"The first airline with four leg room"

Of course it is wishful thinking that we take our cats with us when we travel overseas. Apart from the complications of transporting animals across the borders, which sometimes involving a lengthy period of quarantine, there is also the problem of most housecats being exactly what the name suggests, and nothing else. They are the lords of the house - lording it in their domestic territory, but scared stiff once being away from it. That's probably why all these years I've only seen cats being taken for a walk once - in a park in Nagoya, Japan. The brave feline, which travelled on a crib, even allowed total strangers like us to touch him/her.

In big countries, when people take pets on long domestic trips, they either drive them or fly them. Airlines usually provide options for pets to travel under seats or as cargo - with extra charges of course. In the US, doting pet owners who do not want their pets to travel in such undignified or uncomfortable ways can book them up on a flight with Pet Airways. Their pets may then be treated as valued "pawsengers". As they said in their creative slogans, they are "the first airline with four leg room" and "the first airline where pets fly in the main cabin, NOT in cargo". While on board, the pets get carriers tailored to their sizes, constant attention of the pet attendants and regular potty breaks. And they are available for pick up at the Pet Lounge at the destination 30 minutes after arrival.

Not a bad way to travel for our four-legged friends, huh?

The picture below shows an aircraft Pet Airways use for their flights. Make no mistake about the big puddle of water on the ground. It has absolutely nothing to do with the pets!