Max our not very bright, but very enthusiastic cat made it to Hawaii.
Max enjoying being up high.Max just rolling around in the closet in the LA Hotel.Max just rolling around in the closet in the LA Hotel.
Just to re-cap. We went from Syracuse, NY to Hawaii with our Cat. We prepared for about 8 months to do that. Max first needed to Micro-chipped, then have a rabies vaccine. Then have another rabies vaccine, then be tested to verify that vaccine was effective. We were doing the Hawaii Kona Direct Release program, so we needed to contact a specified vet, share our paper work. Pay her. Get pre-approved for Max to come. Pre-approved is nice, and I would prefer that over the Honolulu plan. Then on travel day he would be checked over for “bad stuff”, by the vet that met Max and our plane. and directly released to us in a matter of 10-15 mins. Max was done as soon as our baggage was done.
The whole thing was pretty easy. Lots of steps and there is a timeline you have to keep. Not too early and not too late. The vet was awesome. She really loves animals and treated Max very well and made sure he was ok after the flight. VERY COOL! She is in it for the animals not just the money.
We used united Cargo. They needed our Hawaii paperwork when we dropped Max off to be shipped. This all with originals. Very scary. We decided to break up the journey, and stop in Los Angeles. We checked Max’s big pet crate as luggage. Syracuse Airport was nice enough to let it go even though it was a bit big. Max rode in the cabin. He was a perfect gentlemen the whole time. We spent two days in LA, to make sure his crate arrived and was not lost. We could take not chances. We did some site seeing in LA and went to Universal Hollywood. It was a pretty good day.
Kate with a Home Simpson sized Doughnut. It was light and easily eaten by two people.
Max then went via United Cargo, AKA PetSafe. The women that helped us at LAX was awesome. She also really did a thorough job. She took her time and really set the bar quite high. She really took care of us and made us feel comfortable leaving our cat with her. Kudos to United. I do not say that much.
On the trip back, we do the exact reverse of it. Other carriers allow pets leaving Hawaii in the cabin, but not United. So he has to go cargo back to LA. We will only spend overnight in LA. Max will ride with us in the cabin from LA to Syracuse. Max has shown he can hold it for 15 hours. He is quite a good trooper.
I lost my wallet in England. What a hassle that was. Somewhere over the northern Atlantic I awoke from my crooked sleeping position in economy plus and thought oh crap, I have not seen my wallet. You know I was thinking about doing some shopping on the plane later. I went and did a frantic search before I mentally retraced my steps and realized I think I left it at security. It was a bit of a rush in security. I got some extra special attention for have two computers, three tablets and load of neatly coiled up cords that apparently look like a bomb. In the US, I have TSA Pre and just waltz through security keeping all my computer stuff packed up and it just slides through. Oh yeah the cat litter that we were carry for Max was an item of suspicion. Cat litter and not carrying a cat. He was already cargo at that point. I am glad I kept the joke about there being land mines (cat crap) in the cat bags of litter as they were searching through it.
Anyways I narrowed it down that either it was at security, or Hertz, or possibly at the gate in Heathrow is where I most likely lost my wallet. We landed in Newark Airport (Aka know as crappy place United lands planes) and I am concerned about getting the rental car with out a physical license, but I think it might be ok. I am all signed up with Hertz, they have my credit card info, insurance info, license info, car preference, fuel preference, as well as my shoe size, and favorite color. I normally just show them ID and go. I do not stop at the counter. I do fill out paper work. I do not get the sales pitch about gas or insurance. I go directly to the car and leave. I do not pass go. I do not collect $200. I was thinking that it all might work with just my passport. NOPE!. Going directly to jail was closer to what my future was going to be. As I am leaving the garage, I need a drivers license as ID. I ditch the car and head back to Kate. I left, her Max and mountain of luggage. I figured it would have been easier to go back and get them.
On the way back I talked to hertz “gold” desk. Nothing golden about it, in case you were wondering. After a bit of a fight we came to the heart of the matter – I was not getting out there without a license. The first suggestion was getting a Cab. WTF – for real. The fact I had a license, just that it was lost did not matter. They agreed to move the reservation over to Kate as long as Kate had a credit card and a license. WTF, you have to say that after arrguing about my license for 15 mins. You think I was going to bring someone else with out a license. Wow. This was going to be a pain. I wanted Kate to go back to Hertz alone, mainly because of the restraining order against me after fighting with the Hertz lady, but also did not want to move Max and the mountain of luggage. Kate wanted me to go. We had six suitcases, and a large cat carrier which all did not fit on a single cart, and it required us getting on the “air train”, and we all could not fit in the elevator – so it was multiple trips up and down elevator to and from the air train.
They in the end rented a car to Kate and kept it on my account and I got points for it. I was expressly told not to drive. OF COURSE I DID NOT. Or did I? I can’t remember now.
It was a crappy drive. Rainy. Foggy. Rainy and Foggy. Crappy, Rainy, and Foggy. We drove home straight. We originally were going to stay the night in Newark and give Max a break. We drove (Kate drove – Maybe, I can’t remember) all the way home from Newark, New Jersey. We needed to get home to start the process taking care of my missing wallet.
After losing my wallet for 24 hours, no fraudulent activity, which was good. I found that Heathrow had a lost and found website. I put in a claim. I called United. I called Hertz. I called all my credit card companies. I called Ghostbusters just to be sure.
I went to the DMV and ordered a new license, and got a new picture taken. I had them send it to a post office near where we were staying to General delivery. It never made it. I have since reordered and have had it sent to my PO box in Hawaii. It still has not arrived. I did leave with a temporary paper license – and I checked Hertz would allow me to rent with it.
Heathrow lost and found did find my wallet. I sure wish they found it about 24 hours sooner and saved me the hassle of this. They sent it over night and it was going to make it time, for the cost of $120. It did not make it in time, and it was supposed to be signature required, and it was left at my house. So I had already left, no wallet. Some very nice friends retrieved it from my house and opened it to verify it was mine. They had a good laugh at my haircut from when I was 17 years old. Yes I did need a new picture. They mailed my wallet to my friends who were coming to Hawaii in a week to visit me and my wallet was reunited with me after 2.5 weeks.
Oh this is not the end. They refused to ship the cash in the wallet. So the money left in the wallet, was still in there when it was found. (I think it was left at Security – I will never know). They sent me a UK bank check (Minus a 20 pound fee) for 10 pounds, that I can’t cash. NICE.
The lesson – don’t put so much crap in your computer bag that it looks like a bomb.
We left Settle, UK a couple of days early than we originally planned because we received invitations to Buckingham place to meet Prince William. Although we knew about this over a year in advance, my invitation was not guaranteed. My invitation only came about a month ahead of time. We received the invitations because of Kate’s involvement in the Kennedy trust. The Kennedy trust is an organization setup by the British people after the death of President John F Kennedy. I feel lucky just to have gotten an invite as the were very limited spots.
Invitation to Buckingham PalaceRainbow over the Carlisle Settle railway at the Settle Station on our way to leeds to get a rental car.
First about Max. Max went to the vet on Wednesday. He needed to get check up and a “fit to fly letter”. He passed with flying colors and did not need to get violated. He will need another fit to fly letter when arrive back in the States so can fly to Hawaii. While at the Vet in Settle we also picked up some “Milk Protein” capsules that are supposed to help keep him calm. It is supposed to work like a warm glass of milk. We also bought a scented spray (that is quite vile) to spray in his carrier. We tried both for our trip down to London, and boy does that spray stink. However it all seemed to work quite well he was very quiet on the trip down from London (5 hour car ride).
Getting Ready to go to Buckingham Palace.
We checked in the Novatel in Hammersmith, about 15-20 mins from the Palace. Kate got us upgraded because she told the front desk staff that we were going to the Palace to visit the Prince. The locals know that the palace is closed this time of year and it only open for invited guests. We got ready and put on our finest clothes to go meet the Prince.
Originally it was going to be the Queen and not prince William, but it seems as though the prince is taking over some of her work load. We set off to the Palace. There were strict rules about having our entry passes, and a special pass to allow the black Cab into the Palace yard. We saw a line of black cabs out front of the hotel and thought it would be easy. When we got there, they were all off duty and empty. We went to front desk to call a black cab an it was going to take 10 mins. 15 mins later the cab had not shown up but luckily we saw a random black cab driver pass by, so we took his cab and left the other one to wonder what happened to us. We were now a bit late, although if traffic cooperated we would still make it before the Prince arrived. The traffic did not cooperate. It is disheartening to see people walking faster than the cab. We eventually arrived in front of the palace, and they removed the barriers to let us on the road in front of the palace, and then to front gate. At the front gate (as far as most people can get) the Taxi driver was asked to leave the cab, and the cab was searched. They checked under the bonnet (hood), they searched the boot (trunk). They used mirrors to look under the car. We had to show ID and our special purple passes. It was quite thorough but very efficient. After we were all cleared we drove into the Palace, past the the Queen’s guards. We were dropped off at the front entrance. There were lots of “attendents” to make sure we did not wonder off. We had to leave our phones and other accessories behind. The reception was in the Picture Gallery (part of the normal summer time tour). It has some very nice art work. All of the corridors were nicely decorated. We got to see parts of the palace that the public never gets to see.
The reception was nice. The canapés and hor dourves were all unique and delicious. They also had real Champagne and it was free flowing. Sadly the prince had limited time and we did not actually get chat with him, but he walked right past us. He was getting escorted around the room. I have to say, I was quite impressed with him. I believe he will be good King. I think that he will continue to transform the Crown to be for the people of the United Kingdom. He is very humble, down to earth, and a big heart. I think he has a lot of his mom in him. He gave a nice speech on behalf of his grandma (his words not mine) and then took his leave to go home to be with Kate and the kids. His Kate, not mine. However, some reports suggest that Kate (my Kate) had one too many glasses of Champagne. This of course was not her first time having a bit too much
In the courtyard of Buckingham Palace, wit the Palace’s front doors behind us.
champagne at Buckingham Palace in the presence of royalty. She has also met the Queen. Just kidding about Kate having too much Champagne, but this was real, proper Champagne and it was quite nice and even the best of us could have easily gotten out of hand. There was no attempt at rationing it.
It was an experience of a lifetime. It was a bit overwhelming. There was a lot to take in. We are now in London at a nicely priced Air BnB place a couple of blocks from Kate’s parents. Max is doing fine, in his third new place this week. He seems to adapt quicker and quicker each time. He seems to figure it all out very quickly. We do wonder what his two brain cells (the left one and the right one) think about it all. Through it all he is the same old energetic, lovable Max, that still likes to get up at 4am regardless of where he is in the world.
The exit from the courtyard to the area in front of the palace that most people see.Kate, Max and Mike after Buckingham Palace. Maybe I am the one that had too much Champagne.
Yesterday we drove down to Newark, New Jersey. It was pretty uneventful. I sure do love those NJ drivers. We stopped at the New Jersey Welcome Center, and it was anything but welcoming. It was only open 7am – 4pm. They should take a few lessons from Moe’s on how to be more welcoming. Welcome to Moes!
We stayed at an “Extended Stay” near the airport. I all I have to say is that I am glad I will not have to stay there an extended amount of time. We went to dinner at a Caribbean Restaurant that we have tried a year or two ago – it was not as good as it was last time, but it was still nice.
Max did fine in the car ride on the way down. He was good. He was not happy about it.
Max was a little nervous about the hotel room, but he settled down. For a while he would not even eat his treats. Poor guy. Once we went to bed he settled down and eventually ended up snuggling with me for a little while we slept. He was purring the whole time. Eventually I had to disturb him because I was restless and needed to get up.
Max is not Cargo on United. We will pick up at HARC (Heathrow Animal Reception Center). He along with his paperwork will clear immigration and customs. He will be in his crate about 10 hours. They will let him out and clean up any messes he makes at HARC. We will get the car crop out luggage off at the hotel and then go pick him up at HARC.
Max had his last visit to the vet on Wednesday to clear him for travel to the UK. Max was “injected, inspected, detected, infected, neglected and Selected! … every single part of him, and they was leavin’ no part untouched!” to quote Arlo Guthrie’s famous thanksgiving song Alice’s Restaurant Massacree in five-part harmony. We have omitted the “twenty-seven 8 x 10 colored glossy pictures with circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one“.
Here is the what we are referring to, if you have never heard the Alice’s Restaurant before.
Max lost a bit of his dignity when he had his temperature taken. Kate was surprised there isn’t a less invasive way to take a cat’s temperature.
Seriously – he got a clean bill of health – we got both of the different required health forms filled in by the vet and the European one has now been endorsed and sealed by the USDA, which required us to drive to Albany and back this morning. However, Max was able to stay home – the USDA vet just needed to see the paperwork. We thought the USDA needed to stamp and approve both health forms (the Appendix IV/European Health/Third country official vet form and the US Aphis 7001 form – but it turns out that the USDA no longer endorses/seals the Aphis form.
So now Max should be all set – next step is dropping him off at United Cargo at the crack of dawn Thursday morning.
The plan for Hawaii is not quite as detailed and is not finished yet.
We plan to be home for just under a week after coming back from England. We’ll leave again on October 26th. Max will need another vet appointment to clear him for flying. On the way out we will stop in Los Angeles. Max will get to ride in the cabin to LA. He will be in the cargo hold to Hawaii. United insists that he gets a window seat on all 757-200 aircraft. This is one of the upgraded “premium service” planes with a real first class experience. With Kate being platinum, we are hoping for an upgrade. We will spend to two days in Los Angeles. We do not really have any plans, other than to break the journey up for Max.
We fly directly into Kona. We will be met by a vet in Kona. We (Kate) have already talked to her, and all of Max’s paper work is approved. Max will get scanned to verify that it is really himself and get a quick examination to check his general health. We have not book any accommodations yet, but we might stay the night night in Kona to save Max from having to hold it for so long.
Our first place we will stay in Hawaii is in Kapoho on the east coast in a place loosely known as the “Tidal Pools”. We should have that house booked in the next day or so. We will then spend the last 20-30 days some where else. We are either going to either in Volcano, Hilo, or Kea’au, Pahoa or possibly Waikoloa.
We are hoping to take a trip or two to somewhere else in the Pacific outside of Hawaii. We are also hoping to get some diving in while we are there. I am hoping to do more hiking in Hawaii. I have done some great hikes in Hawaii in the past, and looking forward to some more. There are some big mountains there that are just waiting for me.
Kate’s parents will be in Hawaii with us for the last month or so. Their flights have already been booked. I am really looking forward to sharing what I know of Hawaii with them. We do another lay over on the way back in LA, so Max can switch back to riding in the cabin.
We come back home January 11th, a little more than 5 months after we started. Kate has a conference in California almost immediately after we come back.
Max relaxingI think there is something that will stroke me in that cupboard…
Max – Just looking good.
So I have learnt that there are sometimes many names for the same form…. And that taking a cat across the ocean requires a lot of planning. And probably a lot of extra luggage…
For travelling to both the UK and Hawaii from the US mainland Max has to arrive cargo. Alaskan Airlines may be able to take cats in the cabin into Hawaii – but as far as I know none of the other airlines do/can. For the UK I don’t think its allowed for any airline. Turns out Max also has to come back from both the UK and Hawaii as cargo.
We are flying United – so this has meant phoning United PetSafe to book Max to travel cargo. They have been very helpful so far. They take all the details – and book it in – but you don’t pay until you drop the cat off. We are driving down to Newark when we fly to the UK – so that we can deal with a big airport that (hopefully) will know what they are doing..
For Hawaii we will break our trip at LAX so we and Max get a break from planes and we will just check him cargo from LAX. That means we need to make sure that his crate gets to LA though…
Max enjoying the new crate
We bought Max a special travel crate. There are lots of rules for the crate – how big it has to be, it needs to have ventilation on all sides, two water containers etc. Hopefully we have followed them all. There is a nice Heathrow Animal Reception Centre (HARC) video about this
For example I had to replace all the screws and bolts that hold the crate together with metal ones. We also have twist-ties to tie the door on when we deliver him to the airline. He is not allowed any toys in the crate with him when he travels 🙁 All you can put in the crate with him is an absorbent layer at the bottom. That may be the most stressful part for Max. No humans to stroke him and no toys to play with for so many hours.
He has to be dropped off at United cargo 3-4 hours before the flight and he has to have eaten and had a drink 4 hours before the flight.
Hanging out in the crate
The crate we bough is 28” x 20.5” x 21” . From the rules I was a little worried before it arrived that it might not be large enough (you have to measure your pet in all different dimensions and ways and then do some math) – but there is loads of space for him. Having said that – it costs the same price to ship this one as the smaller one – as United uses a range of weights for each price – so I am glad he will have more space, more of an economy plus kind of crate, while he travels :). We have been getting him used to the crate by putting treats in it at regular intervals.
When are we off? and where are my treats?
Microchip
We adopted Max and he came with a microchip. We thought this was an AVID chip – but when we did some investigating recently – turns out it is a 24hr petwatch chip. It is also not ISO compliant – which I didn’t realize until recently. That caused some stress as the UK websites all say that the chip has to be ISO compliant and if it isn’t, you need to take your own chip reader with you. However – the UK pet importing service we have to use, PBS, said it was OK and the HARC website says they can read AVID chips (and ours should be readable with an AVID chip reader). I emailed HARC several times (from their website) to check this – but with no response. In the end I phoned – even though their website said not to – and got a very helpful young woman who assured me that, at Heathrow at least, they can read all sorts of microchips and ours should be fine.
For traveling with Max to the UK – enquiring from many different sources has come up with the consensus that we need
Form Appendix IV (also called third country official vet form and European Health Certificate) – this is a UK government form you can find at the link below. This has to be signed in a different color to the printing. It must also have the brand and product names for the rabies vaccines used and the lot numbers. It also needs to be sealed by the USDA
2. Rabies Vaccination Certificate – there are lots of rules about this – it needs to have the product name, manufacturer name, lot number and expiry date of the vaccine used and the validity dates for the innoculation
3. Health form Aphis 7001 – which is a US health form (I think this is needed mainly for the airline). We had been told that this also needed a USDA seal – but when we took it to the USDA they said that they no longer seal these.
Both Appendix IV and Aphis 7001 forms need to be issued within 10 days of travel and Appendix IV/European Health Certificate also needs a USDA seal. This means you need to get the form from the vet and then fedex them to a USDA office – or we are driving them up to Albany to get them stamped as the timing is so tight as we don’t want to risk them getting lost in the mail.
Because we will put Max in a cattery for a week while we are in the UK – we also need a certificate for his FVRCP vaccinations (Cat flu) – as that is a legal requirement for UK catteries.
This was all very confusing to sort out – as initially United and PBS were using different names for the same form (the appendix IV) and United told us we needed a EU passport (that you can’t get outside the EU).
We also have to pay a UK company to clear Max through customs. We we had to use the company that United contracts with at Heathrow, which is called PBS – www.pbspettravel.co.uk
When he arrives Max will be taken here (HARC) – where they will put him in a kennel and run and feed him and let him go to the Bathroom
To bring Max back to the USA there are less requirements. Again he had to be booked cargo with United petsafe – but this time – this had to be arranged with a UK company. We are using the same one that are clearing Max through customs when we arrive. We filled in some paperwork for them and paid them some money and they make the arrangements. We then need to drop Max off 4 hours before our flight at United cargo (I hope we can find this – the address is a bit ambiguous) with a letter from a Vet, written within the last 10 days saying that Max is fit to travel. Also called “Fit to Fly certificate”. This has to be signed, stamped and dated on vets official headed paper. So we will have to find Max a London vet before we come home.
For Hawaii – you really need to plan ahead – as not only are rabies vaccinations needed – but also your cat needs to have a blood test done to prove that the antibody titre is high enough. A blood sample needs to be sent to Kansas State University and the results of this need to be obtained 120 days before you can travel to Hawaii. The nice thing is that you can log on to the Hawaiian website and check that they have the blood test results – just by searching with your pet’s chip number.
Your pet needs to have had at least two rabies injections, both while they had a chip that was read, and the second injection needs to be at least 90 days before your pet goes to Hawaii. There are good guidelines on the department of agriculture website for Hawaii http://hdoa.hawaii.gov/ai/aqs/animal-quarantine-information-page/
You need original rabies vaccination certificates for the two most recent injections – and they need to be signed in ink by your vet. Copies are not allowed. You also don’t get these back. So if you have a jet-setting kitty like Max is becoming, you may need to ask your vet for several originals of these.
We are flying direct to Kona on the big island and are doing direct admission on Kona. This meant that we had to send all of the paperwork to Hawaii ahead of time – but the good thing about that is that now we have a permit to bring Max in. So all we now need for Hawaii is that permit and a health certificate issued less than 10 days before we fly. We have also had to contract with a local vet (there are two to choose from) who will come and check Max’s chip and paperwork at the airport when we arrive. We have been working with Kelly at the Kona Veterinary service and she has been really helpful and friendly.
New in cabin travel bag for Max
For internal flights within the USA with United you can book to take a pet in the cabin at the same time as you book your own flights online (there is a special box you can tick in the “Advanced search” option). United charges for this – $125 each leg of the journey. The website though is pretty cool – it knows what seats you can’t sit in if you are traveling with a cat. For example, one of the newer planes – you can only fit a cat in the space under a window seat. However the software is not clever enough at the moment to work out that if two humans are traveling with one single cat – that doesn’t mean that both humans need to have a window seat. That took a phone call to United to sort out – and it took them a long while to be able to fix it….
More new things for Max
For traveling within the US on the way to Hawaii – and maybe also traveling around the UK – we have bought a new travel bag/crate. It zips out to have two side wings – a bit like a tent. He likes sitting in this one already too (maybe because there are sometimes treats hidden in there). Looks like some toys have been carried to it as well. Max likes carrying his toys to his favorite places so this is a good sign..
fold up litter box in foreground
Max even has a new pack-up travel litter box. This looks a bit small to us – but it packs up the size of a paperback book and other people claim it works ….
We saw a line of black cabs out front of the hotel and thought it would be easy. When we got there, they were all off duty and empty. We went to front desk to call a black cab an it was going to take 10 mins. 15 mins later the cab had not shown up but luckily we saw a random black cab driver pass by, so we took his cab and left the other one to wonder what happened to us. We were now a bit late, although if traffic cooperated we would still make it 
before the Prince arrived. The traffic did not cooperate. It is disheartening to see people walking faster than the cab. We eventually arrived in front of the palace, and they removed the barriers to let us on the road in front of the palace, and then to front gate. At the front gate (as far as most people can get) the Taxi driver was asked to leave the cab, and the cab was searched. They checked under the bonnet (hood), they searched the boot (trunk). They used mirrors to look under the car. We had to show ID and our special purple passes. It was quite thorough but very efficient. After we were all cleared we drove into the Palace, past the the Queen’s guards. We were dropped off at the front
entrance. There were lots of “attendents” to make sure we did not wonder off. We had to leave our phones and other accessories behind. The reception was in the Picture Gallery (part of the normal summer time tour). It has some very nice art work. All of the corridors were nicely decorated. We got to see parts of the palace that the public never gets to see.
