no pet left behind

Thomas Nelson

Contents

Preface................................................................6Introduction...........................................................10part I ready, set ...chapter 1: Things to Remember..........................................16chapter 2: Train Your Pet..............................................30chapter 3: Pet Etiquette...............................................46chapter 4: The Things Pets Do..........................................58part II ... go!chapter 5: Domestic Travel.............................................72chapter 6: International Travel........................................98chapter 7: The Best Places to Travel with Your Pet.....................122chapter 8: If Your Pet Gets Lost or Sick...............................152Resources..............................................................162Checklists.............................................................208Acknowledgments........................................................212Index..................................................................214About the Authors......................................................224

Chapter One

Necessary Details

Because some travel regulations require a medical certificate issued within ten days of travel, the first priority is to take your pet to your vet for a medical examination. Make sure that your pet gets all of his shots and that the vet gives you a recent certificate of health geared to where you are traveling. In addition to collecting pet-maintenance supplies and vet records, you should review which pet papers are specifically required where you are headed and what the travel regulations are if you plan to take your pet across state and country lines. Visit www.aphis.usda.gov/ac for government pet travel rules within the United States. For more interstate and international pet travel information, see resources, pages 190, 198.

Make a Loss-Prevention Kit

Every pet should have a basic care and identification kit in case of loss or the necessity of others caring for her. Make copies of important papers and care instructions, enclose them in a clear plastic zip-close bag, and attach that to your pet's crate. If you have one of my Sherpa Bag[R] soft-sided carriers, you can tuck them into the zip-close side pocket. If you have a hard-sided carrier, run a border of clear packing tape around the sides of the plastic bag to attach it securely. For hard-sided crates that have a tape-resistant slick finish, abrade the area with fine sandpaper, wipe clean, and then apply tape. Inside the bag include:

Identification Papers:

Copies of pedigree, license, health certificate, medical, and vaccination records, especially for a current rabies shot

Contact information for your pet's vet, kennel, and breeder

Your cell phone number and another emergency contact's phone number

Photos of your pet labeled with his name

Care and Feeding Papers:

Feeding instructions and prescriptions

Special-care instructions for any allergies, ailments, or disabilities

Shampoo brand and grooming instructions

Pet Identification

Most of us never expect to lose our pet or to be directly affected by a natural disaster. But the unexpected does happen, and statistics show that many owners are caught by surprise and are unprepared. Identification tags are useful, and I recommend putting them on collars, leashes, and carriers. I also recommend that you fasten a duplicate set of pet tags to a halter before taking a trip and that you keep the halter on your pet at all times.

Permanent Pet ID

Although identification tags are important, in order to ensure that your pet will be returned to you if he is lost, it is best to have him marked with some form of permanent identification. There are two types of permanent pet identification:

Pet tattoos have for some time been effective in locating lost pets. An identification number is tattooed in legible numbers on the smooth skin of your pet's inner thigh. If the animal is found and reported to a vet or shelter, their office can look up the number and obtain contact information for the owner. The tattoo is constant, but the contact information can be updated as needed. Because of the large area of bare skin required, this type if identification is most suited to larger mammals, such as dogs and cats.

The microchip revolutionized the way owners protect their pets. The chip is inserted under the skin between the shoulder blades. Each chip is encoded with a unique and unalterable identification code that can be activated only when read by a scanner, and each chip has an antimigration cap that helps prevent movement of the chip within your pet's body. Most vets can inject a pet with a microchip during a routine exam.

A not-for-profit organization called Companion Animal Recovery (CAR) was founded in June 1995 by the American Kennel Club (AKC) and is dedicated to providing lifetime recovery services for animals that have been inserted with a microchip. After a pet has had a microchip inserted, the ID number is enrolled with CAR, which maintains a worldwide enrollment database and a recovery service that works 24/7 all year long. The AKC recommends the HomeAgain[R] microchip, which is marketed by the Schering-Plough Animal Health Corporation.

Shelters, rescue organizations, animal control officers, and veterinarians use scanners to identify lost pets. When a pet is found, CAR is contacted. Phone calls, fax, and e-mail technology go into fast action to notify the owner. As an incentive, many municipalities issue a lifetime license with a one-time charge to owners of microchipped pets. For more information, see resources, page 201.

The beauty of this system is that pets of most species (not just large mammals) can have a microchip inserted and be enrolled in CAR, and as with tattoos, your contact information can be easily changed or updated as needed.

Unique IDTags to Make or Order

With a little ingenuity, and little or no cost, you can create temporary tags that will let anyone who finds your pet know where to return him. If you are staying at a hotel or campground, fasten its business card to your pet's collar by wrapping a strip of strong, waterproof clear tape around the collar and the card. If no paperwork is handy, write out your contact information by hand and tape it to your pet's collar.

You can make your own tags at a tag-making vending machine, which you'll find at many pet-shop franchises. These tags are big enough for three or more lines of type (include your cell phone number and address where you are staying). It is also a good idea to create one of these tags to alert people to any chronic diseases or problems. An online service also offers ready-made pet Medical Alert Tags that are listed with the National Pet...