OT: Air Travel with Cats...

[Cautionary Tail]

Does anyone know if it's possible to fly (in the US) with a cat that happens to be FIV+?

I'm assuming said cat wouldn't be able to "pass" in the health certificate department, but I'm curious. Don't have much experience in this arena.

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[deleted266066]

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[VeganSoprano]

One of my foster caregivers brought her FIV+ foster cat (whom she eventually adopted) on several domestic plane trips and I don't recall that his FIV+ status even came up as a potential issue. If he'll be traveling in the cabin with you, you may not need anything except to bring proof of current rabies vaccine status.

My understanding of domestic health certificates is that they're basically verification by a veterinarian that the animal is healthy enough to tolerate travel and a non-climate-controlled environment if they'll be traveling in the cargo hold.

 

[SilverSpyderGT]

CVIs represent the veterinarian's word that the animal in question is free of any signs of disease, especially infectious disease, and that the animal is healthy enough to travel. If I were presented with a cat that was FIV+, and I knew it was FIV+, even if it was asymptomatic, then I would not be comfortable signing a CVI for that animal.

Now, do I feel that this cat would be unlikely to spread FIV under the care of a responsible owner? Yes, absolutely. Would I risk my license and accreditation by signing something that I knew was false on a federal document? Probably not. It wouldn't be anything against you or your cat, but falsifying information on a CVI is a big deal, and I'm a stickler. Ask me again in ten years, when I'm not a paranoid newbie vet, and you might get a different answer.

Now, if I did not know the cat's FIV/FeLV status, and the cat was asymptomatic and appeared healthy (i.e. if I had no reason to request FIV/FeLV testing and the cat had previously tested negative), then I would sign a CVI - but I wouldn't have any information about the cat other than my physical exam findings.

Airlines don't always check CVIs for transported animals, but if you are asked for one and can't produce it... rut roh.

 

[Cautionary Tail]

CVIs represent the veterinarian's word that the animal in question is free of any signs of disease, especially infectious disease, and that the animal is healthy enough to travel. If I were presented with a cat that was FIV+, and I knew it was FIV+, even if it was asymptomatic, then I would not be comfortable signing a CVI for that animal.

Now, do I feel that this cat would be unlikely to spread FIV under the care of a responsible owner? Yes, absolutely. Would I risk my license and accreditation by signing something that I knew was false on a federal document? Probably not. It wouldn't be anything against you or your cat, but falsifying information on a CVI is a big deal, and I'm a stickler. Ask me again in ten years, when I'm not a paranoid newbie vet, and you might get a different answer.

Now, if I did not know the cat's FIV/FeLV status, and the cat was asymptomatic and appeared healthy (i.e. if I had no reason to request FIV/FeLV testing and the cat had previously tested negative), then I would sign a CVI - but I wouldn't have any information about the cat other than my physical exam findings.

Airlines don't always check CVIs for transported animals, but if you are asked for one and can't produce it... rut roh.

I suspected as much.

The cat in question is not obviously ill, but I wouldn't consider it ethical to have someone that doesn't know his status perform an exam so I could manage to sneak him through... nor would I want anyone to falsify documents on his behalf.

I've never had much involvement with flight certificates, so I wasn't entirely certain what exactly was being signed off on... though I assumed that 'free of infectious disease' would likely come into play in some form or another, and, alas, Western Blot says otherwise, and has since we brought him in many years ago.

Thanks for all the responses, guys!

 

[lareinesoleil]

Based solely on the wording of the health certificates we use in our state, it seems to me that they're most worried about
(a) whether the animal itself can tolerate the flight, as others have stated
(b) Rabies.

The airline barely ever even asks for mine. They just want me to pay. Sounds cynical, but true.

Since FIV isn't something humans can get, and since clearly you know what you're doing and you're going to be be responsible, you may be able to find a Vet who is comfortable signing the health certificate for you.

Also, even if the Vet wrote right on the certificate that the cat was FIV+, the chances of the airline people knowing what that means are really, really slim. (If you go international, of course, this is another matter, as customs people will indeed know what that means. But I think you said this was a domestic flight.)

 

[princesspeaches]

Not all airlines require any kind of health certificate, assuming you are flying in the contiguous U.S. I've flown my cats on Delta and no documentation for the cats is required.

 

[Cautionary Tail]

Not all airlines require any kind of health certificate, assuming you are flying in the contiguous U.S. I've flown my cats on Delta and no documentation for the cats is required.

Good to know.

I don't know that I'll ever attempt to fly with him- he's got some other (non-infectious) issues, too- I've just been considering my options in case I end up getting accepted OOS and travel home on occasion. I'd rather not have to board him (expen$e, unfamiliarity with the facilities, difficulty of finding places that will board him, etc.), but that may end up being our only option.

 

[CatPartay]

Good to know.

I don't know that I'll ever attempt to fly with him- he's got some other (non-infectious) issues, too- I've just been considering my options in case I end up getting accepted OOS and travel home on occasion. I'd rather not have to board him (expen$e, unfamiliarity with the facilities, difficulty of finding places that will board him, etc.), but that may end up being our only option.

Instead of boarding him you can find a pet sitter to come to your home once a day to feed and check in on your kitty if no health issuses arise before then. That would be less stress then having him fly with you or be put in a kennel.

 

[Cautionary Tail]

Instead of boarding him you can find a pet sitter to come to your home once a day to feed and check in on your kitty if no health issuses arise before then. That would be less stress then having him fly with you or be put in a kennel.

He's a former feral, and while he's pretty much typical behavior-wise in all other regards, he's funny about having people in "his space". Even people he loves visiting, he doesn't generally want in his house. I don't know that he'd reliably allow a pet-sitter to medicate him twice a day... and I worry that he could potentially be aggressive, especially in my absence. He actually loves being kenneled, as long as the other cats are where he can see him. (I don't entirely get it, but... that's Thomas. He's an oddball. ) Otherwise, I'd totally do the sitter thing.

He enjoys traveling by car, loves meeting new people and exploring new places, and I don't think he'd find a short trip by plane upsetting... it's more an issue of the pressure changes and such and whether or not they'd impact some of the other conditions he has. And whether or not they'd allow him to board.

I suspect I'll probably end up boarding for brief trips and driving home for longer ones.

 

[jjl72]

Not sure if this will help much but Southwest doesn't require health certificates to travel with pets that are traveling in-cabin with you. That's the airline I used to pick up my rescue dog from KS.

Also, for what it's worth, I used to fly with my (healthy) kitty in-cabin on an almost annual basis from NY to TN and only had issues once, when the plane was sitting on the tarmac for close to 3 hours due to delays. My cat ended up getting a pretty nasty URI, which he is prone to when stressed, and some funky GI issues for a few days. But my experiences have mostly been positive.

Anyways, good luck with your future travels!

 

[sumstorm]

In vet school, you might form a close enough friendship that someone will be able to give care. I was suprised at how 'magical' some students are with some species that I'm not talented with (like cats.) Not a guarantee, but it could happen. So far, I have always managed to have someone I trust and my animals trust care for them when I am out of the area (even when I was gone for really long days with surgery, or unexpectedly with my research.)

 

[VeganSoprano]

The domestic health certificates I've seen just ask the vet to verify that the animal is free of signs of infectious disease. It's fairly easy to make the case that FIV+ status is not in itself a "sign" of infectious disease. After all, it's technically possible (though pretty darned unlikely) that your cat tests FIV+ because he received the FIV vaccine, not because he was ever actually infected with the virus.