Timing is everything.

We had an incident where a client worked directly with their own veterinarian to perform a health certificate, but did not time the vaccines and microchip implantation up to the country’s specific standard. This meant the owners were forced to leave their fur baby behind as they traveled to their new home. After trying in vain to book a flight themselves, they called us. As IPATA members, we were able to correct the paperwork issues and book their pet on an international flight in record time.

- Lesley

Breed Ban

Many countries have placed restrictions on which breeds are allowed entry that owners and veterinarians are often unaware of. What can be even harder to determine is what rules apply for a mixed breed that might have, or appear to have, characteristics of a banned breed. One of our clients was set to travel to the United Kingdom with his pet, but was unsure of his pet’s pedigree. We were able to call the Police Status Dog Unit in London to determine exactly what the laws were and what to expect upon arrival if his pet was identified as a banned breed.

- Lesley

A Support-dog in Need

One morning I received a request to transport an American Pit Bull to Germany within 7 days. German districts and townships have bans on many strong breeds and one of the frequently banned breeds is the American Pit Bull. Immediately, I reached out to our IPATA partner in Frankfurt who advised that a “Letter of Exception” might be obtained if the pet’s owner was military personnel. This was the case with our client, and indeed his pet was his PTSD emotional support dog, making us all the more determined to reunite him with his owner. Our team worked tirelessly with the family to obtain not only the Letter of Exception but also an official translation of it for the required USDA APHIS endorsement and airline documentation. We were able to reunite the sweet Pittie, our beloved PTSD support dog, with his owner within the quick 7 day requested time frame!

- Christina

Healing the blues

One day I had the assignment to collect a senior pet traveler from his mother around Christmas time. The house was decorated to the hilt and everyone was celebratory. His mum gently carried him out from the holiday celebrations and laid him in his crate in our toasty van. A few tears were shed as we said goodbye and drove away. When I arrived at Pender Pet Retreat, he was very still – I jiggled his crate, and he was fine just very quiet! He missed his mother. We set him up in a lovely Presidential Suite at Pender Pet Retreat, which he thoroughly enjoyed, except on the day of his flight the vigilant staff of the retreat noticed he seemed a little sad. Due to his age, we were all concerned so I brought him to the PenderAIR cottage to let him have an off leash wander with me in our fenced yard. He instantly came to life, and loved playing with his toys. Clearly he was healthy for his flight the next day, and was happily reunited with his mom. It is wonderful to know that our work at PenderAir is all about keeping our globe traveling families safely together.

- Christina

Going to Helsinki for you…

I once had clients who were making a Permanent Change of Station to Helsinki Finland. Their orders had come suddenly, and they were in a bind trying to figure out how they were going to get their dogs Eros and Zeus there! Eros was very old and needed a harness to help him walk, leaving them concerned about his safety on such a long flight. I had them bring Eros to see me so we could look at the crate and make sure it was more than large enough and I also had our on-site vet take a look at Eros to give me her opinion. She felt that Eros was in good shape to fly and it really put their minds at ease having a personal discussion about their concerns with their special needs canine. I gave them my cell phone number and we communicated using Whats App during the dogs travel. They greatly appreciated having a direct line to me that they could use in case anything happened. Everything went smoothly and Zeus and Eros made it to Helsinki in great health! They sent me photos of Zeus and Eros on their arrival and it was great to see everyone in their new home!

- Paul

A dog with special needs

Travel for a special needs pet can be a scary thing for a pet owner to coordinate. One of our clients was a veterinarian who had adopted a very special needs canine who was about a year old and born with a birth defect that left his back legs paralyzed. His bladder had to be expressed every few hours and everyone was concerned about the long wait for check in (usually about 4 hours ahead for international flights). We coordinated with Lufthansa local staff to arrange special treatment for the dog and I met the owners at the airport and stayed with them so we could do one more bladder express before we boarded the plane. Lufthansa took exceptional care of their dog and everyone was happily reunited overseas. The clients could not have been happier with the efforts that Pender AIR and Lufthansa made to make sure their dog’s needs were attended to.

- Paul

Fixing Panic Attacks

We often have cases where owners contact us in a panic when they realize they have been given misinformation, either online or from airlines, and realize at the last minute that they are not equipped to ship their beloved pets themselves. One particular client stands out in mind. She was having 2 cats sent to her from Ukraine, but the arrangements she had in place to clear them from customs at the airport and deliver them to her home in Ohio had fallen through while her pets were in route! In an all fire hurry, I was able to obtain the documents needed for customs clearance and coordinate with the sender in Ukraine to ensure the Air Waybill was correct. The staff at Pender Pet Retreat was able to get me a last minute booking for boarding the two cats and I was able to make arrangements for long distance ground transport to her home. She was so thankful for our service and the undivided attention she received in a time of true panic. She contacted me 2 months later to use our services again for another cat that she was adopting!

- Paul