at the screen door if the stray is even visible. The indoor kitty is a moody Persian and I would not give it house room but I love this cute stray. Got pictures of her yesterday. She is black with a cute white bib and cute black markings across the white.

Dilemma, no-one can figure how to get the kitty here. I would never ship a cat as air cargo. Are there any options available?

[Why Syzygy]

1. I know there are

because my son shipped his German Shepherd from NC to TX. I assume it was by flight.
Maybe check the airline websites?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. There's an airline that transports only pets:

http://petairways.com/

[Why Syzygy]

3. I hope this works out for you.

:bounce: You are a great kitty mom and you deserve it!

[ginnyinWI]

4. most airlines will take a pet as freight.

It's cheaper if the person is flying with the pet--in our family it was $100 extra to bring a cat from Portland,OR to Milwaukee. It was with Frontier airlines but I think they are all about the same price. It was double that to ship a cat alone. Maybe your sister wants to come for a visit too? Might cost the same as the cat alone.

It's pretty safe to send them by air, really. They get over it as soon as they are in normal surroundings again.

A person can also take a small pet in the cabin on some airlines. You pay a surcharge and they must have a small enough cage.

Any way she could fly there would be better than a week long car trip, no?

[ginnyinWI]

5. on the other hand--

Your sister could try to introduce the new kitty to the Persian a little at a time. Cats who are mortal enemies can be acclimated to the point where they are tolerant/indifferent to each other, if not exactly friends. My three are like this; they each sleep separately, play separately but eat together because I insist on feeding them together and they are okay with it.

It may take 4-6 months but most of the time it can be done.

Then you could save another precious kitty nearer to your house. :)

[oregonjen]

6. Just be aware of the temperature

Extreme heat or cold could have devastating consequences. There is no heat or air conditioning in the freight section of planes.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

7. Not quite true. The cargo compartments where animals are carried

are both heated and pressurized. However, most airlines won't accept animals as cargo in hot summer weather because there is no cargo air conditioning on the ground, not to mention that it can be very hot on the ramp while cargo is being loaded, even though the airlines do provide special handling for pets.

[oregonjen]

8. This link might be useful

http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/caring_for_pets_when_you_travel/traveling_by_air_with_pets/index.html

"Based on reports we receive from pet owners, animals continue to be killed, injured, or lost on commercial flights each year. Our beloved pets can face risks including excessively hot or cold temperatures, poor ventilation, scarcity of oxygen, and rough handling when flown in the "cargo" area of a plane."

[CountAllVotes]

9. you will likely require a health certificate

best to check about this. The cost is about $50.00 or so last time I dealt with this particular issue.

[yy4me]

10. I looked into the plane shipping by the company that transports

only pets. They(as well as the regular airlines) require a current health cert including things like Rabies shots. Since this kitty is a stray, I have no info in that regard and cannot impose that job on my family in Calif. to have it done. They are working countless hours, and it would be too much of an obligation. One of the requirements on one sight indicated that the certificate be issued within 10 days of transport. Can't do it. There is really no way to coordinate this, I guess.

Although the requirement puts me at a disadvantage, I fully understand it. I would like to adopt her but she does have a home with family there, just not not the same as it would be here, The yard is nicely landscaped, there is a great patio and she has her choice of cushions, a little house of her own and proper feeding.

Maybe this was attractive to me after the incident with the kitty I adopted. This one is a known factor.

[MagickMuffin]

11. If you really want this kitty have you thought about placing an ad in Craigslist

to see if anyone from CA is traveling to MA. It might be worth it to see if you could make arrangements for something like this. Just a thought.