Flying With a Dog on Alaska Airlines: Cabin, Hold, Fees and Breed Rules

For anyone with a dog too big to go under a seat, Alaska Airlines matters more than any other American carrier. It is the one large airline that still takes pets in the hold for ordinary passengers, and according to the government's figures it carried more than half of all the animals that flew in the holds of American airlines in 2025. It is also the cheapest of the big airlines for a small dog in the cabin. The same policy now covers Hawaiian Airlines. This guide is taken from Alaska's own pages on pets in the cabin and pets in the baggage compartment, as they stood in the autumn of 2026.

What Alaska Allows, in Brief

Small dogs fly in the cabin for $100 each way, which is $50 less than Delta, American, United or JetBlue. Larger dogs fly in the climate controlled baggage compartment for $200 each way, up to a combined weight of 150 lb for dog and kennel, which covers almost any breed. There are two important limits. Flat faced breeds are not accepted in the hold, and cabin pets are not carried to Europe, Japan and some other international destinations. Within North America, though, Alaska gives an owner more choices than any other big airline.

In the Cabin

The fee is $100 each way per carrier, or $35 if you are flying wholly within the state of Hawaii, and it is subject to space on board. The carrier must be soft sided and no larger than 17 by 11 by 9.5 inches. Hard sided kennels are not allowed in the cabin at all, which is stricter than other airlines, and the height of 9.5 inches is lower than the 11 inches Delta and American permit, so check a carrier you already own before assuming it will do. Your dog must stay inside, head and tail included, with the flap secured, in the boarding area, on the walkways, in the lounges and on the aircraft.

Alaska allows two pets of the same species and similar size to share a carrier, provided no part of either animal sticks out and they are not in distress. You may bring two carriers only if you buy a second ticket for the seat beside you. The carrier counts as one of your two cabin items, so you may bring it with either a personal item or a standard carry on bag. You cannot sit in an emergency exit row or a bulkhead row, and the passenger travelling with the pet must be at least 18 years old.

The number of pets on each flight is limited and varies with the aircraft, and places are given on a first come, first served basis. Alaska requires the reservation to be made before the day of travel, so you cannot simply turn up with a dog and hope. If your dog does not fit comfortably in its carrier or under the seat, the airline will require it to travel in a hard kennel in the baggage compartment instead, at your expense, which is a good reason to measure carefully at home.

Where Cabin Pets Cannot Go

Alaska does not take pets in the cabin to anywhere in Europe, to London, to anywhere in Japan, or to Seoul, Sydney, Belize City, Guatemala City and several Pacific island destinations. For the airline's main network, within the United States and to Canada, Mexico and Hawaii, cabin pets are accepted. If Mexico is your destination, remember that a dog now needs a screwworm inspection certificate to enter and another to return, which we explain in our guide to taking a dog to Mexico.

In the Hold

This is what sets Alaska apart. It accepts most domesticated pets in its climate controlled baggage and cargo compartments for $200 each way per kennel. The fee is $100 on flights wholly within the state of Alaska and for military families travelling on orders, and $60 wholly within Hawaii. Dog and kennel together may weigh up to 150 lb, and above that weight the dog travels through the airline's cargo service. Your dog is checked in with you, travels on your flight, and is collected at the other end.

Connections need care. Alaska does not transfer pets to other airlines, and where your journey includes a change of aircraft within its own network it allows the animal a maximum of four hours at the connecting airport. Book a direct flight if one exists, because every connection means another unloading, another wait on the ground and another loading. If you must connect, keep the whole journey on Alaska and its partners that are covered by the policy, and allow a sensible gap, neither rushed nor long.

The Department of Transportation's figures for 2025 show that Alaska carried 64,217 animals in its holds, out of 117,861 carried by all the reporting airlines, with two deaths and one injury. That is a low rate, and it reflects an airline that handles animals every day and has the routines to do it well. We look at those figures, and at what they do and do not tell you, in our guide to flying a dog in the hold, which also explains how to choose and prepare a crate.

The Breeds Alaska Will Not Carry in the Hold

Flat faced, or brachycephalic, dogs are not accepted in the baggage compartment, because their short airways make them vulnerable to heat and stress. Alaska's list includes the Bulldog, French Bulldog, Pug, Boxer, Boston Terrier, Shih Tzu, Pekingese, Brussels Griffon and Chow Chow, along with all Mastiffs, the Bull Terrier, the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, the American Staffordshire Terrier and the American Pit Bull, and mixes of any of them. If your dog is on the list and small enough for the carrier, it can still fly in the cabin, where the airline places no breed restriction.

In the summer of 2026 Alaska went further for two breeds. From 31 July to 30 September it accepted no French Bulldogs or English Bulldogs in the hold at all, whether shipped as cargo or checked in with a passenger, and it applied the rule to any animal whose health certificate named one of those breeds. Whether it will repeat the embargo in future summers is for the airline to say, but owners of bulldogs should plan on the assumption that it will.

Heat and Cold

Alaska states that if temperatures at the departure, arrival or connecting airports exceed certain limits, it may decline to accept an animal, for the animal's welfare. The danger to a dog in the hold is on the ground, in the minutes before loading and after unloading, not in the air. If you are flying a dog in the hold in summer or in deep winter, choose a flight early in the morning or late in the evening, avoid connections through the hottest airports, and ring the airline a day or two before you travel to make sure the booking stands.

Hawaii

Alaska and Hawaiian carry dogs to Hawaii both in the cabin and in the hold, which makes them the natural choice for that journey. The state's own rules are another matter. Hawaii is free of rabies, and a dog that arrives without the right blood test, waiting period and paperwork is quarantined for up to 120 days. With the right preparation the dog leaves the airport with you the same day. Read our guide to taking your dog to Hawaii before you book, because the process takes two to three months.

Getting Your Dog Ready

Whether your dog is flying in the cabin or the hold, the preparation is the same in spirit. The carrier or crate should be a familiar, comfortable place long before the day of the flight, and our guide to training your dog to travel explains how to make it one. Walk your dog well before you leave for the airport, feed it lightly some hours ahead, and do not sedate it. For a dog in the cabin, the TSA will ask you to carry it through the metal detector while the carrier is scanned. Our complete guide to flying with a dog covers the rest.

A Closing Thought

Alaska is the best choice among the big American airlines for a large dog, and good value for a small one. It handles more animals than anyone else and its rules show that it has thought about their welfare. Check the breed list if your dog has a short nose, book direct, avoid the hottest months, and reserve the pet's place when you reserve your own.