| Keeping your bird comfortable and safe should be your primary goal. There are many types of travel cages and pet carriers avaible, so you need to determine what is appropriate for your bird depending on the type of travel and length of the trip you are taking. Do your research; talk to friends who travel with their birds, visit some pet stores, and have a look on the web. Considerations:
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Traveling by automobile
- provide your bird with a perch, some carriers are specifically designed for parrots and come equipped with a perch; other pet carriers can easily have a perch added (use screws and washers placed on the outside of the plastic carrier)
- take the time to get your bird used to the travel carrier prior to taking any type of trip, you don’t want this to be a negative or stressful experience
- make sure that your bird cannot escape from the carrier
- provide treats (peanuts, pellets, fruit)
- attach a chew toy to the inside of the carrier
- food dishes should be fastened to the carrier to prevent them from being tossed inside the carrier and injuring your bird
- a water bottle or small water dish can be provided periodically keeping water available in the carrier may just lead to a mess
- on long trips don’t forget your bird needs stretch breaks too – but only in a safe, controlled space
Traveling by airplane
Depending on the size of your bird, it may be traveling inside the cabin or checked as luggage in the cargo area.
- each airline has it’s own rules and regulations when it comes to pets (some do not allow pets at all in cabin or the cargo others only allow animals on certain flights)
- Investigate your options prior to finalizing your plane tickets
- determine what type and size of carriers are required by the airline, there are a variety of soft-sided and hard-sided kennels that are designed specifically for airline travel and meet legal requirements
- make sure your bird can stand on a perch and turn around
- it is important that your bird cannot escape from the carrier
- ensure that a luggage handler cannot be bitten by your bird when moving the travel cage around
- regulations for air travel are governed by a group called IATA (www.iata.org)
