driving 24 hours or flying 5hrs on a plane, which would b less stressful for my bun

[heatherv]

driving 24 hours or flying 5hrs on a plane, which would b less stressful for my bun.

I'm moving from WAstate to South Dakota between March and May then driving up to ND. My husband and I are trying to figure out which to do. He has classes till June that's why I'm leaving early, to find a place for us in ND (where he's going to transfer to a university there).

1. I could take our car, my mom would fly out and drive back with me, our bun a holland lop would come with me in the car. The trip is 25 hours driving probably 30 with pitstops and hotel overnights

2. My mom couldn't make it, so I may not drive (I have night blindness)or my husband may not feel safe letting me drive on my own at night, then my bun has to take a plane trip with me. A recent plane ticket I found said plane trip will take 5 hours 1 stop over

A plane trip would be less $$ but could my 3lbs holland lop ride with me under my seat? What is the process for taking a small bunny on a plane? How can I limit the stress? Can my vet give sedatives or could that kill my bunny?

 

[pani]

The first thing I'd recommend is investigating if the airline you're using will let you take a bunny in the passenger part of the plane with you. I've looked into it for when I plan to move in a few years, and Australian airlines aren't that helpful when it comes to moving animals in the passenger area. Have a check and see if they'll let you take him.

 

[Suzi]

There are special animal 'courier' services over here in the UK that have experience in small animal travel and special vehicles, etc for transporting animals long distance.
Not sure if you have such companies over there but it may be worth finding out if you plan to fly and the airline isn't helpful. May be expensive though and you would have to hand over responsibility for your bun.

 

[Lexi01]

I agree with pani, call the airlines and look into it. With small dogs (maybe rabbits) they let you take them on the plane if the carrier can fit under the seat. If not they put them in the cargo hold with a the luggage and in the high altitude the oxgen gets thinner and it gets extremely cold (only a few humans have survived it that got smuggled, but they don't have thick fur coats either). Also look into buses (greyhound is cheap if you're in the US!) They smell and have weird people but you won't have to stop to sleep, someone keeps driving the whole time and it can be faster than a car and much cheaper than a plane. I bused cross country twice and it's an interesting adventure! Except we got caught in snow storms and it took like 5 days... but they gave us free food!

Anyways, good luck!

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

Some airlines do allow rabbits in the cabin, but you need to check and make sure to book as early as you can since they do limit the number of pets in the cabin (usually 2-4). Also keep in mind that the space under the seat is quite small, so only the smallest rabbits would be comfortable in the right sized carrier (again check since some airlines have different size spaces). The time spent in the carrier is more than just the flight. You need to arrive early for the flight, usually 1.5 to 2 hours to make sure you get your rabbit in (if they over book, you can be bumped or the rabbit doesn't get on the flight). With the time to get to the airport, the wait to get on the flight, and time to get to your destination, that can add 2-4 hours to your trip, so you could be looking at 7-9 hours for the trip.

Stress really depends on your rabbit. Some just don't do well in the car, to a plane might be a better option. Other do fine for car rides, or might be bigger and more comfortable in a car rather than a plane. Also consider supplies. You can limited in what you can easily take on a plane, so would not really be able to take a cage or x-pen or even other supplies without it getting expensive, so you would need something set up for when you get there. A car can take more luggage, so you can take more stuff if needed.

As far as limiting stress, get your rabbit used to the carrier, car rides and travel well before moving. Trips to a pet store, or even just driving around can help and nothing bad happens. Getting him used to eating the carrier is good as well. You should not give sedatives as it can throw them off and make travel harder on them.

 

[heatherv]

Thanks for all the advice! But I've also read recently that you can bring pets on Uhaul (not in the back but in the front of the cab in a cage) so my husband said he can always take him with in the Uhaul when we meet up....I just wont get to see either of them for a few months