Traveling to the United States with Cats (Lots of Them)

Name: Nancy
Number of Pets: 8
Pet Type: Cat
Pet Breed: Domestic Short Hair
From: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
To: Arizona, USA

Dear PetRelocation,

I will be returning to the USA after many years of working in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. I moved five cats from Saudi to the UAE and came back to Saudi with eight!! (I am not a cat hoarder.....yet!), so I will have eight cats to bring with me to the USA.

I have a home in Arizona and they will continue to live with me. I am aware of the vaccination requirements; my cats will have those all done before traveling and they have been microchipped, too. I have the airline travel crates for them also.

Would you be able to tell me what the best airlines to send my cats on from Saudi Arabia to the USA? I have heard that in the past that KLM was one of the best airlines, but I do not know if that's true now. I am very worried about them all making the trip safely (as all pet owners do). They made it from the UAE on the short flight to Saudi Arabia and did very well, but this trip will be different and much longer.

I would appreciate any advice you can give and resources, too.

Thank you,

Nancy

Hi Nancy,

Your questions and concerns are completely understandable, and we'd be happy to shed some light on the process of moving your cats home with you. It sounds like you're aware of the import rules, but here's a link to the US pet import requirements just in case.

In terms of airlines, we do still recommend KLM due to their pet friendly policies and good record of safety. Others we often use include Lufthansa and United. When you know when you'll be traveling, it would be a good idea to give the airline a call to talk about their most up-to-date preferences regarding pet travel and see what they suggest about traveling with so many cats (it's unlikely they'll all be on the same flight, but that's nothing to worry about).

Talk to your vet for suggestions about how to prepare your cats for travel, and note that sedation is not recommended or allowed. We do recommend helping to acclimate cats to their crates by leaving the carriers out in a room where the kitties like to spend time; placing toys and treats inside the crates helps, too. Here's a link that goes into more detail about how to crate train cats.

If you think you'd like some help arranging your move, please fill out our free quote form. We'd be happy to offer an estimate of our services.

Hopefully this helps ease your mind a little! Just let us know if you have more questions and feel free to peruse our blog and Facebook for more pet travel tips and stories. Good luck!