The Dog Recovery Nightmare

Since our dogs were too big (dog plus kennel has to be less than 100 lbs for most airlines) we had to ship them cargo. Hence the dog nightmare began.

1. We needed to get together all the right paperwork. What the "right" paperwork is, is a mystery since everyone you go to and all the websites seem to have different answers. What we figured out in the end is we needed:
- 15 digit id chip
- rabies vaccination more than 30 days but less than 90 days old
- a German/English veterinarian form
- a USDA vet certification
- within 10 days another letter from the vet saying the dog's fit to travel

2. Next we needed to figure out where to send them from. Since almost all airlines have flight restrictions where they won't ship your dogs between 15May and 15Sep due to the temperatures outside, we went with Continental Airlines. They have air conditioned vans they'll put the dogs in when they're on the tarmac. The closest airport to Minnesota, where the dogs were (Thanks Mom!), that the planes could accommodate a large kennel through the cargo doors was Chicago, we had to get them to Chicago. We called 6 weeks out and they had a flight from Chicago to Newark to Frankfurt. We booked them on that flight. They told us to call back two weeks out once their flight schedules were finalized. We did, and then the flights went Chicago to Houston, stay overnight in Houston, then to Newark and then to Frankfurt. In Houston they kennel them for the night. Of course, they then tell us that the don't have our reservation and the flight already has 4 dogs on it (their limit is 5). Argh!!!!!! After Brad did some smooth talking, and arguing since we'd already booked for the flight, they got the dogs scheduled on it (whew).

3. Then Brad flew back with the girls to Dallas, took a flight to Chicago, rented a truck and drove to Minnesota. He spent a couple days there (including his Birthday), and then drove to Chicago. Of course, they couldn't tell us where in Chicago he'd be driving and it's not on any of their websites... When he got close though the GPS gave him the address. Next, they told him to check the dogs in two hours before the flight (at 3:00 p.m.) but he found online that the cargo terminal closed at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday - a little detail they should have mentioned. Checking in the dogs went well, no issues and the dogs were on their way. Brad was scheduled to fly out the next day (we'd left a day in between just in case something went wrong).

The dogs were scheduled to land on Tuesday at 9:25, Brad at 10:15

4. Brad called and told me that there was no way the kennels would fit in my Passat so I rented a van. I didn't realize when I was making the reservations that I was renting a transport van. The thing was tall enough in the back that Brad could stand up in it, it had no air conditioning, and it was impossible to park. But it was the day before I was coming to pick them up and I had no time to make any other plans, so I went with it...

5. Step 1: Then Tuesday arrived. Frankfurt is 190 km from home and goes past a big city I left home at 5:30. I got there at 7:45. The continental airlines people had given me an address and that's where I headed. When I got to the cargo area, the first thing I had to do is go into a security office and check in to get a pass to go into the cargo area. Of course the guy didn't talk any English and I didn't talk any German so even this first task started out harder than needed. I headed for the building I was told about to find that the building was just their business offices, and no one was at work. So I went to LUG Cargo, which shared the same building. The girl helping me spoke a little English and told me that I was in the right place, I just needed to go to a different entry. Building 437 - entry C. I went into that entry and the guy in there told me to go somewhere else! Argh! I went and got some orange juice and more money for the parking meter I was parked at. Then I tried 437 C again, this time going upstairs to the Import office. At this time it was 9:00. They told me, again not much English, to come back an hour after the plane landed, maybe 1/2 hour more. I thought I'd try to go get Brad... Of course, I realized as I was driving around I didn't know what terminal to go to. I got lucky, found a place to park the beast, and ran in and read the directory. Then I circled around the right terminal about 5 times. I couldn't park in the parking lot because the beast was too tall to fit, and I couldn't parallel park 'cause it was too long. Finally I got lucky when someone left an end spot out front that was 1-1/2 spaces wide. The spots right on the curb outside the airport are 15 minute parking spots, you just have to pay for them. I, of course, didn't have any change. So I ran to a food counter, got some change, and was finally parked legally (though very crookedly). I went and waited for Brad, running out and getting another 15 minutes after a big. I waited until 12:00. Brad's plane had landed at 10:30. By this time, the place he was coming out didn't have his plane listed anymore, and I'd seen the pilots leave with their luggage. The dogs were waiting so I went back to get them...

I had to get another card to get into the cargo area again, went back to LUG, paid for the dogs, then they sent me to a whole other area of the airport to pick the dogs up...

Step 2: I drive 5 miles to this other area, (it was called the Frankfurt Animal Lounge) and they at least had the dogs. They give me the papers that Brad sent with the dogs and send me to the vets (in the same building).

Step 3: The vet takes the paperwork and tells me to come back in 30 minutes. I think, hey, I could go get Brad. I get back in the beast, and head out. But the gates won't open. I repark and someone tells me that I need a passcard to get out and send me to a little shack. By the time I get a card it's been 15 minutes. I go back to the vet, they give me the paperwork, charge me $200 for their efforts.

Step 4: The Animal Lounge people then tell me I need to go get a customs stamp. He then sends me to building 451 (that's all he says) He doesn't say where in 451, or that 451 is the size of a high school... I find the customs office, but the guy their doesn't know what I need and sends me to get a form from the U.S. people so I don't have to pay customs. He sends me to another building to get this form, but that guy (finally someone who speaks English!) tells me he only does official military imports and sends me to the main terminal. I go back to the main terminal and finally find brad (3 hours after he landed). The MPs have no idea what I'm talking about and we wait an hour for another guy to come in, he heads back to the Animal Lounge with us. The Animal Lounge people call customs, who claim they never saw me, and send me back over to 451. The office I had gone to is now locked, but someone sends us to another building (it's a small building outside building 451), where they finally know what to do, stamp our paperwork and send us back to the Animal Lounge.

Step 5: The Animal Lounge finally give us the dogs, of course, after charging us $100 for them watching the dogs for the day. It is now 5:00 p.m. and we head home.

On the way home we hit the mother of all traffic jams (people were out of their cars), divert around it and take backroads home, finally getting back at 9:00 p.m.

It was a tortuous, crazy day...