What makes an airline ‘pet friendly’?

Frequent-flier programs
An airline that offers the best frequent-flier program for you isn't necessarily the best choice for four-footed passengers. Consequently, many people who fly regularly with pets now belong to a second program that not only has great pet-friendly service, but also has a frequent-flier benefits for pets.

• Midwest Airlines is the only national carrier that offers pets free trips. Last year, the airline awarded 636 free trips to frequent pet fliers on its Premier Pet Program. For every three paid pet round trips (or six paid one-way trips) made with their owner, a pet earns one free round trip. Alternatively, human Midwest frequent-fliers can redeem 20,000 Midwest Miles for every round trip their pet travels.
• Pets that are members of the Continental PetPass program can earn one mile for every dollar spent, including tax, fuel and security surcharges. The miles are credited to the pet parent’s mileage account.
• Pets can earn two points on JetBlue for each flight. The points show upon their pet parents’ TrueBlue frequent-flier account, allowing them to earn free travel awards faster.

Rating pet-friendly airlines
Just how pet-friendly are the major carriers? I researched their Web sites and phoned the service agents to talk about their airline’s pet policy.

The airlines that had the best, easiest-to-navigate Web sites were: Alaska, American, Continental, Delta, JetBlue and Midwest.

Look for words like  “programs and services”, “special travel needs” or “travel information” to lead you down the right information path.

Special kudos to American, Continental, JetBlue and Midwest for their knowledge — an  indication of the type of service that will follow.

Tip: When an airline representative doesn't know its regulations and needs to refer to manuals and supervisors, it’s a red flag.

And how does a true pet-friendly airline handle those sticky situations of passengers who don’t want to sit next to a cat or a dog, or who are allergic? All of the airline staff members I spoke to said that their air crew is trained to handle it as a customer service issue.

The passenger with the pet will never be the one to be asked to move. Instead, a flight attendant will move the complainant and, if necessary, accommodate them on another plane.

Passengers with pets are not allowed to occupy the emergency exit or bulkhead seats. Some airlines will insist on seating a passenger with a pet in a window seat.

Tips
It’s important to ascertain whether your airline requires a health certificate for domestic travel. Some don’t require anything. Others require a certificate within 10 days of travel that is valid for 10 days (meaning you'll need a new certificate if you plan on returning return beyond the 10-day limit).

Certificates are valid for 30 days at Midwest Airlines. Alaska requires a certificate that coincides with your travel plans no matter how short or long your trip. Continental will negotiate a longer timeframe if necessary.

And to further complicate things, while an airline may not require a certificate for a flight, certain states do. It’s important to remember that veterinarians are not automatically issued with a list of changing state laws, so find out what certification is required.

For more information on traveling with pets, go to PuppyTravel.com or Petfinder.com to see a list of the most pet-friendly airlines in the United States.

Bone voyage!

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