Jetstar pet travel. How it works and what to know

It isn’t a secret that as pet owners, having the luxury of being able to bring your pet everywhere you go would be ideal. With pets being able to cross state borders easily using ground transport methods, how does pet travel using one of our major domestic airlines compare?

We’ll explore whether you can bring your pet aboard a Jetstar flight and what you might need to know to make your pet travel possible.

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Is Jetstar pet-friendly for international travel

Unfortunately, Jetstar is not equipped for either international or domestic pet travel bookings. If you want to travel with your furry friend, you’ll have to organise their journey through Qantas freight.¹

How does domestic pet travel works with Qantas Freight

As the majority of Jetstars flights cover domestic routes, we’ll tailor this article to domestic pet travel with Qantas freight.If you want to book your pet on an international flight with Qantas freight, you will need to contact a Pet Travel Specialist to organise their journey abroad which you can learn more here.²

Domestic pet travel with Qantas freight

When it comes to moving your pets to a new city within Australia, you can book your pet on the same flight as you, or organise to send them on a separate available flight. This can be organised following these steps³:

1. Visit the Qantas freight website
2. Choose “Book pets and animals”
3. Click domestic travel
4. Follow the prompts by telling Qantas about your pet
5. Search and choose available flights
6. Make payment
7. Confirm all the details

However, before you jump ahead and book, there's a few things you need to do for Qantas to transport them on the day. All bookings do not include your pets crate which need to be purchased separately.⁴

Travelling with pets in the cabin vs in the cargo hold

Unless you are travelling with an approved service dog, all pets travelling will be in the cargo hold of the aircraft.⁵

Types of pets you can travel with on Qantas

Qantas freight accepts the following types of pets⁵:

• Dogs (exceptions for brachycephalic breeds)
• Cats
• Rabbits
• Guinea pigs
• Domestic fish that require no aeration
• Domestic birds

For Brachycephalic breeds of dogs - aka flat or snub nosed dogs, it is a requirement that they are booked through a Pet Travel Specialist.⁵

What are the fees or costs

Qantas does not explicitly state how much the total cost to transport your pet on their website. However, we did our own search using their flight booking tool to gauge how much a flight could be for a pet. The example in the table shows a search for 1 dog in each size category for a flight in April 2024 from Brisbane to Melbourne one-way on a standard weekday.⁶

*Price checked on 6th March 2024

On top of the flight price, it's important to note that you’ll also have to organise and purchase the crate yourself. Any other vet checks or clearances your pet requires to fly will also add to the cost.

What are the requirements for pet travel on Qantas freight

The main requirements for pet travel on Qantas freight are centred around making sure your pet is eligible and accepted to fly. Although this greatly depends on the type of pet you have, the basic eligibility requirements include⁵:

• Your pet is aged between 12 weeks and 12 years
• Be within the mandatory weight limits
• Are an accepted pet type or animal
• Have no health conditions that could affect them flying

Outside of these basic requirements, you will need to prepare your pet and drop them off at the required check-in time for their looming journey.⁷ As mentioned above, breeds such as Brachycephalic breeds have their own set of requirements to travel.

Using pet travel specialists

As the processes for booking pet travel domestically and internationally can become quite complicated, there are pet travel specialists that are experts in moving pets to their new homes. Although you can book domestic travel for most common types of cats and dogs yourself, for breeds or pets that sit just outside the eligibility requirements, or you need to move your pet internationally, pet travel specialists take care of everything for you.⁸

Keep in mind

You can bring an approved service dog that meets the conditions of carriage requirements on a domestic and international Jetstar flight. This is the only exception to Jetstars no pet travel. There's a few rules around this though which we’ll touch on briefly.

Service dog pet travel on Jetstar

Jetstar will only allow service dogs accredited from a select variety of entities to accompany their owner on a Jetstar flight. There are three categories of service dogs that are able to fly including⁹:

• Guide dogs
• Hearing dogs
• Assistance dogs

In order to have a service dog accompany you, you must let Jetstar know at the time of your booking, and have ready the supporting documents and identity cards for the dog itself. If a service dog falls out of these types, and is used to assist people with specific disabilities, it’s important to contact Jetstar at least 14 days from the anticipated travel date to gain clearance for your service dog to fly.

FAQs

Does Jetstar allow emotional support dogs on their service?

Unfortunately, emotional support dogs or animals in general are not considered an eligible service or assistant dog type. This means they will not be able to fly with you in the cabin and must be booked through Qantas freight.⁹

Can the weather impact my pets travel journey?

Yes, bad or extreme weather events can delay your pet's journey. Qantas always recommends that you schedule your pets flight time outside of any peak or low temperatures. If your pet’s needs to be moved to a new flight due to weather, it comes at no additional cost to you.⁵

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