Ground Transport Services

Sometimes, though, your pet is better served by ground transportation. Or, as a pet parent, you may feel more comfortable having your pet transported by road. This service can be ideal if your move is a shorter distance, or if your pet is an embargoed breed, or just too big for certain short haul airlines.

About

We offer door-to-door ground transportation for pets within the UK and wider EU. 

Our ground transportation service includes stops along the way, including “comfort stops” every few hours. If an overnight stop is required en route, your pet and our driver will stay in a pet friendly hotel, so you are assured of our personal attention and care for your pet at all times. You'll get photos and updates throughout their trip.

With our door-to-door ground service, your pets will be safe and comfortable as they travel and you’ll be worry-free. All our drivers are well-trained and experienced with pet relocation. They are dedicated to providing your pet with the kindness and care needed during this very important process. They are pet-lovers as well as professionals.


All our vans are air conditioned and tracked.

We hold DEFRA Type 2 authorisation to transport pets - this is the highest level - not all pet transporters have this!

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Within the UK, your pet can travel without any official travel documentation, although we do recommend the standard vaccinations for all pets are kept up to date and that they have a pre-travel veterinary visit for a general health check. We also recommend that all pets should be micro chipped too. Whether they’re in our hands or at home, a microchip clearly identifies each animal and you as their owner. For travel to and from the wider EU, we recommend your pet has:

Sky Kennels Ltd services include:

We can do it all, or as little as you need us to. Ask us for a quote today!

An Animal Health Certificate/Export Health Certificate, issued by a licensed/Official veterinarian, subject to destination, with a valid rabies vaccination, i.e. older than 21 days and less than 12 months* for entry to the UK.

For dogs entering the UK, they must have a valid tape worm treatment containing praziquantel or an equivalent proven to be effective against the Echinococcus multilocularis tapeworm given no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before your pet enters the UK. You do not need to treat your dog for tapeworm if your pet is entering the UK directly from Norway or Ireland.

* For intra EU/UK travel post Brexit, the regulations are still being worked through. The current DEFRA advice can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/pet-travel-to-europe-after-brexit.  It is complicated, has not been resourced by either the UK or the EU, so please call for advice. 

Additional Considerations

  • Travel Carriers

    We use the same top-quality carriers for ground transportation as the airlines require for pets who fly. We’ll provide the perfect size carrier for each of your pets when they travel with us. That’s one less detail for you to worry about.

    For larger pets, we have van sized travel cages, so they have room to move around and for our feline friends, we will use an oversized carrier with a litter tray in for their comfort.

  • Boarding

    If you require boarding services, we can also board your pet until you are ready to have us drive them to you. We are happy to collect your pet from home, a relative or boarding kennel should you need some time to relocate. Should the journey require an overnight stay, your pet and our driver will stay in pet friendly hotels and you will receive regular updates and photos.

  • Weather Restrictions

    As long as road conditions are safe, we will travel. If weather is an issue, we work to find the best route in the quickest time. However, our first priority is always safety for your pets and the driver.

  • Airline Restrictions

    Most airlines will only accept pet travel bookings from professional pet shippers. Some airlines and/or countries will not allow pets to travel with you as excess baggage.  The UK Government has mandated that all pets entering the UK by air, must arrive as manifested cargo, i.e. not as Excess or Carry on Baggage.

  • Sedation

    Most National Veterinary Associations (DEFRA, AVMA etc) strongly discourage the use of tranquillisers or sedatives at altitude. These drugs can be more harmful than helpful to your pet during air travel, so we will not ship sedated pets.

    All of our carriers are sprayed with Adaptil for dogs and Feliway for cats, both of which help create a calming environment.

Let us know how we can help you on your way!

Call us (it's nice to talk) or email and we'll respond as quickly as possible. 

+44 01494 865255

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