dizzerina
2006-04-25 05:37:46 UTC
I'm a college student and home is a 4 hour flight away from where I go
to school. Several times in the past year I've faced the problem of
what to do with my little hamster when I'm flying home for a vacation
or something. Willing hamstersitters are hard to find, especially ones
that don't have dogs or cats. And really, I'm just happier having her
with me and knowing she's safe.
But many airlines supposedly don't allow hamsters on board, or insist
they travel with the luggage, or charge $50-100 per pet. None of these
arrangements are satisfactory, as I'm sure you fellow hamster lovers
can agree. Luckily there's a better way. Here's what you gotta do.
1. Obtain a travel cage. I have the Super Pet "Take Me Home," which
costs $7.99 at petsmart.com. Don't bother with the brightly colored
outer case that's supposed to go with it though.
2. Find or buy a messanger bag that's just big enough to conceal the
cage. Mine is about 9" x 13" x 4" and looks a little bulgy but does the
trick. It's also small enough that I can bring it in addition to the
backpack that's considered my official piece of carry-on luggage. I'll
warn you that the inside of the bag will get pretty chewed up after a
few rounds, but the outside shouldn't get too damaged.
3. Equip the cage with some dry food and a few pieces of moist fruit or
vegetable (cucumber slices work well) so that the hamster won't get
dehydrated. Put fresh bedding in it, but add a little bit of "gently
used" bedding from the hamster's normal cage too. The familiar scent
will keep them from freaking out too much.
4. Before checking in at the airport, make sure the hamster and cage
are secure and wear the bag across your chest (instead of over one
shoulder) to keep it stable. Have your credit card and photo ID in a
pocket somewhere so that you're not tempted to reach into the messanger
bag when trying to find them. Check in as you normally would, taking
care not to draw attention to the bag, either from passengers or the
airline staff.
5. Proceed to security. Keep the bag on or set it on the table as you
put the rest of your stuff on the belt. Shoes, laptop, whatever: send
it all through. At last, open the bag and the top of the cage and
remove your hamster. Do it like it's the most routine thing in the
world, no more interesting than removing the change from your pockets.
Then send the bag with the cage through, and carry the hamster through
the metal detector with you. DO NOT send your hamster through the
x-ray, it's dangerous for the pet and will attract unwanted attention.
This step can work because TSA employees running security work for
the airport, not the airlines. Hamsters (unlike knives or hazardous
materials or whatnot) are not on any sort of master list of things that
should not fly in a cabin. The mistake I made the first time was to
announce that I had a hamster as I was removing her. The employees felt
like they needed to tell me what to do and looked all confused and
attracted the attention of a manager, who decided that he should check
with the airline about the whole thing. But if you seem to know exactly
what you're doing and look like you do it all the time, all they do is
go "awww isn't that just too adorable" or something. Calmly make polite
chatter about how your hamster is a seasoned traveler and so on. Put
her back in the cage and bag before gathering the rest of your stuff,
and move on as swiftly as possible.
6. At this point you're basically home free. The hamster stays in the
bag, the bag stays closed and with you. Nobody from here on needs to
know what's in it. Keep it on your lap during the flight whenever
possible, and gently tucked under the seat in front of you during
take-off & landing. Discretely check once in a while whether the cage
is still upright and the hatch closed and all, which can be done
without opening the bag.
7. You don't want to keep the hamster in the tiny cage longer than
necessary, so you should probably purchase a simple, basic cage (~$15)
to keep at the other destination, if it's one you visit repeatedly. Or
pack such a cage in your checked luggage and assemble it upon arrival.
Paper towels and/or toilet paper can be torn up and used as cage litter
if you don't feel like buying or packing any.
So what happens if you do get caught at security and sent back to the
airline ticket counters? Don't get upset or confrontational or
anything. Act somewhat confused, saying you didn't realize a little
hamster would be such big problem. Explain that you are afraid of
flying and your doctor recommended you bring an "emotional pet." Even
the airlines that don't allow pets in the cabin normally have
exceptions for service animals and "emotional pets." Point out that you
had no problem with this when you flew on <some rival airline> last
time. Be prepared to act the part of frightened flyer, as it may be up
to the pilot to make the final decision after talking to you at the
gate. This worked out for me in the end the one time I messed up at the
security checkpoint, and I didn't have to pay a cent.
As for the hamster's peace of mind: mine hated the little travel cage
the first time around, and spent much of the journey digging
frantically in all corners of the cage. But after that she totally got
used to it, and now my little jet-set pet spends most of the trip
napping, chewing the inside of the messanger bag, grinding down her
teeth on the cage bars, and generally going about her hamstery business
as normally as possible under the circs. If you have enough time before
your trip, try putting your hamster in the small cage for 15-20 min a
day and maybe building up until she's comfortable there for longer
periods of time. Maybe wear the messanger bag with cage & hamster while
running some routine errands so that you both get used to its motions
too.
Even though I've practically written a book here, this technique isn't
terribly complicated. I just described it in great detail so hopefully
noone will get stuck at the airport with a hamster they can't bring on
the plane.
Bon voyage!
to school. Several times in the past year I've faced the problem of
what to do with my little hamster when I'm flying home for a vacation
or something. Willing hamstersitters are hard to find, especially ones
that don't have dogs or cats. And really, I'm just happier having her
with me and knowing she's safe.
But many airlines supposedly don't allow hamsters on board, or insist
they travel with the luggage, or charge $50-100 per pet. None of these
arrangements are satisfactory, as I'm sure you fellow hamster lovers
can agree. Luckily there's a better way. Here's what you gotta do.
1. Obtain a travel cage. I have the Super Pet "Take Me Home," which
costs $7.99 at petsmart.com. Don't bother with the brightly colored
outer case that's supposed to go with it though.
2. Find or buy a messanger bag that's just big enough to conceal the
cage. Mine is about 9" x 13" x 4" and looks a little bulgy but does the
trick. It's also small enough that I can bring it in addition to the
backpack that's considered my official piece of carry-on luggage. I'll
warn you that the inside of the bag will get pretty chewed up after a
few rounds, but the outside shouldn't get too damaged.
3. Equip the cage with some dry food and a few pieces of moist fruit or
vegetable (cucumber slices work well) so that the hamster won't get
dehydrated. Put fresh bedding in it, but add a little bit of "gently
used" bedding from the hamster's normal cage too. The familiar scent
will keep them from freaking out too much.
4. Before checking in at the airport, make sure the hamster and cage
are secure and wear the bag across your chest (instead of over one
shoulder) to keep it stable. Have your credit card and photo ID in a
pocket somewhere so that you're not tempted to reach into the messanger
bag when trying to find them. Check in as you normally would, taking
care not to draw attention to the bag, either from passengers or the
airline staff.
5. Proceed to security. Keep the bag on or set it on the table as you
put the rest of your stuff on the belt. Shoes, laptop, whatever: send
it all through. At last, open the bag and the top of the cage and
remove your hamster. Do it like it's the most routine thing in the
world, no more interesting than removing the change from your pockets.
Then send the bag with the cage through, and carry the hamster through
the metal detector with you. DO NOT send your hamster through the
x-ray, it's dangerous for the pet and will attract unwanted attention.
This step can work because TSA employees running security work for
the airport, not the airlines. Hamsters (unlike knives or hazardous
materials or whatnot) are not on any sort of master list of things that
should not fly in a cabin. The mistake I made the first time was to
announce that I had a hamster as I was removing her. The employees felt
like they needed to tell me what to do and looked all confused and
attracted the attention of a manager, who decided that he should check
with the airline about the whole thing. But if you seem to know exactly
what you're doing and look like you do it all the time, all they do is
go "awww isn't that just too adorable" or something. Calmly make polite
chatter about how your hamster is a seasoned traveler and so on. Put
her back in the cage and bag before gathering the rest of your stuff,
and move on as swiftly as possible.
6. At this point you're basically home free. The hamster stays in the
bag, the bag stays closed and with you. Nobody from here on needs to
know what's in it. Keep it on your lap during the flight whenever
possible, and gently tucked under the seat in front of you during
take-off & landing. Discretely check once in a while whether the cage
is still upright and the hatch closed and all, which can be done
without opening the bag.
7. You don't want to keep the hamster in the tiny cage longer than
necessary, so you should probably purchase a simple, basic cage (~$15)
to keep at the other destination, if it's one you visit repeatedly. Or
pack such a cage in your checked luggage and assemble it upon arrival.
Paper towels and/or toilet paper can be torn up and used as cage litter
if you don't feel like buying or packing any.
So what happens if you do get caught at security and sent back to the
airline ticket counters? Don't get upset or confrontational or
anything. Act somewhat confused, saying you didn't realize a little
hamster would be such big problem. Explain that you are afraid of
flying and your doctor recommended you bring an "emotional pet." Even
the airlines that don't allow pets in the cabin normally have
exceptions for service animals and "emotional pets." Point out that you
had no problem with this when you flew on <some rival airline> last
time. Be prepared to act the part of frightened flyer, as it may be up
to the pilot to make the final decision after talking to you at the
gate. This worked out for me in the end the one time I messed up at the
security checkpoint, and I didn't have to pay a cent.
As for the hamster's peace of mind: mine hated the little travel cage
the first time around, and spent much of the journey digging
frantically in all corners of the cage. But after that she totally got
used to it, and now my little jet-set pet spends most of the trip
napping, chewing the inside of the messanger bag, grinding down her
teeth on the cage bars, and generally going about her hamstery business
as normally as possible under the circs. If you have enough time before
your trip, try putting your hamster in the small cage for 15-20 min a
day and maybe building up until she's comfortable there for longer
periods of time. Maybe wear the messanger bag with cage & hamster while
running some routine errands so that you both get used to its motions
too.
Even though I've practically written a book here, this technique isn't
terribly complicated. I just described it in great detail so hopefully
noone will get stuck at the airport with a hamster they can't bring on
the plane.
Bon voyage!