...for Jet-Set CatsKitty cats that travel the transatlantic are a rare breed. In fact I only know of myself and brother Pumpy that have made the trip. The actual flight is ok (if you like cages and no in-flight entertainment) and we got the red carpet treatment at Heathrow. The staff at Heathrow, with their exotic English accents, were very nice. They even managed to keep the paparrazi away: Cats have their own airport reception building (I guess dogs too but what I meant to say is that we are separated from the Beans!). Anyway we are straying away from the Public Information Service issues... to become a Jet-Set Cat and fly to the UK is easy: all you need is the right documents. Getting the documents is the hard part!
1. First you must get "chipped" - a microchip is inserted under the skin (ouch!) And not just any old microchip, no! A chip which is readable by a machine in the UK!
2. Innoculated. Even if you are a rabies-free, palace cat (like Pumpy and me). You still have to be innoculated!
3. Blood tested to check that you have the rabies "anti-bodies". There is a six month gap between steps 2 and 3 (so no rush to book your flights). And the blood test has to be tested at a UK-approved, approved Laboratory but in the US.
4. Yippie! Book your flight. Only from a certified Cat carrying airline though.
5. On the day you fly out the cage has to be sealed by a US Food & Drug Administration Vet (which obviously will be located at JFK and not be located at the airport of the only certified Cat carrying airline in Newark).
6. And that's it. The bundle of documents from steps 1 to 5 becomes the Cat Passport. Only that nowadays, the Bean has to travel on the same flight as us Cats. And you know how difficult it is to herd Beans!
