Pet Transport Services Air Cargo · Private Ground · Worldwide

The first decision on any pet transport booking is the mode. Under roughly 1,000 miles, private ground transport is almost always the calmer and cheaper choice: one dedicated driver, one vehicle, no cargo terminals, no tender deadlines and no heat embargo to work around. Your pet stays in a climate-controlled cabin for the whole route and you get photo and text updates at each stop.

Beyond 1,000 miles the arithmetic flips. A three-day drive means three days of stress, overnights and boarding, where airline live cargo puts the same animal at the destination the same afternoon. Live cargo is a separate, pressurised, temperature-controlled hold with its own manifest and its own handling crew — it is not the same as checked baggage.

We price both modes on every quote and tell you which we would book for that route, that season and that breed. Snub-nosed dogs, summer departures from southern hubs, and animals over 110 lb are the three cases where we usually recommend ground regardless of distance.

Private ground transport starts at $295 for short runs. The figure is built from a booking fee, driving time, billable mileage including any empty repositioning leg, overnight care where the route needs it, and the number of animals travelling — not from a flat per-mile rate.

Airline live cargo is priced almost entirely by crate size. Carriers charge on the kennel's dimensional weight, so a 20 lb dog in an oversized crate can cost more than a 40 lb dog in a correctly fitted one. Most domestic moves land between $900 and $2,400. International moves add USDA APHIS endorsement, import permits, destination handling and, on some routes, quarantine fees.

Every estimate is itemized before anything is booked, and the final price is confirmed after we review the route, pet requirements, carrier availability and any third-party costs.

Domestic pet transport needs a veterinary health certificate issued within 10 days of travel, current rabies vaccination and a microchip on most carriers. International moves layer on an ISO 11784/11785 microchip implanted before the rabies shot, a rabies titer test on rabies-free destinations, USDA APHIS endorsement of the certificate, and an import permit where the destination requires one.

The order of operations matters more than the paperwork itself. A microchip implanted after the rabies vaccination invalidates the vaccination for EU and UK entry, and a titer drawn too early restarts the waiting period. We map the sequence backwards from your travel date before any vet appointment is booked.

Book two to three weeks ahead for domestic moves, four weeks for the EU, and six months or more for Japan, South Korea, Hawaii and Australia. Emergency and same-week moves are handled when a crate and cargo space are available.