By: Lindsey Stone
With new pet travel regulations being implemented with no broad standard across airlines, Kari Mendoza—owner of Island Pet Movers—not only recognizes the need for education within the military and local communities of Hawaii where her business operates, but also has set a goal for 2020 to increase the public’s knowledge and perception of pet travel. This vision includes a promoting greater understanding of how pet travel works and why it is important for pets to travel safely and at reasonable cost as well as diminishing negative perceptions. Mendoza says, “I would say many of our clients are scared to fly their pets, thinking their beloved pets will die in the cargo of an airplane. This is a huge misconception of how pets are flown. Pet transportation is very safe. Unfortunately, with social media and ‘fake news,’ people spread fear, which has led airlines to change their policies.”
Kari Mendoza’s contribution to safe pet travel extends further, including her presenting at two International Pet and Animal Transportation Association (IPATA) conferences and lobbying for United Airline policies to change with regard to pet shipping in 2017. If you haven’t flown a pet recently or haven’t stayed up to date on airline regulations regarding the transportation of pets, a quick Google search can be extremely overwhelming. As Mendoza explains, “One terrible, unfortunate incident led to an entire airline to change significant policy, and this forced hundreds of families moving internationally to find alternative ways to move pets at thousands more in cost. Sadly, some families were unable to pay the additional cost, and those pets were rehomed. Sadder still is that the incident was not related to cargo pet shipping. Social media spread the story like wildfire, which resulted in the shipping of pets to screech to a halt for nearly three months before the airline announced that many rules had changed.”
When so many see their pets as family members, navigating the shipment of pets is a time-consuming, sometimes confusing or frightening affair that can be hard to prepare for without help. Mendoza grew up in the Army, and she remembers her parents always made sure their pets went with them no matter where they were stationed—even Germany twice. Mendoza says that even through her service in the Navy, with three deployments, separation, and college, she never let the thought of separating from her animals as a possibility. This is why, she says, Island Pet Movers in Honolulu, Hawaii works as hard as they do, because Mendoza and her staff—who are nearly all military spouses or veterans—understand the lifestyle and know that it is 100% possible to keep your pets at your side. In fact, roughly 70% of Island Pet Movers’ Pacific shipment clients are military affiliated, while on the mainland U.S., that number is only about 30%.
The most common pet transfers are to Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Europe, and domestic U.S. locations. Of those locations, Mendoza says the common thread of advice she has is to start the preparation process early. In many cases, people wait until the last minute to get their pets ready to travel—some locations require a minimum wait period of nine months before the pet can travel. Those who wait too long may be required to fly before their pets in order to meet regulations, which can be costly in boarding expenses. “If there is a 70% change you may move internationally, get a head start now; you’ll be grateful for your foresight,” she suggests. As a competitive dog sports guru, Mendoza has traveled with her pets internationally many times and can’t stress enough the importance of preparation.
For military families preparing to move, she recommends families always keep their pets up to date on vaccines, and more importantly think about the big picture when deciding to buy a Bulldog or a Great Dane. Animals with snub noses or who require specialized crate sizes are expensive to ship and may stress more easily than other breeds during transport. She suggests considering the breed and size of a potential pet before adopting because these considerations can greatly reduce moving costs and the rate of forced pet rehoming.
Kari Mendoza and the staff at Island Pet Movers understand the pressure and stress involved in moving, let alone the potential added time needed to prepare family pets. You can limit the stress involved by entrusting your beloved pets with Island Pet Movers, knowing they have you and your pet’s best interest at heart. In addition to providing transport services, Island Pet Movers’ mission is to educate the public, specifically military families, on pet shipment policies, which is a mission that can be seen through their social media channels, their website, and the services they provide.
