LIVE ANIMALS

GENERAL

Carriage of live animals in the cabin is limited by considerations of passengers safety and comfort and by the size of the cabin (separation of individual animals from each other). Carriage in cargo compartments may require pressurization, ventilation, heating, lighting.
The following general guidelines have been developed:

CABIN

• With the exception of guide dogs for blind passengers, only small pets weighing 5 kg or less may be carried in the cabin;
• Prior ETF approval must have been obtained;
• Such approval will stipulate that the pet shall be carried in a suitable leak-proof container or bag size 45x35x20 cm and must stay in the container/bag, on the floor, for the duration of the flight;
• The passenger, under whose care the pet travels, must be in possession of all documents required by the authorities at destination;
• Carriage of rodents is only permitted by prior permission of Flight Operations;
• The commander and handling staff shall ensure that no animal is carried in the cabin which might impede an emergency evacuation.

A trained guide dog for a blind or a trained assistance dog for a handicapped person may be carried in the cabin when accompanying a passenger who is dependent upon it. The dog shall be properly harnessed. The passenger and the dog will normally be seated where sufficient floor space for the dog is available, excluding bulkheads and emergency exits.The assistance dog is not included in the “pet in cabin” count. The Commander shall be notified by ground staff when live animal(s) are carried on board. In special cases the Commander may give permission for more than one trained dog (military-dogs, search-dogs, etc.) to be carried in the cabin with an accompanying passenger.

CARGO COMPARTMENTS

The carriage of live animals in cargo compartments shall take the specific needs of the animals into account. The basic environmental requirements shall be ascertained from all sources available. The temperature range and oxygen requirements must be matched by the heating and ventilation capability of the cargo compartment provided. Feeding requirements must be met; e.g., for carriage of birds on long-haul flights the cargo compartment lights shall be left switched on to enable the birds to feed during flight.
Stowage and loading of animals shall follow the principles outlined in and the following additional guidelines shall be taken into account:

• containers shall be stowed in such a manner as to guarantee sufficient air circulation,
• containers shall be accessible, without needing to be offloaded when care of the animals is required at transit stations,
• in the event of excessive delays, special care – according to shipper’s instructions – shall be taken of the animal(s), containers shall normally not be loaded directly in front of/below air ventilation outlets or internal lighting,
• animals which are natural enemies shall not be loaded in close proximity to each other,
  male and female animals shall be stowed as far apart as possible,
  in general, live animals shall not be loaded in close proximity to any other load which might have a negative effect on their well-being or health.

The handling staff shall, by Special Loads Notification, inform the commander before departure of all live animals, their requirements and their location; the commander will brief the cabin crew on all animals carried in the cabin. The handling staff will inform all down line stations by appropriate messages. All devices used in carriage shall be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected immediately after unloading.