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# Flying a Dog on British Airways: PetAir UK Out, IAG Cargo In
- URL: https://rochsociety.com/flying-with-a-dog-on-british-airways/
- Published: 2026-11-06T16:12:40.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-06T16:12:40.000Z
- Description: British Airways flies pet dogs only in the hold, and you never book the dog with the airline itself: PetAir UK handles dogs leaving Britain and IAG Cargo handles dogs arriving. The packages, the paperwork each way, the crate rules and the assistance dog exception.
- Author: Jennifer Nuttall
- Tags: Travel

You can book yourself a seat to New York on British Airways in five minutes, but you cannot book your dog on the same flight through the airline at all. [British Airways says it plainly](https://www.britishairways.com/content/information/travel-assistance/travelling-with-pets?ref=rochsociety.com): "We don't carry pets in the cabin on any route." A pet dog flies in the hold, and the company that arranges it depends on which way you are going. Leaving the UK, it is PetAir UK, a pet travel firm owned and run by vets. Coming in, it is IAG Cargo, the freight arm of BA's parent group. Neither will book your own ticket, so the trip is two bookings that have to meet on the same aircraft.

## Leaving Britain With PetAir UK

BA hands every owner flying a dog out of the UK to PetAir UK, which keeps [a page for British Airways customers](https://www.petairuk.com/british-airways-pet-travel/?ref=rochsociety.com) where a short form starts the quote. PetAir arranges the dog's place on the BA flight and you book your seat separately. The dog travels as manifest cargo, which is freight with a name on it: [PetAir's FAQs](https://www.petairuk.com/faqs/?ref=rochsociety.com) say it has no baggage allowance and no luggage can go with it, though a comfort item such as a worn t-shirt can be attached to the crate where permitted. The hold is temperature controlled and kept dark, because [IAG Cargo](https://www.iagcargo.com/en/products/pets/?ref=rochsociety.com) finds pets settle faster without light.

PetAir sells [three flight packages](https://www.petairuk.com/pet-travel-flight-packages/?ref=rochsociety.com). Traveller covers the paperwork check, the booking, the dog's airfare, an IATA approved crate and check-in at the airport. Premium, the one most owners choose, adds collection from your home, the drive to the airport, a night's boarding before the flight and the vet appointment for the export papers and fit to fly certificate. Premium Plus adds up to five more days of boarding and one change of travel date without the change fee.

No price is published for any of them; the quote depends on the destination, the route, the size of the dog and the timetable. If your vet has prescribed a calming drug such as gabapentin or trazodone, PetAir's answer is generally no, and any such medicine must be declared and agreed at least two weeks before departure. Our guide to [flying a dog in the hold](https://rochsociety.com/flying-a-dog-in-the-hold/) explains why airlines dislike sedation at altitude.

![A Shiba Inu asleep on a shop step beside a white suitcase](https://rochsociety.com/content/images/2026/11/shiba-suitcase-dog-travel.jpg)

Photo by [Eminent Luggage](https://unsplash.com/@eminent%5Flugagge?utm%5Fsource=ghost&utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=api-credit) / [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/?utm%5Fsource=ghost&utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=api-credit)

## The Papers for the Way Out

The rules for leaving are in the UK government's guide to [taking your pet abroad](https://www.gov.uk/taking-your-pet-abroad?ref=rochsociety.com). For the European Union your dog needs a microchip fitted before or with its rabies jab, a wait of at least 21 full days after the first jab, and an animal health certificate from an official vet. The certificate must be used to enter the EU within 10 days of issue, then covers travel inside the EU and the trip home for six months, and every trip needs a new one.

If you live in England, Scotland or Wales, a pet passport will not get your dog into the EU, even one issued in the EU; BA notes the change took effect on 22 April 2026\. A country outside the EU needs an export health certificate and an export application form instead, and our explainer on [dog passports and health certificates](https://rochsociety.com/dog-passports-and-health-certificates/) sets out which document fits which trip.

## Coming Home With IAG Cargo

For the inbound leg BA points you to [IAG Cargo](https://www.iagcargo.com/en/products/pets/?ref=rochsociety.com), which has carried pets since the 1950s as the cargo arm of British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, Vueling and LEVEL. It does not take bookings from owners directly. You fill in its [pets form](https://www.iagcargo.com/en/pets-form/?ref=rochsociety.com) and it passes you to one of the pet travel agents it works with abroad, who quotes, books and prepares the dog much as PetAir does in Britain. It will also ask you to sign a form of indemnity covering British Airways against any costs if your dog fails the checks on arrival and has to go into quarantine.

Get the paperwork exactly right. The [UK rules for bringing a dog into Great Britain](https://www.gov.uk/bring-pet-to-great-britain?ref=rochsociety.com) are the same microchip and rabies vaccination, a wait of at least 21 full days, the right travel document for the country you are coming from, and a tapeworm treatment given by a vet no less than 24 hours and no more than five days before you land, unless you fly straight from Finland, Ireland, Malta or Norway.

A dog coming from a country that is not on the government's listed countries also needs a rabies blood test and a three month wait after the sample is taken. Get any of it wrong and the dog can be held in quarantine for up to four months, at your cost.

[Pet dogs must arrive by plane as cargo](https://www.gov.uk/bring-pet-to-great-britain/travel-routes-pets?ref=rochsociety.com) unless they come on a chartered private plane or are assistance dogs, and the government's [list of approved airlines and airports](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pet-travel-approved-air-sea-rail-and-charter-routes-for-the-movement-of-pets/approved-air-routes-for-pet-travel?ref=rochsociety.com) names British Airways for London Heathrow and London Gatwick. After landing, the dog goes to the animal reception centre, where its chip and papers are checked; [PetAir puts the whole process](https://www.petairuk.com/importing-pets-into-the-uk/?ref=rochsociety.com) at usually four to six hours before release. Our guide to [taking a dog from the US to the UK](https://rochsociety.com/us-to-uk-with-a-dog/) covers that route in full.

## The Crate and the Breeds

IAG Cargo works to IATA's Live Animals Regulations, and [its pets page](https://www.iagcargo.com/en/products/pets/?ref=rochsociety.com) spells out what that means for a dog. The crate needs ventilation on all four sides, a door that cannot open by accident, openings too small for a nose or a paw, and a water pot fixed inside and fillable from outside. Fibreboard, wire mesh and wicker crates are refused. The dog must be able to stand and sit up without touching the roof and turn round with ease, and a snub-nosed dog needs a crate 10 per cent larger than the minimum.

IAG Cargo adds that some dangerous breeds and snub-nosed breeds may not be accepted at all, and the agent will say whether yours can fly. A dog of a breed banned in Britain cannot be brought in at all without a valid [Certificate of Exemption](https://www.gov.uk/control-dog-public/banned-dogs?ref=rochsociety.com).

## Assistance Dogs, and No More Emotional Support Dogs

The one dog that sits with you is a trained assistance dog. [BA carries one free of charge in the cabin](https://www.britishairways.com/content/information/disability-assistance/travelling-with-your-assistance-dog?ref=rochsociety.com) on most of its flights, provided it was trained to perform specific tasks by a member of Assistance Dogs International or the International Guide Dog Federation, was accredited by the Assistance Dog Assessment Association, or was trained to the same standard with evidence to show it.

You register the dog with the Open Doors Organization, BA's non profit partner, using one form for journeys to or from the United States and another for everywhere else, ideally before you book and at least 48 hours before you fly. Flying into Heathrow or Gatwick, you also ask the animal reception centre for a pre-approval letter at least 72 hours ahead, and you cannot board without it.

Emotional support dogs no longer qualify. BA says it is "unable to accept emotional support dogs for travel in the cabin on any British Airways operated flights", and such a dog can fly only as a pet in the hold. Pages that still promise an emotional support dog a seat on BA are out of date.

## Book the Dog First

If a small dog in the cabin matters to you, the European airlines are kinder outside Britain: our guides to [Lufthansa](https://rochsociety.com/flying-with-a-dog-on-lufthansa/), [KLM](https://rochsociety.com/flying-with-a-dog-on-klm/) and [Air France](https://rochsociety.com/flying-with-a-dog-on-air-france/) cover their rules, and [United](https://rochsociety.com/flying-with-a-dog-on-united/), [Delta](https://rochsociety.com/flying-with-a-dog-on-delta/) and [American](https://rochsociety.com/flying-with-a-dog-on-american-airlines/) cover the American carriers. On British Airways itself, the order of booking is what matters. PetAir's advice for anyone booking through IAG is to secure the dog's flight first and only then buy your own ticket to match it. The dog sets the date, and you follow it onto the plane.