FAQs

To book an appointment, click on the Appointments link at the top of the page. On that page, you can choose a date & time, then complete the fillable schedule form. Please note, you cannot book international travel or Hawaii travel on that page, nor travel for non-dogs or cats. Email us at AnchoragePetTravel@gmail.com with any questions.

Yes, you receive the certificate right away after your appointment. The way it works is:

• you book online via our Appointments page & upload your pet/s’ Rabies certificates (so we have those in advance);

• we send you email & text reminders for your appointment

• You bring your pet/s to the appointment (a hands-on exam is required for all pets)

• Your pet/s receive a new Rabies jab, if required

• We get you checked out & give you the Travel/Health certificate immediately — You could go straight to the airport, if needed!

An Alaska pet health certificate is officially valid for 30 days, but most airlines require a certificate within 10 days of travel. If in doubt, check with the airline or ferry service you’ll be using, as many of the rules are their own.

Due to recent client experiences, we recommend having a Travel certificate to drive though Canada. As of today’s date, you are not legally required to have a travel certificate, but you do need a current Rabies Vaccination Certificate for each of your pets. — HOWEVER: We have recently heard from several clients that they were stopped by Border Patrol, who required a Travel Certificate, and would not allow passage without going to a local (Canadian) veterinarian to get one. It’s not legally required, but still these people were stuck having to comply. — We don’t know why the rules are so unpredictable these days; the law is the law. Maybe it’s because Border Patrol is having the same staffing issues as everywhere else, and the Border Guards don’t actually know the rules? Regardless, we’ve heard from enough people to now consistently recommend getting a Travel certificate, just to be on the safe side, until conditions reliably change for the better.

I hear this a lot, but it really only takes one border guard or one airline ticket agent to ruin your family’s travel plans. We strongly urge you to have a certificate in hand when you travel with your pets. True, you might never be asked, but officially each pet is required to have a certificate, so protect your family’s travel plans & get the certificate!

Yes we do, but Advanced arrangements need to be made, so please contact us via our email address, AnchoragePetTravel@gmail.com, so we can start the process with you and let you know what will be involved. Please be available by email, as international travel coordination is a multi-step process.

Yes, we do, and it’s a whopper! We keep track of your pet’s appointments with us, and they get a $20 discount off each certificate starting with the second appointment, and EVERY FIFTH CERTIFICATE IS FREE! — Wow! (Please remember: the Frequent Flyer is the pet, not the humans — so pets are not interchangeable in the family!)

Not at this time. Currently our service is limited to dogs & cats only. Special certification is required to sign off for dogs & cats, and we do not have that certification at this time.

Yes, by Alaska state law, a puppy or kitten must be at least 8 weeks of age to travel.

Unfortunately, no. Our travel certificate service is for WELL PETS only. If your pet is unwell, we strongly urge you to arrange an in-depth medical consultation with a full-service vet clinic (we only do travel certificates) to best determine if your pet is fit to travel.

If they are all traveling together — same route, same time, same day — you can book via our normal Appointments page & intake form. There is a separate exam fee for each pet (see our fees page), but if they are all traveling on the same certificate (same route, same time), there is only one certificate fee.

Check out our Fees page, above, or:

Fees are as follows:

• Exam & certificate (first pet) - US states except Hawaii = $165

• Exam (each additional pet) $60

• Additional Health certificate (domestic, non-Hawaii), if traveling separately) $95

• Rabies vaccination $40

• Written prescription (for sedatives) $25 each prescription.

• Heartworm meds/He rtgard (dogs only) $70 for 6-pack; $40 for 3-pack

• Flea/tick/heartworm combo Nexgard-Plus, $220 for 6-pack, $120 for 3-pack (dogs only)

• International certificates and/or Hawaii certificates — Varies per destination; contact us by email to discuss.

Alaska state law requires a (non-PO box) destination address for pet travel certificates. If necessary, you can use the address of a B&B or local friend you’ll be visiting whilst on your trip.

A valid Rabies certificate must have: the manufacturer’s name, the serial/lot number, and expiration date, and must be signed by a veterinarian to be valid.

If you indicate your regular clinic (on the appointment form), we will EMAIL them to request their rabies certificate — If they do not reply, or if the certificate is legally incomplete or non-valid, your pet/s will have to receive another Rabies vaccine before we can sign off on the health certificate.

Still have questions? Check out our “Rabies Certificates: Good & Bad” link above!

These are all good questions, but they are all questions which can only be answered by the airline you’re flying on, as they each have their own specific rules & requirements. Check with them for the details.

Please be advised that airlines typically do not allow pets to be sedated prior to travel. If you ARE planning to try a light sedative to help ease your pet’s anxiety, you must allow enough time to try the medication several days before your trip to see how it affects your pet, as each pet is affected in their own way. Similarly, helping a pet get used to their crate well in advance of the trip — by leaving it in your bedroom or living room and encouraging them to spend a bit of time in the crate each day — will help the whole situation seem less strange to them.

Sure. Email us at AnchoragePetTravel@gmail.com and we’ll reach out to help you schedule. But we urge you to try a second time, as usually an appointment won’t book if you forgot to hit “Save” or “Upload,” rather than the site being buggy itself. But if you’re still having trouble, email us, and we can help.

Anchorage Pet Travel is an online business, so the phone is only operational on clinic days for last-minute appointment changes. The rest of the time the phone is turned off & sits in a drawer, & isn’t monitored. We don’t want people frustrated they’re calling and can’t reach us that way. You can email us any time. — All appointments will be emailed a phone number they can call or text on the day of their appointment in case of last minute changes.

No, we don’t. We only vaccinate for what’s required by travel requirements for your pet/s’ destination, which is 99% of the time, just Rabies. In an effort to see as many pets as possible, Anchorage Pet Travel Certificates is designed to get pets what they need to travel, and that’s all. For other vaccinations, you’ll need to schedule an appointment with your regular vet.

We do not have the staff at this time (we all have other full-time jobs & started this clinic to help ease the burden re pet travel in Alaska) to monitor & respond to phone traffic. We understand this may be an inconvenience to many of you, and we apologize for that nuisance — we’re doing what we can to help out, and at this time it does not include having an active phone line. All booking & queries must be sorted by email, at AnchoragePetTravel@gmail.com.

Yes, you do. We’re sorry to hear your travel plans changed — we know how stressful that can be. Unfortunately, your pet/s will need a new travel certificate dated within ten days of your new travel date, and that requires another in-person examination of your pets. We apologize for the inconvenience & understand your pets are probably just as healthy now as they were the day you brought them in to see us, but the veterinarian signs a legal document stating they examined the pet/s the date the certificate is signed, and it is considered fraud to do otherwise. Even during the peak of Covid, we were not allowed to do telemedicine appointments — they must be in-person. And, yes, I’m sorry to say, there is a (slightly discounted) fee for the recheck exam — we will not charge for the new certificate, but all of the original travel information must remain the same (destination address, same pets traveling, etc). Furthermore, our clinic is only open Sundays & Thursdays, so if your new travel date does not coincide with one of our Sunday or Thursday clinics, you will need to see another clinic in town & pay again to have your pets seen & get a new certificate. — Unfair? Maybe. Unfortunately, it’s the airlines which impose the 10-day rule.

Yes, you do. The travel certificate indicates a veterinarian has done an in-person examination of your pet(s) & determined them to be free of infectious & contagious diseases. You will need to bring your pets with you. (& don’t forget their leashes & carriers, as they need to come into the clinic for their exams!)

Our clinic does not offer vaccine-only appointments. If you bring your pet in for a rabies vaccination, you will also receive (and pay for) a travel certificate. If you are looking for only a Rabies vaccination, I highly recommend the Anchorage SPCA’s vaccine clinic, which is reasonably priced and can booster your pet/s’ other vaccinations, as well (we do only Rabies here).

Our clinics are only held Sunday mornings & Thursday afternoons, so if you need an earlier appointment, you can email us at AnchoragePetTravel@gmail.com, and we may be able to arrange an out-of-hours appointment for an additional $95 fee. Otherwise, you could try:

• Anchorage Vet Clinic & Urgent Care, 907-268-2242

• PET Urgent Care 907-743-4413

• Midnight Sun Urgent Care, 907-562-8384

• Ravenwood Vet Clinic, 907-694-9665 (urgent-care Saturdays)

• VCA-Bering Sea, 907-344-5535 (some urgent care appointments