Blog Detail

United Airlines Pet Policy | Flying with Your Furry Friends

Admin

Have you made plans for an outing? Why not! It's crucial to take a break from the frantic daily grind. When you own pets, you don't have much to do, as pets are welcome to fly in cargo or the cabin on all airlines.

The United Airlines pet policy

United Airlines allows domestic and small cats and dogs. According to the United Airlines Pet Policy, you can also take small household birds and rabbits.

Therapy animals and emotional support Animals are considered pets and not service animals therefore, they have the same United Airlines pet fee as other pets. According to United Airlines' policy on dogs, your service animal can only be a dog.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have temporarily suspended the importation of dogs from high-risk dog rabies countries until July 31, 2024, even if your dog has not had rabies in the past 6 months.

United Airlines In-Cabin Pet Policy

According to United Airlines' pet policy, you can travel with your pet in-cabin when there is space available as there are a limited number of pets allowed. If your pet is a dog or a cat, it can travel in-cabin. Provided it is staying inside the carrier the whole time, and the carrier should be under the seat.

You can take two pets with you in the cabin if space permits. But United Airlines pet travel tells you to book two adjacent seats so that you can take care of your pet. One pet carrier will be under the seat, and one will be on the seat.

According to United Airlines dog policy, specially-abled passengers can bring their service dog with them in-cabin with or without a carrier.

Form Requirements

United Airlines' pet policy asks for paperwork like rabies vaccination proof and blood test results of your pet. Rabies vaccination is required to be completed for both dogs and cats at least 28 days before arrival in the US. For a smooth flight with your pet, please start this process early.

When traveling within the U.S. with your pet, you must get a health certificate from your vet. Some destinations may request this certificate upon arrival.

In line with United Airlines' pet travel policy the certificate of health should include the following:

Your name, phone, and address
Information about your pet’s breed, sex, age, color, and markings.
List of recent vaccines, including names, dates of issue, and expiration

According to United Airlines policy on dogs, when you travel with a service dog, you are required to fill out the Department of Transportation (DOT) forms. You can fill out these forms online if you have a MileagePlus® account. If not, then you can get the PDF versions from the website. You are required to keep a print of the form with you.

These forms state that your service animal will not relieve themselves at the gate or in-cabin. They are well-behaved and under control.

Age Requirements

Naturally, as only vaccinated pets are allowed to fly, your pet should be old enough to take the vaccine shot.

Therefore, on age criterion United Airlines pet policy says that,

Puppies and kittens must be at least two months old to travel domestically.
on international flights, they should be at least 4 months old to comply with vaccination requirements.

Also, based on United Airlines policy on dogs, your service dog should be older than 4 months.

Route Restrictions

In compliance with United Airlines' pet policy, you may take your pet on any United or United Express plane, provided that your destination permits pet travel. It is also necessary to inquire about the pet policies of each airline you plan to fly with if you are taking numerous flights.

United Airlines policy for pet travel states that pets are not permitted to travel to, from, or even through the states and nations listed below:

Australia
Barbados
Brazil
Cuba
Guam
French Polynesia (Tahiti)
Hawaii
Hong Kong
Iceland
Ireland
Jamaica
Marshall Islands
Micronesia, Federated States of
New Zealand
Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan)
Norway
Palau
Philippines
Saint Kitts and Nevis
South Africa
Sweden
Trinidad and Tobago
United Arab Emirates (Dubai)
United Kingdom

According to the United Airlines pet travel policy, pets are also not permitted on United flights to Puerto Rico, India, and the Dominican Republic.

Reservations

According to United Airlines pet policy, to add a pet to your reservation give 1-800-864-8331 a call.

Another method is:

To book your pet’s reservation visit the United Airlines website, united.com.
When you are on the website you will also see their pet travel policy.
While you book your ticket, just select the ‘Travel with a Pet’ option.
You can also do this via the ‘My Trips’ tab.
By doing so, you can add pets to your existing ticket.

You cannot add pets to your reservation via the app.

United Airlines' pet travel policy suggests that you should make your pet's airline reservation as early as possible as there are a limited number of pets allowed in the cabin of each flight.

Check-In

There is no different check-in counter for passengers with pets. Thus, you can check in at the passenger counter and the United Airlines pet fee will be collected at the time of check-in.

By United Airlines pet travel policy, your pet carrier will be counted as a piece of carry-on luggage.

Read More- United Airlines Baggage Policy

United Airlines Cargo Pet Policy

It is mentioned in the United Airlines pet travel policy that it will not allow live animals in its cargo.

Banned Breeds

Surprisingly, United Airlines pet travel policy does not ban any snub-nosed breed of dog or cat from traveling in the cabin. But they do have a list of breeds and their mixes that are not accepted for transport in the cargo hold under military orders:

Dog breeds:

According to the United Airlines policy on dogs Affenpinscher, American Bully, American Pit Bull Terrier/Pit Bull, and Bulldogs of all kinds are not allowed. United Airlines pet travel policy has given a list of banned breeds. Please go through it once before booking a reservation for your pet.

Cat breeds:

Exotic Shorthair, Burmese, Himalayan, and Persian.

Hot and Cold Weather Restrictions

United Airlines pet travel policy may refuse to board your pet as cargo or checked baggage or may require an Acclimation Certificate if,

Temperatures are above 84F (29C) degrees at the departure airport,
The weather is very cold with a runway temperature below 45F (7C) degrees at the time of departure.

United Airlines pet travel policy also states that due to extreme heat from May 1 to September 30, it will not accept any pets as checked baggage for travel to/from Kuwait (KWI) and Bahrain (BAH).

Read More- United Airlines Pet Travel Policy

United Airlines pet fee

United Airlines pet travel policy states that they will charge a $125 pet fee for one way of traveling. and more than 24 hours internationally.

Sadly, United Airlines' pet fee policy says that you cannot use travel credits to pay for your pet’s reservation.

FAQs

Do you have pet relief areas?

Yes. You can get help from the United Airlines app to locate it at the airport.

What are the vaccination requirements?

Your pet should be vaccinated with the Rabies vaccine at least 28 days before traveling following United Airlines' pet travel policy. After the booster dose, it can travel immediately.

What is the policy for service animals?

In line with United Airlines pet policy for dogs and United Airlines pet fee policy, you can take your service animal with or without a carrier in-cabin for free.