Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Air Pig

Smile Pig!
Have you ever flown a dear pet across the country without going along for the ride? If not, let me tell you, it's a real TREAT! If you are flying with the animal and if the said animal can fit on your lap or under a seat, no real problem. Locate one of those soft, designer, fabric carrying cases and after throwing them about $100 you're home free. Your animal is, too. Have a nice flight! But if the said animal be a cat, dog, or other furry creature and it's flying alone-- the plot thickens.
Friday morning we put Pig on a United Airlines flight headed to her new home in Austin. ALONE. I must admit after having her in our house and in my lap for the last 2 months, it wasn't the easiest thing I've ever done in my life. Ok, let me be fair here, Elenka did most of the heavy lifting. Yelena bought the ticket ($295), and sent Elenka all of the background research on what we needed to do to get Piggie to 'fly the friendly skies'. She had to visit the vet and be checked out within 10 days of the flight. Form signed by vet ($). Done. She had to be in a hard carrying case that had food and water dishes attached to the front, a pee pad below, extra food attached to the top, arrows on the container pointing which way was up, the animal's name clearly written, the case had to be large enough so that the critter could turn around easily and when standing with ears not touch the top (we went and bought a larger one $), the locking mechanism in the front had to be metal not plastic, the front of the case had to be secured with 'removeable' cable ties (hard to find) the kind that could be taken apart and resecured and on and on. Oh yeah, we had to drill extra holes for the plastic locks. Done. Done. Done. etc. There were a few others specifications, but my headache now is preventing me from recalling them at this point. Elenka is a stickler for 'playing by the rules'. Good thing too. The Pigster is in Austin and loving it. If it was left up to me alone, our cute little Pig would probably still be in Maine, Yelena would be out 300 bucks, and I'd be in 'airport jail' somewhere waiting to be bailed out. Now, if we were flying her out of the country... don't even ask. Ever heard of a kitty passport? Don't laugh. Sheeeeesh!
This is Pig just before her flight.
Don't be fooled.
That's not a pathetic look on her face.
She's being thoroughly entertained by customers in line getting tickets.
"What's the kitty's name?"
"Where's the kitty going?"
"She looks just like my Chester."
Love you Piggie.
Miss you too.

*Elenka's photo today.

30 comments:

  1. First question, was she flown in the baggage compartment or in the cabin? Obviously she made it safely since she is happily ensconced in Austin, but you lost a companion!

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  2. I'm sure there's a story as to why this sweet little pussy cat is called Pig :)

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    Replies
    1. Previous owner had her dyed pink and then abandon her in an apartment when she moved. Yelena rescued her.

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    2. It's hard to imagine people leaving pets behind oui.

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    3. It's hard to imagine people leaving pets behind oui.

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  3. It was sooooo hard. We had gotten so attached to her, she's very sweet. It was a very long day until they picked her up and were able to open the cage and set her free. 7:30 am ET until about 6 pm CT. Layover for a few hours in Newark...Poor baby.

    Our 2 elderly cats at home, however, waved goodbye, said Adios to the 24/7 'let's PLAY' PIg and catnapped the rest of the day...

    Miss you Pig...

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  4. What a sweet little piggy, do you think her new owners will change her name to something more ladylike? And why did she have to go so far away? Lots of questions here.

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    Replies
    1. My son and his girlfriend are the proud owners of Piggie. They have recently moved to Austin, TX.

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  5. That kind of thing is hard to do. We had to send one of our cats to our son in Houston some years back and went through the same routine, but the darn cat loved it so much he lived to be about 25 (or thereabouts)!

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  6. Oh wow, what a story. I'm sure that everyone was very nervous until she was picked up in Austin. That's quite an adventure for little Pig!

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  7. what a lot of hassle - Elenka must have thought it worth it though

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  8. Complicated and quite expensive!

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  9. That must have been a sad, nervous day for you & Elenka!

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  10. Some things are worth doing. And I don't think there is anything more you could have done to get her there safely. Happy to hear that Pig likes her new home.

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  11. Scary story with a happy ending. My question: Why didn't you take her with you when you drove the car to Austin. I know some cats don't like being in a car and it was quite a long trip, so maybe that's the answer! And I know there are different habits between cats and dogs so they may be many reasons. But that was my first thought. I never traveled with a cat, as you can probably tell.

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  12. Car was packed to the gills, barely had room for one tiny suitcase for us. The cat's 'stuff' would have taken the entire back seat, defeating the purpose of lugging the rest of their stuff and the car to Texas. PLUS, she never shuts up when in the carrier. People could hear her all over the terminal !! :-D

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  13. Poor Pig! Glad to hear she made it safely!

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  14. Awww….poor little Piggy, having to fly alone like that. Believe it or not, we used to take our cat along on all of our road trips. I would put her carrier in the back seat with the kids and away we would go. Three hours or several days, it didn't matter. She did fine. She didn't like staying in hotels though.

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  15. Great job! Good to know that Piggie has comfortably resettled!

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  16. Gee, a lot of trouble. I'd rather spend the $ on a great restaurant.

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  17. After being dyed pink and abandoned this would just seem like another curious adventure. I'm glad she made it safe and sound.

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  18. It would be so hard to part with a cat you've grown to love - a real part of the family. Expensive? Yes. But I think it was worth it.

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  19. i've never flown a pet before but have travelled with dogs and a cat (the cat was a nightmare, we should have flown him instead ha) ...the name pig cracks me up!

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