Traveling to Germany With My 60 lbs Furry Baby

I live in Southern California, and my fiancé lives in Western Germany. When I rescued Gaston, a 60 lbs Husky-Chow Chow mixed during the pandemic, one of the things that took me a long time to consider before adopting him was what do I do with him if I needed to travel internationally. I don’t have relatives in the U.S. and asking a friend to watch a large dog like Gaston for weeks is a big favor to ask. Of course, there is always Rover and local dog boarding to send a dog to, but dog boarding in SoCal isn’t cheap. You are looking at an average of between 65-80 dollars per night.

That is why I started looking into the possibility to take Gaston on the journey with me. And what I soon to realized is that bringing your pet with you on an international trip to Europe is not as hard as people think and a more cost-effective option if you are gone for more than 2 weeks.

Here are the lists of what you need for international pet travel:

The first thing you need is to find an IATA-approved kennel - The one I got for my 60 lbs husky is Petmate Sky Kennel with 40" L x 27" W x 30" H. ($299, Petsmart)
I also bought an extension kit to make the kennel about 3 inches taller to give Gaston extra room. Note: Check with your airline with create size requirements. For instance, Lufthansa Air's maximum height for a pet's crate is 33.5 inches. ($155, KC Pet)
An EU health certificate from an accredited veterinarian. This document needs to be dated within 30 days before your flight departure date- I suggest you use the APHIS website to search for accredited veterinarians in your area. I called a few listing veterinarians on the APHIS website, but some told me they don't issue EU Health Certificates. Eventually, I found VCP PetPoint Medical Center and Resort in Irvin. Here are what you need to bring to your first appointment:

A copy of your dog's rabies vaccination certificate.
Be microchipped and make sure the microchip is ISO-compliant. The ISO-compliant microchip is usually 15 digits long.

During the consultation, the vet will scan the microchip and ask you some questions about your dog. If your dog is not doing well in the kennel like my furrybaby, you can also use this opportunity to ask the doctor to prescribe some calming medications to help your pet throughout the flight.

When you receive the EU health certificate from the vet, double-check to ensure the paper is signed and dated within 30 days of your flight departure date and that the microchip's identification number is correct.
The cost of EU health certificate is $380. See the cost breakdown:

After the EU health certificate is issued, you must have the health certificate endorsed by USDA Endorsement Office. The endorsement must happen within 10 days of your pet's arrival in the EU.

You want to make sure you have the endorsed health certificate returned to you before your flight departure date.

4. Dog kennel water bottle - Train your dog to learn how to drink water from kennel water bottle prior to the trip.

5. Zip ties- I use zip ties to securely tighten the door to prevent Gaston escape from the crate.

6. Use AirTag to track the location of your pet.

7. Have some dog treats with you to calm your dog, but I don’t recommend to give your dog too much treats right before the long flight.

8. Plastic folder to put all important documents in.

9. A comfy kennel pad.

10. Do not leave a collar on your dog as they could get caught up by the collar during travel.

11. I do give Gaston an anti-anxiety drug before traveling to keep him calm. But if your dog is comfortable being inside the crate, then you won’t need it.

12. Bring a pen.

13. Poop bags

14. Bring your dog’s favorite toy to keep your dog occupied.

Contact the airline’s customer service to let them know you are traveling with a pet so that they can reserve a spot for your crate. and they will ask you to provide the size of the crate and the weight of the pet you will be checking in cargo-hold.

Bon voyage xoxo