Let me answer this question. I recently brought two British Shorthair blue cats back to my hometown safely.
First of all, British Shorthair blue cats can take a plane and arrive home safely (there are basically no safety issues. Since blue cats are not flat – faced cats, there is no risk of suffocation on the plane. I’ve consulted a pet doctor in detail about this, and I’m not sure how authoritative the answer is, but my two cats arrived home safely without any abnormalities).
Route: Chengdu – Taiyuan
First, choose a suitable flight according to your departure date. Don’t buy the ticket yet. Call the airline’s customer service to confirm whether the flight at that time has an oxygen – equipped cargo hold.
If it’s confirmed that there is an oxygen – equipped cargo hold, you can visit the airline’s official website to apply for special luggage for live animals in the oxygen – equipped cargo hold. Fill in the pet’s and your personal information. If the airline refuses to let British Shorthairs board the plane, you can refer to my method below.
Read the airline’s transportation management regulations carefully. Requirements vary among different flights. Buy an airline – approved pet carrier and prepare the necessary materials according to the regulations.
In some cities, to obtain a quarantine certificate from the animal quarantine station, you must have your pet undergo an antibody test at a cooperative veterinary hospital. In Chengdu, the cost of an antibody test for one cat is about 300 yuan, and the quarantine certificate is free.
Once you have all the required documents and the pet carrier ready, wait to board the plane. Go to the airport early to handle the special luggage check – in for your pet. The cat and the luggage will be checked in together. There may be a queue, so try to arrive at the airport as early as possible.
The above is the formal process, but it doesn’t explain how I got my British Shorthairs on the plane. Here’s my specific method:
Since I was bringing two cats home, even if I followed the normal process, the airline would still refuse to let British Shorthairs board. So when applying for the flight, I filled in “Chinese rural cat”. If it’s a British Shorthair blue cat, which is highly recognizable, I suggest filling in “Russian Blue Cat”. Airport staff don’t really check the cat’s breed carefully, and they just take a quick look during the security check. (The airline will ask you to sign a liability – waiver agreement and won’t be responsible for any accidents, so they generally don’t conduct strict inspections. I’ve checked in my cats several times and haven’t encountered any risks.)
It’s very important to note that after getting the application approved, make sure that the vaccination certificate and other relevant documents for your cat also state that it’s a Chinese rural cat or a Russian Blue Cat.
It’s quite difficult to get false documents, in my opinion. When I got my cats vaccinated, I didn’t think about this issue, and their documents all state that they are British Shorthair blue cats.
So I turned to Taobao later. It cost me 300 or 400 yuan for the two cats (I screened several Taobao shops, chose one with better reviews, and also bargained to get 100 yuan off). They helped me get the cats on the plane (the cost only includes the vaccination certificate and accompanying the check – in. The pet check – in fee is calculated according to the overweight baggage fee standards of different airlines, which are generally not high). My two cats weighed 10 catties + 6 catties, which is 5 kg + 3 kg (including the pet carrier). The total check – in fee was about 200 yuan, and with the cost of getting the certificates, I spent about 700 – 800 yuan in total.
The approximate charging standard is: @Full – price ticket × 0.15 × Cat’s weight (kg). For discounted tickets, you need to calculate the full – price based on the discount.
PS: 1. Remember to withhold food from your cat for eight hours before the flight. Actually, you don’t need to put water in the carrier because the flight only lasts for a couple of hours, and the cat won’t want to drink water due to stress.
2. There’s no need to buy the net for the pet carrier. The airport will reinforce the carrier for 10 yuan. If your cat doesn’t travel often, this is more cost – effective than buying a net on Taobao, which costs 30 – 40 yuan.
If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. I hope this can be helpful to you.
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