This is a terribly sad story, and a warning to those who might be considering transporting a dog on a long flight.
(I have quoted selectively to provide the main gist of the story rather than just providing a link, because accessing the site where I found it requires registration).
[quote=“The Daily Telegraph”]The RSPCA is investigating after a pet dog died from dehydration soon after arriving on a British Airways flight from London to Australia.
Edward and Sheila Smith paid
I nearly died of dehydration once on a flight from Melbourne to London on British Airways. Never again.
Poor dog. I think it’s madness doing that to an animal anyway. It’s fucking bad enough in economy class, but putting a dog in a cage with a little bowl of water for 24 hours? Bastards.
for those of you who are flying your dogs some where you can buy these little water systems that screw onto the outside of your cage. You screw a water bottle into the top, turn it upside down and put the little nozel thing through the cage, screw it in place and your dog drinks the water by licking the nozel. Kinda like a giant hamster water thing. Best of all you can attach big or small water bottles depending on the flight length. Im going to stick the big one liter one on for when I take my dogs back to Canada, they will each get one and it should last them for a ten hour flight.
Woudsprite good advice. But how about the dog being able to relieve itself?
Can anyone post any good instructions about how to prepare and travel with your dog? Thanks
I used one of those water bottles that attach to the outside of the cage when I took my dog back to Canada with me and it worked great.
As for the dog being able to relieve himself…I bought one of those crate travel mats online from Petsmart. They’re supposed to absorb any wetness to help keep the crate and your puppy dry. We also had a longer stopover in LA and they let me take him outside the airport across the street, which was nice for my dog.
Hi, could woudsprite or TD pls. post a pic of one of those bottles? I’ve been looking but could only find the hamster-style sizes.
We’re flying to Europe in a month with our Labrador Retriever and I’m a bit worried, he’s a big dog and needs a lot of water, and if he relieves himself he does it in style, too - if you know what I mean. Not sure if an absorbant mat can cope … ?? TD, can you send a link for these mats??
Thanks a lot! Xpet.
Unfortunately, I am unable to take a picture of the water bottle holder until my camera starts working again. But, I can post the link for the mat that I bought:
petsmart.com/global/product_ … 2265179282
I can’t say exactly how well they work? It seemed pretty dry when we got home from our flight, but then again, my dog might have held it in…he’s pretty good at that!
Even with that water bottle holder, I still bought one of those stainless steel bird dishes and froze some water in it…just in case 
I don’t have any way to upload a picture at the moment, all I did was to go into the pet store in my area (where are you from, if your near Taichung I will come help you find one) and point to the kennel and said in very bad Chinese, “wa yow gay wa de go shway” Which roughly means I want to give my dog water. The lady got it right away and went and showed me the little thing, which comes without a bottle and looks like some funky garden hose implement crossed with a mini hamster bottle. I got a purple and green one.
Instead of paying too much for ‘Pet’ water absorption pads, just get the incontinence pads for peolple - the ones that go on a bed to stop it being wetted.
I can get a bag full at the supermarket near me for a few hundred NT$. Xpet, shall I get some and deliver with the dog biscuits - that I didn’t have time to bring at the weekend?
Sean
Don’t people often sedate their pets before sending them on a flight? I think my brother did with his dog. Isn’t it possible such sedatives might also contribute to the dehydration? I don’t know; just asking.
Hi all, and thanks for all the info! Woudsprite, I’m in Taipei, butthanks anyway! I speak Chinese, too, so I should be able to get them if they’re available, I just hadn’t seen them in these big sizes yet …
Re. the mats/asorbing pads - if it’s anything he can rip apart, I’d rather not put it in his crate, he’ll surely rip it to smitherines and then chew on the stuff and swallow it; the original story that started this thread to me sounded as if the shredded and devoured water bowl was at least part of the reason this poor pooper passed away …
We’re flying late at night, he’s a very good sleeper once he’s settled down, so I’m hoping that for the most part he’ll be happily snoring anyway, if he’s not too excited …
TD, the tip with the frozen water dish is ingenious, I only have to figure out how to prevent the ice from thawing before the plane has taken off …
MT, my parents once did that with their cat for a longer car journey. Unfortunately, they did it right in the middle of her “heat” (what’s that called for cats?), which somehow completely upset her hormones etc., with the result that she was in heat twice as often afterwards for the rest of her life as she was never spayed … I don’t know who suffered more, the cat or the humans in the house, except of course for me mom … 
Do you already have a crate to take your dog back in TD? If you don’t you can find one with a lift away bottom piece(not the actual bottom, a kinda false one with holes in it) You can put the wet obsorbing material under it the replace the false bottom and put something comfortable for your dog to sleep on there. Either way your dog will probably end up making a bit of a mess and you’ll have to clean em off when you get home.
Woudsprite, yeah, I’m actually in Canada now so I’ve already gone through the whole flight-with-dog thing. I just used those pet pads and they worked fine. They also have some sort of covering which is one reason I used those…I was afraid of my dog chewing on a pad if it wasn’t covered by something.
All the research I did before I brought my dog home highly recommended against using any sort of sedatives when flying with a pet.
(From bellaonline.com/articles/art3785.asp)
I didn’t use any sedatives with my dog. Sure, he barked a little at first, but he settled down and was a pretty good boy after awhile 
Thank goodness I didn’t read this BEFORE I put Tuesday on the plane two days ago. I had enough of a hard time worrying about her without having read about the poor dog.
She had one of those screw-on water bottles (1l). And though she never used to drink anything in Taipei, it was completely empty by the time we got to our destination (almost 24 hours after leaving home in Taipei). We had had a stop-over, and I thought they would take care of her in the pet station at the stop-over airport. Or at least refill her water bottle :s Anyway, she lept up another bowl of water when we got home, had the necessary bath (even more necessary after she had explored the bottom of the tiled oven) and is fine now. Taking her with me was definitely worth the worrying over her.
Hi Iris, good to hear that you and the little maomi have arrived home safely. 24h, that must have been quite an ordeal for her!
If you have any further experiences to share from your trip pls. share!!
[quote=“wombleton”]
Poor dog. I think it’s madness doing that to an animal anyway. It’s f***ing bad enough in economy class, but putting a dog in a cage with a little bowl of water for 24 hours? Bastards.[/quote]
I understand what you are saying, and I agree that it sucks to place a dog in a cage and stick her in the cargo area on a plane for 20+ hours. But, seeing my dog run through the back woods of Maine and get all excited each time she sees a squirrel, chipmunk, porcupine, deer, etc., knowing that we left the congestion and concrete of Taipei behind, assures me that the trip was worth it.
China Airlines was very helpful with my dog. I flew from Taipei to NYC. The airline allowed me to check in early, but let me keep my dog with me until 90 min. before flight time. I took my dog outside to walk around until the last possible minute. Our flight stopped in Anchorage for about 2 hrs. When I asked the airline ground staff about my dog, the woman said that the baggage crew had already checked on my dog, saw that she was ok and gave her some water.
We both arrived in NYC in good health, although my dog gave me a look when she first saw me that said “WHAT THE F@#% WAS THAT!!!”
I think the story of the dog dying is horrible. But, I am sure that thousands of dogs travel by flight each year without incident. The whole thing, while stressful to me and my dog, seemed pretty routine to China Airline staff. Other posters have given good advice on how to keep your dog’s water supply plentiful during flight. I think this one incident should not deter a pet owner from bringing his or her best friend home.
And I totally agree. I’m a big anticagist/antistressist, but I think smerf provides an excellent example of when these things are well worth it.
Great to hear about Buddy enjoying the dog’s life now. To think she was almost condemned to living a crippled life, in fear, on a roadside garbage dump in Taoyuan, and now she’s out there with smerf in Maine.
Good on yer, smerf. :bravo: 
Remember to post some pics, next time!
Sean