'Devastated' dog owner pushing for change after claims pet died on Spirit of Tasmania crossing

The Wandering Albatross · Member

Taking a small dog on the Spirit of Tasmania vs flying

Greg 1 · Guru

You do realise that your dog will be in the hold of the aircraft, not in the cabin with you. They put them in a pet crate. They sometimes have to go on a separate flight. This happened to my daughters dog who ended up on a later flight. He had been stuck in a pet crate for a number of hours.

Whenarewethere · Guru

Can you buy her a cage the same as the ferry & gradually train her with increasing longer times in it overnight. Initially have the cage in the room open with her blanket & toy or treat.

Was the blanket hers. Wrap some absorbent material in the blanket. Get her familiar with all the smells. Is she comfortable with other dogs in general.

The Wandering Albatross · Member

No, she is not comfortable with other dogs in general. We adopted her at age 6 so are unsure of her history. Our biggest concern is the ferry takes 12 - 13 hours confinement, where a flight would be an hour, plus an hour or so either side of that. Im guessing we will just have to see the vet for something to relax her and try the flight. At least it would be over in under 3 hours,. as compared to the ferry.

The Wandering Albatross · Member

Hi Greg, Yes, I do realise she would be in the hold, but I haven't spoken to anybody who has flown their pets. Some people do it regularly, so I was wanting their experiences of it. The flight itself would only be an hour, so even if she was in the crate for 3 - 4 hours, that would be far better than 13 hours on the ferry Im thinking.

Bicyclecamper · Guru

Try over at Wikicamps, and maybe www.Dogsonline.com, I have tried both, wont ever do the ferry again not very fair on him as well as their was no airconditioning, and he was dehydrated badly. If I had no other choice I would fly him again, but the last time, I went down to the marina asked around and myself, bicycle, dog trailer and dog, went by a private 38 ft motor cruiser, return, It was very expensive, but I will never put him thru the other ways again if I can help it.

-- Edited by Bicyclecamper on Friday 13th of December 2019 01:41:37 PM

-- Edited by Bicyclecamper on Friday 13th of December 2019 01:50:18 PM

The Wandering Albatross · Member

Thanks! Yes agree, ferry is awful. I also heard there is a pet flying organisation that take care of s lot of that side. At least a one hour flight to Melbourne is over a lot quicker than the ferry. Private cruiser not an option for us as we have a van though.

Brownie 64 · Veteran Member

Hi,

We are currently in Tasmania & flew both are Dogs over with Jetpets cost was about $600 which included a night of kennelling, transfers & the flight to Devonport, which took about an hour, we saw their flight arrive and them being unloaded from the hold in their travel crate, the hold of the plane is air conditioned at around 22c, they both seemed fine and none the worse for their adventure.

However, when we boarded the Spirit for the trip over in our motorhome we were parked next to a horse float & on the same level as the kennel cages, so we have seen how it all works & decided for the trip back we are doing a day sail (9 hours) & we are going to leave the dogs in the motorhome as they know this to be home, a waiver is to be signed to allow this, & our reckoning is they will be fine in their own environment.

The Wandering Albatross · Member

Thanks for that info. I thought Id have to fly with her but can see we can do the ferry and fly her with a night of kenneling. If your dogs are ok in motor home and you feel fine about that, thats a great option. We thought we would also do that but there were a lot of big trucks surrounding our van and the ferry staff said our dog would probably die in our van and he wasnt going to check on her...hence not wanting to use the ferry again. Things dont seem to improve on the ferry for pet transport. Animals die.

The Wandering Albatross · Member

Thanks for that info. I thought Id have to fly with her but can see we can do the ferry and fly her with a night of kenneling. If your dogs are ok in motor home and you feel fine about that, thats a great option. We thought we would also do that but there were a lot of big trucks surrounding our van and the ferry staff said our dog would probably die in our van and he wasnt going to check on her...hence not wanting to use the ferry again. Things dont seem to improve on the ferry for pet transport. Animals die.

Brenda and Alan · Guru

Our daughter's dog flew Qantas from Perth to Melb, then to LA and on to Denver and 3 years later came back to Melb. He looked happy and healthy when we picked him up from quarantine two weeks later. I can only assume he was treated well at each stopover. Brenda.

The Wandering Albatross · Member

Thanks Brenda! I think we have our answers now. Ill call this post closed.

2trout · Senior Member

I have taken our 2 labradors on the Spirit 4 times. They try to hire you a dog crate when you book but the dogs are then in a strange environment and somewhat exposed to the elements. If you have paid for a crate and then decide that you do not need it, it is a simple matter of ringing them up, cancelling it, and getting a refund. I sign the waiver and leave them in the back of my 4WD where they normally travel. I leave the roof vent open and the rear window slightly open. I board the boat as early as I can and therefore am one of the first off the boat. I do not feed the dogs on the day of travel but do provide them with their normal water requirements. I exercise them near the port before we board.

When the ferry staff see that you have an animal aboard, they issue you with a special coloured sign that hangs off your mirror. You are then sent to a different entry lane to other travellers and you will find that you are ushered up to the top deck of the boat next to the trucks. This is a fully ventilated area and there is no chance of any harm coming to your dogs from stale air. Our dogs are very happy with this arrangement and travel very well. As an aside, it also saves you the hire fee on the crate.

Use the plane if you prefer but I find that the boat poses no problems and you do not have the hassles of dropping off and picking up the dogs plus the extra expense involved.

The Wandering Albatross · Member

Thanks heaps Trevor! We have had to make a hasty decision on travel as the ferry was booking out fast so decided to take her on the ferry and leave her in the front of our van where she normally travels. We have chosen a shorter overnight crossing (10.30pm - 8am) and believe she should be ok with windows down a bit and fly screens over windows. We will also take your advice re getting on first...we usually try to leave it as late as possible, but waiting on deck with car fumes isn't much fun. Thanks again for your reassurance.

Santa · Guru

I wouldn't take my dog on the Spirit.

'Devastated' dog owner pushing for change after claims pet died on Spirit of Tasmania crossing

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-02/dog-owner-devastated-after-pet-dies-on-spirt-of-tasmania/10773614

The Travelling Dillberries · Guru

Santa wrote:
I wouldn't take my dog on the Spirit.
'Devastated' dog owner pushing for change after claims pet died on Spirit of Tasmania crossing
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-02/dog-owner-devastated-after-pet-dies-on-spirt-of-tasmania/10773614

If you follow the story you will find this guy is completely to blame for the dogs death. More fake news!! The Spirit should sue him.

Santa · Guru

The Travelling Dillberries wrote:

If you follow the story you will find this guy is completely to blame for the dogs death. More fake news!! The Spirit should sue him.

Tell us how you came to this conclusion, was there something in the article I missed? confuse

The Travelling Dillberries · Guru

Santa wrote:
The Travelling Dillberries wrote:

If you follow the story you will find this guy is completely to blame for the dogs death. More fake news!! The Spirit should sue him.
Tell us how you came to this conclusion, was there something in the article I missed?

Yes Santa, you only got a one sided story filled with obvious inaccuracies, if you have taken a dog over and been to the kennels you will know he is not being truthful.

I have been looking for the follow up article I read but cant find it.

Ultimately its the owners decision whether to place the dog in the kennel or leave in the Van, car or motorhome. The owner should be the best judge of that. If I had a 95kg dog with issues i would not be kenneling it on the Spirit.

Not saying things could not be better, but to blame the spirit for actions that were entirely his, is, in my opinion unwarranted.

Recoup · Guru

On a day trip ,why don't they let the owners of pets visit the kennels ? Money and Safety ?

The Travelling Dillberries · Guru

Recoup wrote:
On a day trip ,why don't they let the owners of pets visit the kennels ? Money and Safety ?

Its a safety Issue Recoup, the kennels are near to the cars and trucks. If seas are rough they can move about and i guess possible squash or hurt someone walking in between or near to get to the kennels. The kennels are monitored regularly by staff.

GORDOBTA · Newbie

We take 4 pugs and a lab. At least 2 times each year on the spirit and kennel each time . Have thought about leaving in the back of ute cage but they will not be monitored at any time by staff,never have they been stressed at the other end more so over exited to see you front up to release then. Decks 3 and 5 which are open to the air are unloaded first so doesnt take long to get off then straight across Rd at devonport for quick release and feed or in Melbourne around to beach then on our way,we do pay for 5 kennels but only use the 3 as two pugs travel together.

Brownie 64 · Veteran Member

We returned to the mainland about three weeks ago & left our two dogs (Jack Russells) in the motorhome & they were just fine.

There is a large cul de sac big enough to turn around B Doubles & plenty of space to park at the end of Graham St. minutes from Port Melbourne where we let the dogs out for a sniff, it was a Monday 630pm a hardly anyone around being a industrial area, then you can turn right into Plummer St. and head for the M1