? 12/05 Mačka - AMPS 349, +4 270, PMPS 271 Travelling back to France soon, airplane questions

Discussion in 'Lantus / Levemir / Biosimilars' started by Penelope and Mačka, Dec 5, 2019.

  1. Penelope and Mačka

    Penelope and Mačka Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 13, 2019
    http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...80-dose-increase-tonight.222323/#post-2485444

    Hello,

    Big news, I am going back to France for 5 months, and of course bringing Macka with me.
    I am soooo worried about this trip, since last time he arrived DKA from France (to Portland, Oregon). He was travelling with my mum, at the time no insulin, no food and dehydrated (plus UTI and pancreatitis).

    This time, we are prepared but still, I can't help being nervous.
    Here's the plan:
    Portland>Detroit: 4 hour flight
    Layover: 2h30
    Detroit>Paris: 7h45 hour flight
    I thought that by breaking the trip like this, it would give him some relief, I can give him his insulin while in Detroit, etc.

    My questions are:
    - what do I need to be able to bring insulin, syringes, glucomètre kit etc on the plane?
    - can I bring FF cans with me on the plane?
    - have any one of you got a letter for Animal emotional support? That would allow me to take him out of his carrier and put him on my laps during the flight
    - what else should I think of?

    Thanks!
     
    Last edited: Dec 5, 2019
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  2. Crista & Ming

    Crista & Ming Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2018
    I’ve never travelled on an airplane with a kitty before but maybe some anti-anxiety and anti-nausea meds might be helpful (gabapentin and cerenia). Even if he isn’t nauseas, having it on board doesn’t hurt.

    Hopefully someone with experience answers.
     
  3. Tina Marie (GA) and Jan

    Tina Marie (GA) and Jan Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jul 24, 2019
    Penelope!!! I haven't even gotten to go to France once yet;) It's Macka's home, sweet little French boy.
    Around the time I first joined FDMB, I went through a big trip online with @AmandaE -- it was quite an interesting experience for me to realize how well a cat really could travel. Mowgli was a pro, and Amanda prepared very well.
     
  4. Penelope and Mačka

    Penelope and Mačka Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 13, 2019
    Yes you're right, I remember Mowgli's trip! @AmandaE were you allowed to bring wet food in cans on the plane?
     
  5. Wendy&Neko

    Wendy&Neko Senior Member Moderator

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2012
    I flew from Vancouver to Denver with Neko. Going through customs adds another layer of complexity. Yes, you can take food on the plane, if unopened. Get a letter from your vet, describing Macka’s conditions and medications needed. You may also need a health certificate, check with French customs. Also bring copies of any prescriptions. You may or may not need proof of a rabies vaccination.

    Certain airlines are better than others on rules for pets in the cabin, check around. I kept a full body harness on at all times, it calmed her down, and made it easier going through X-ray and customs. I didn’t give Cerenia or gabapentin, but I did use Feliway wipes on the inside of her carrier, plus Rescue Remedy before we left. And she had her favourite catnip pickle in her carrier.

    I had a small lunch sized cooler, with a gel pack and Neko’s medication and insulins. Add a small bag of cat litter, in it’s original packaging. I also had a small cat food box lined with garbage bag that I could pour litter into. She never used when I offered it at the airport. :rolleyes: Neko was my carry on bag. My “personal item” was a backpack full of Neko’s stuff, including dishes, food, spare towel, files of paperwork etc. Oh, and a toothbrush for me.:p

    @Dyana travelled across country by plane each year with JD.
     
  6. Jill & Scooter

    Jill & Scooter Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 7, 2018
    Macka is going to become quite the world traveler! I don’t have any advice, the farthest I’ve ever traveled with a kitty is the 10 miles to town for the vet. Amanda @AmandaE had a good trip with Mowgli. She seemed to be very well prepared and got lots of advice from others on here before she went. I’m sure this time Macka will do much better.
     
  7. Penelope and Mačka

    Penelope and Mačka Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 13, 2019
    Thanks so much for all the good ideas!
    Regarding litter, can I find a small enough bad that I can carry on me? I am going to look into it.
    Feliway wipes, catnip: I didn't think of it!

    I went crazy today with the purchase of a portable litter box, insulin cold case, water dispenser, bowls, and even an expandable carrier that's very cute!
    I have prescriptions for insulin and syringes. Health certificate will come later, 10 days before departure.

    Macka had his rabies booster just now, it's mandatory for France. Should I be worried with any interaction with insulin tonight?

    What I am wondering about also is the LC food available in France. I don't know the brands, and searched online with only very little results.
     
  8. AmandaE

    AmandaE Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 18, 2019
    SO exciting that you're headed back to France for 5 months!! While I didn't fly internationally with Mowgli, we did have a 1 hour domestic flight followed by a 5 hour flight. Having water bowls, puppy pads, and a cooling wallet for your insulin are all really important.

    First of all HERE is my post from July where I got a TON of sage advice about flying with a kitty companion, a very useful resource was posted in the above linked condo by @Sienne and Gabby (GA) in post #33 with links to all of the advice that has been given to other members by @Dyana who has a lot of experience flying with her cat. In particular I found post #8 here very helpful and inspiring.

    Did you book your flight yet? make sure to call because in some planes they only allow two pets on board at a time, so you can't assume that you can have a pet on board if you book online. You can book your tickets and call after, but to make sure there was space I called the airline to book tickets. It is a good idea to know what flights you want (sounds like you do) so that you can request that flight specifically. When you fly with a pet in cabin, the pet counts as your carryon. Most airlines allow a carry on and a personal item so I used a backpack with all of Mowgli's essentials (Mowgli's diaper bag :p)for my personal item. Below is a pic of everything I kept in his 'diaper bag'. I packed almost everything into ziplock bags and baggies to keep them organized.

    fullsizeoutput_1.jpeg
    1. A backpack: (Mowgli's diaper bag) to carry all of his essentials plus my phone charger, phone, wallet, and a book.
    2. Puppy Pads: I lined Mowgli's carrier with 3 for the trip, and kept plenty in the backpack in case of an accident. On layovers I would check to see if any of the pads were soiled and replaced them if they needed to be replaced. The pads I used were 56cm x 56cm
    3. Diabetes Essentials Package 1: Syringes, lancets, test strip, glucosometer, polysporin, I also included the insulin cooling wallet an my callipers in this package (seen in #7). I took this package out when going through security and explained that they were diabetic supplies
    4. Diabetes Essentials Package 2: LC Fancy feast, MC Fancy Feast, and HC Whiskas, cat treats, food/water bowls as well as some icing gel in case there was a hypo situation. I also took some Dry purina veterinary diet DM in case security made me get rid of my wet food. My strategy with the wet food was to follow the airline rules that state you are allowed a 1 gallon bag of liquids, and just fit as many cans in a 1 gallon ziplock bag as I could. I Agree with Wendy though if you have a note from your vet it should be fine.I also packed this with a lot of extra ziplock bags in case I needed them as garbage bags on the flight
    5. Cat Litter: I didn't end up using this because Mowgli usually peed on one of the puppy pads while we were flying
    6. A full roll of Paper Towel: In case of any cleanup that would be needed ( I didn't need those either, thankfully)
    7. Mowgli's Kong Cloud Mat: I thought a comfort thing would be good to have in case Mowgli was stressed while we were in the airport, I think he was really glad to have something that smelled like home.
    I kept Mowgli's leash and important paperwork in a side pocket of his carrier, but I think that could all fit in your back pack too. I liked having the leash in the carrier so that I could attach it to his harness at a moments notice. I kept Mowgli's harness on him for the whole flight and I made sure he had a name tag on his harness with his name, my number, and that he was diabetic all spelled on it in case he ran away (he didn't). Make sure that your carrier fits the airline guidelines that you're travelling with, every airline is different. Here is what his carrier looked like:

    fullsizeoutput_2.jpeg

    Arrive to the airport a few hours early (this is usually a requirement when travelling with a pet, check the guidelines of your airline just in case). Having a pet should allow you to go through the security family line (it does in Canada anyway... this was a major plus to me). When you're going through security, let them know right away that you have a cat with you and that you want a private room for your security check so that you aren't put in a situation where Mačka can escape. At the same time put all of your diabetic supplies in a tray and let the security know that they are diabetic supplies... I didn't even specify that it was for my cat, but since you'll have a note from your vet you can definitely specify that you need diabetic supplies and extra food because your cat is diabetic.

    Once you're through security find a nice place to camp until your flight leaves, we found nice quiet corners where we could let Mowgli out on his harness... most airports are not against letting your pets out of their carriers which I was very relieved about :) we let Mowgli stay out of his carrier as much as we were able. I also fed him small meals at layovers (half can FF) and tested his BG. I gave Mowgli his normal insulin dose that day too, but I would ask advice a couple days before you leave what could work for Mačka. Below is an example of one of our camps:

    IMG_0962.JPG

    You're also eligible to board early when you have a pet (another perk). During both flights Mowgli peed in his carrier, I didn't really have space to change out his puppy pad but Mowgli did somehow manage to pull a clean puppy pad from below to lay on (magic). I was allowed to pat Mowgli but it was absolutely not allowed to take him out of the carrier and I had to leave the carrier under the seat.

    I have to admit... flying with Mowgli was not as bad as I thought it was going to be, I really was dreading it in my mind but it went really well. I hope you have a very similar experience to me ... Mowgli and Mačka have had a very similar life so far so I think you will have a positive experience too :)

    Try to remember, last time Mačka flew and developed DKA he was in much worse shape than he is now, you've done such a great job with him, I think you don't have to worry about it. ;) (*knocks on wood*)

    I hope this is helpful!
     
  9. Penelope and Mačka

    Penelope and Mačka Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 13, 2019
    Thanks so much @AmandaE for such a detailed post! You're always so organized :)
    I'll look into the links tonight.
    Good idea about the icing gel, garbage bags, tag saying "diabetic cat", the private check in room.

    Yes, I called the company (Delta), they know about Macka, and have the size of his carrier!

    Macka limps and has arthritis, he can't run or jump, poor guy. He is not scared of people or new environments too much eithe).
    Also, he is quite used to travelling (car, train, even boat!), and was always calm about it. I can put him on my lap and he will chill. Unfortunately, he's not used to the leash/harness and will not accept it. I don't know how he reacts on a plane though.

    the tougher part will be the return flight Paris>Seattle: 11 hours :confused: He is going to hate it. But we're not there yet.

    You're right, he is in a much better place now than 6 months ago without insulin and aching because of a pancreatitis. And he's with me. I am worried about the noise on the plane, it's very loud. Was Mowgli reacting to the noise? Was he affected (his ears) by the pressure when landing at all?
     
  10. AmandaE

    AmandaE Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 18, 2019
  11. Judy and Freckles

    Judy and Freckles Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Oct 20, 2019
    awwwwwe
     
  12. Judy and Freckles

    Judy and Freckles Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Oct 20, 2019
    Wondering if you can take your kitty into the bathroom during the flight to eat, give insulin, stretch legs etc??
     
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  13. Wendy&Neko

    Wendy&Neko Senior Member Moderator

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2012
    For the litter, you don’t need a full bag full, just enough to last you until you can get some more litter at the other end. When I go to Fort Collins, I put it out in the hotel room and Neko immediately used it. She didn’t use the puppy pads in her carrier. Held it both ways. On the way home, she waited until she used the LB I asked DH to put in his car when he picked us up. A word of warning on the litter, I got pulled over to secondary screening because of it, both directions. Having the original bag helped.

    You do want him used to some kind of harness. You will have to take him out of the carrier and hold him thru xrays. It’s amazing what scared arthritic cats can do. I used the Kitty Holster, easy to put on/off and acts a bit like a thunder shirt. Neko was used to a collar, but not a harness before hand.

    Neko was amazingly quiet during the trip. In spite of my poor planning on travelling coming home the weekend before US Thanksgiving.:banghead:

    Judy, depending on airline and how busy the flight is, cat might have to stay in carrier. Zip top opening helped.
     
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  14. Bron and Sheba (GA)

    Bron and Sheba (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 21, 2015
    Penelope how exciting to be travelling back to France although I understand your concerns. You have been getting great information to get prepared for the flight and Macka is so much better than he was when he set off from France before.

    How long before you go?
     
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  15. Dyana

    Dyana Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 28, 2009
    I agree with what Wendy said about the harness. I would start getting him used to it now. Just put it on for 5 minutes at first and then take it off, and praise him. Keep adding more time, and petting, until he is more comfortable. I would not travel with my cat without a snug fitting harness and leash. A long long time ago, I was taking my cat Buddy a short distance to the vet, and he almost escaped (while the car was moving) out of a window that was cracked open 2 inches.
    I think you will do fine. I always took J.D. to "his" bedroom immediately upon arrival to my destination and put down his litter box, food, water, and blankie (something that smelled like home), and got him settled in, and then took care of unpacking etc after.
     
  16. Penelope and Mačka

    Penelope and Mačka Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 13, 2019
    We leave on Christmas Eve! Arrive on Christmas day :)
     
  17. Penelope and Mačka

    Penelope and Mačka Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 13, 2019
    Regarding the harness, I'll look into it today. Thank you all so much for your input :bighug::bighug::bighug:
     

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