Traveling with Your Bird
Moving, going on vacation, retrieving a new bird? Traveling with a parrot can be a process, and can be intimidating, but there are a lot of different methods, tips, and tricks to know to make the process easier, and sometimes legal. There also may be some training involved to prepare your parrot for stress-free and seamless traveling. This blog post will cover traveling with your parrot. International travels will not be discussed in this blog, as that is a lengthy topic in itself and complicated depending on the country.
The first recommendation is to choose the carrier that works best you, your bird, and your traveling method. If your bird is traveling by car, you have all the options to choose from. But, if they are being shipped, traveling on a plane, or on other means of transportation, there may be specific requirements by the company aiding in your travels. Generally, there are three carrier types; there is the covered carriers, like the dog and cat plastic carriers and the acrylic ones, there are wire carriers, similar to a normal parrot cage but smaller, and fabric carriers, like backpacks. The wire carriers are generally the easiest to train your bird to go into, since it is the most similar to their normal cage. But it also allows the bird to get car sick, they can chew through the bars like your car seats, and you cannot use this type of carrier on commercial travels like planes and shipping. Covered carriers are great for traveling on commercial and shipping your parrot, but if it is plastic, like the dog and cat carriers, some birds, especially cockatoos, may chew their way through it. Backpacks I never recommend for the reason of it is a lot easier for a bird to chew its way out, resulting in a lot more training in the beginning. The bird is also on your back, meaning you cannot keep an eye on them when the backpack is on. Finally, they are super bouncy when you walk, which can be stressful and uncomfortable for parrots. They’re generally not big enough to allow for tail clearance which can affect balance if the tail is hitting on the back of the backpack. They also could not be shipped or travel on a plane with this option.
Another common concern is car sickness. Parrots can get motion sickness just like humans resulting them to throw up. Before traveling a long distance with your bird, it is recommended to test out their motion sickness tolerance and go for a lot of longer drives with them in their carrier and see if they have a reaction. If your bird does get motion sickness, a covered carrier or a carrier covered with a towel is recommended so they cannot see out the window. Another aid for motion sickness is giving your bird a bit of ginger 2 weeks before your travels everyday and make sure your bird eats it. This is not a cure, but in some instances it has helped. You can also ask your trusted avian vet if they have any aids if your bird’s sickness is severe.
Training may need to be done to get your bird comfortable in the carrier for traveling short and long distances. It is not recommended to force your bird into the carrier and take them along. That would be incredibly stressful for the bird, and birds are so sensitive that they can die of stress. Traveling already puts enough stress on us humans, why add to the stress with an uncomfortable bird? Training can take time, a month or more, but a lot of birds pick it up quickly. It is within best practice to hire a trainer to help you correctly crate train. Fluff and Feathers All Animal Training has online and in-person consultations for crate training available. Click here to fill out a ticket to learn more about our training consultations.
To add onto the prep work, no matter where you are going or how far, you should see your trusted avian vet 10 days before your travels with your bird to get a physical examination, disease testing if needed, and bloodwork to medically clear your bird for travel. Birds are masters at hiding illnesses, it aids them in the wild because a flock will abandon a sick bird in order to preserve the health of the flock, so making sure your bird is in perfect health is important for traveling. The stress of traveling can decrease a bird’s health, especially if they are not properly trained for travel, so its best to have your bird in optimal health before leaving. If you are crossing state lines, driving or flying, then you need to get the proper disease testing for every state you pass through or land at. Each state has a disease testing requirement that needs to be sent in to accept new animals. Heavily farming states require much more due to agricultural protection. Your trusted vet will know how to get their information and will be sure to do the proper testing to get clearance. If you are driving, it would be every state you drive through. If you are flying, it would be every state you land at, even layovers, even if you do not leave the airport. You can get stuck in a state with your bird and face heavy fines, or not allowed to get on the plane initially, unless this is done properly. Shipping birds will also require the same criteria.
Now that we have the prep-work out of the way, lets talk about the traveling options. By car is probably the easiest and most common way of transporting your bird. It allows you to have the most control of the traveling situation. There are pet-friendly hotels that do allow parrots to stay inside and they are plentiful. The great thing is you can choose when to stop, how fast you are going, and how long you travel per day that best fits for you and your bird. You can also use any carrier you like. I do not recommend while the vehicle is in motion to have your bird out of the carrier for safety reasons in the event of an accident. Another concern is if your parrot gets motion sickness, this type of travel will be the most triggering for your parrot. It may also be longer than other types of transportation, which may not work for all parrots. It also means there will be more disease testing going out, as driving you would travel through more states, which can make the prep work pricier.
Traveling by plane is an option! Bird’s can even travel in cabin. But there is much more work to be done to choose this method of flying with your bird. First, you have to find an airline that will allow a parrot in cabin. In the US, of the major airlines, only Delta Airlines allows for parrots to be in cabin. Personally, I flew my very special needs bird Munchkin across the country from San Diego, CA to Baltimore, MD using Delta Airlines and it was smooth sailing! When you book your tickets, you should immediately call customer care and let them know to add a pet onto your reservation. The tricky thing is only a specific number of animals are allowed in cabin on a single flight. Service animals are not limited, but do have first pick. This DOES NOT include emotional support animals, as they have different protections with the law than real service animals and are treated as an average pet in this situation. So, you can add one to your reservation, but if you get there and there are service animals that reach capacity, your animal will not be allowed in cabin. So, there is a level of unpredictability, but you can always try another flight, and Delta Airlines will be accommodating. When you fly with your pet, be prepared to pay about a $200.00 or more extra fee for them traveling on top of the ticket prices; you pay this when you check in at the airport. Even if you have your tickets online, do not go right to TSA, you have to check your bird in.
Once you are all checked in, you have to go through TSA, which is the tricky part. They need to run the carrier through x-ray, but your bird cannot go through x-ray. Therefore, you need to request a hand search in a private room. They will take just you and the bird, as the rest of the party if applicable will go though normal TSA, and take you into a closed room with no windows with two officers. They will ask for the bird to come out of the carrier so they can run the carrier and examine the animal from a distance, and then once cleared, you put your animal back inside the carrier. So, you will need to be able to get your bird in and out of the carrier seamlessly, further reinforcing the possible need for professional training. From there, you are free to go and wait till you board the plane.
Another consideration is carrier size when it comes to flying in cabin with parrots. When you are on the phone with the airlines, you need to ask what are the dimensions of the under the seat storage to determine the size of the carrier. Your bird will be treated similar to a laptop where the carrier needs to fit under the seat in front of you. For take off and landing, the bird will need to be there for safety reasons. So, the carrier must fit under the seat. I traveled with an amazon easily under the seat, but if you have a larger bird, you should talk to the airlines about the possibility of buying the bird its own ticket so it can have more space. I have flown birds of prey in cabin with their own seat and they were put on the floor in front of the seat in the past, but please check recent guidelines by contacting customer service. Your bird must remain in its carrier for the entire travel from coming into the airport to leaving after your flight.
My personal experience flying with a parrot was smooth sailing. At the layover we had in Michigan, I took Munchkin into the family bathrooms that are single and let him come out for a bit and stretch. I also freshened up his carrier. On the first flight, which was the longest, the stewards brought him his own small plate of food including oatmeal, fresh fruits, and a granola bar that was actually safe for him to eat! It was so sweet. On both flights, they did not enforce Munchkin ever going under the seat in front of me. They told me and then when they came back up the isle to check, they smiled and purposefully turned their head to the row next to us as they walked by, like they didn’t see it. It was such a positive experience. As for my bird, he was trained intensely before the flight by his rescuer PEAC (Parrot Education and Adoption Service in San Diego, California, link to their website), so there were no complications. He was super content. He talked a lot, I put my hand in the carrier to scratch him, he was eating and drinking by the bowls in his carrier. I was a little nervous because I knew Munchkin for less than 48 hours and he is pretty special needs, so there was a lot I was concerned about with this specific bird. Luckily, I have enough experience and education to be able to handle most of the worst case medically to happen to him in order to keep him supported till we landed. Thankfully, I did not have to use my skills.
The last method of transportation is by a shipping service, which also includes flying your parrot in cargo, since they are the same thing. Some airlines do not heat their cargo areas, so traveling with a specific pet traveling company will ensure cargo is heated to a degree. It is not as comfortable as in cabin though temperature wise, so a plucked bird may not be the best candidate for shipping. Cargo is dark, which can help keep birds relaxed. It is very loud down there, but parrots are also loud and have the ability to regenerate their hearing, so it wont affect them long-term but may increase stress slightly. It will also be in best interest to go through a pet shipping company because a lot will do all the work for you in getting clearance, getting health exams, obtaining permits if applicable, and some will arrange state quarantine for international travel if needed. They can also provide airline approved carriers or make wooden ones for your bird to travel in so you do not have to worry about making sure the carrier is airline approved. It is still recommended to train your parrot before hand using a covered dog carrier to ease the stress. Birds are given food and water for travels, but it is preferred by Fish and Wildlife to have no toys in the carrier. Shipping your bird would be cheaper than flying with your bird, and may become cheaper than driving if you are stopping at hotels.
Shipping can be difficult. To start, you are not with your bird. No one is. They are treated more like luggage than an animal, so they are kept track of, but not always directly supervised, especially after being loaded onto the plane. Deaths have occurred in the hands of shipping, either from negligence, plane delays, or just the stress of the situation. You are trusting your bird with strangers that do not know a lot about parrots. If there are delays, the company continues to hold your bird in their care, which has a sense of unpredictability. They will not take your bird out of the carrier for any reason. Also, the carriers would be treated as fragile luggage, but even fragile important luggage gets lost sometimes. They can lose your bird. It may be the easiest and possibly cheapest option and everything is done for you depending on the company you go through, but there are also more risk factors for something to go wrong.
No matter how you travel, there will always be risks, as well as added benefits involved with each. Traveling with your parrot is a personal choice, so you determine how you travel with your bird and what works best. The three options listed, driving, flying, and shipping, are the most common options, and other means of travel follow similar guidelines. The one thing that is consistent no matter how you travel is you need to visit your vet and train your bird to accept traveling with ease! You can always contact Fluff and Feathers using this link to get your bird prepared for traveling!