Airline guide
Alaska Airlines pet cargo: when your pet flies on its own
Alaska Air Cargo flies dogs and cats on their own through its Pet Connect service, on Alaska, Horizon and Hawaiian flights. Here is what it requires, from Alaska's own pages, and how the day works at SEA.
How Alaska pet cargo works
Pet Connect is Alaska Air Cargo's service for live animals. Your pet flies in an airline approved kennel in the hold of a regular passenger flight. You do not need to be on the plane. Since early 2026, cargo on Hawaiian Airlines aircraft is sold through Alaska Air Cargo too, under the same rules.
Pet Connect is airport to airport. The airline does not pick up or deliver. Someone hands your pet in at the cargo building at the departure airport, and someone collects your pet at the cargo building at the other end, with photo ID.
The airline carries pets only on its own flights and does not transfer them to other airlines. It takes dogs and cats, and other animals subject to its approval. We arrange moves for dogs and cats. Birds, reptiles and other temperature-sensitive pets get a custom quote.
Quick facts
- Service
- Alaska Air Cargo, Pet Connect
- Health certificate
- Every pet, within 10 days (14 days to Hawaii)
- Temperature
- Generally between 45°F and 85°F
- Kennels
- Series 100 to 500, up to 150 lb with the pet
- Minimum age
- 8 weeks, weaned
- Hand-in
- No more than 4 hours before the flight
- Pickup
- Ready in about 1 hour, collect within 4 hours
- SEA cargo
- 2600 S. 165th St., SeaTac. Alaska Air Cargo runs the facility.
Health certificate and documents
Health certificate. Alaska Air Cargo needs a health certificate from a licensed vet for every pet flying in the cargo hold, issued within 10 days of the flight (14 days for dogs and cats going to Hawaii). The vet confirms your pet looks healthy for travel and free of infectious or contagious disease. An original certificate, or a printed copy of an electronic certificate with a digital signature, is accepted.
Rabies certificate. Needed for dogs and cats flying between the Lower 48 and Alaska, within Alaska, and to or within Hawaii. Dogs and cats under 3 months old do not need one.
Acclimation certificate. When it is below 45°F at an airport on the trip, a vet must certify the temperatures your pet is used to, within 10 days of the flight. In winter this is common on flights to and from Alaska. The vet can add it at the health certificate visit.
Food and water. Your pet must be offered food and water within 4 hours before departure, and a signed food and water certification goes on the kennel.
At hand-in the airline also needs the air waybill completed, the health certificate, food and water dishes inside the kennel, the flight numbers marked on the kennel, and labels with the names and 24-hour phone numbers at both ends.
The airline does not give medication of any kind during the trip. Muzzles, harnesses, choke collars and anything that could restrict breathing are not allowed in the kennel.
When we arrange the move, we prepare the airline forms and labels and check every document before your pet is handed in. See vet health certificate for flying.
Heat and cold
Temperature rules and summer city limits
Pets generally fly in the cargo hold only when the forecast is between 45°F and 85°F at every airport on the trip. Below 45°F, an acclimation certificate is needed. From May 1 to mid October, some cities also close to pets for part of the summer.
| City | Seattle to the city | The city to Seattle |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle (SEA) | No summer limit at SEA itself | |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | No pets May 1 to September 30. Not on days over 85°F | No pets May 1 to September 30. Not on days over 85°F |
| Miami (MIA) | No pets May 1 to October 15. Not on days over 85°F | No pets May 1 to October 15. Not on days over 85°F |
| Dallas (DFW) | No pets June 1 to September 15. Not on days over 85°F | No pets June 1 to September 15. Not on days over 85°F |
| Austin (AUS) | No pets June 1 to September 15. Not on days over 85°F | No pets June 1 to September 15. Not on days over 85°F |
| Chicago (ORD) | No pets June 1 to September 15. Not on days over 85°F | No pets June 1 to September 15. Not on days over 85°F |
| Houston (IAH) | Limited June 1 to September 15, checked case by case. Not on days over 85°F | Limited June 1 to September 15, checked case by case. Not on days over 85°F |
| Atlanta (ATL) | No summer limit listed | No pets June 1 to October 1. Not on days over 85°F |
| Phoenix (PHX) | Not on days over 85°F | Not on days over 85°F |
| New York (JFK) | Not on days over 85°F | Not on days over 85°F |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | No summer limit listed | No summer limit listed |
| Honolulu (HNL) | No summer limit listed | No summer limit listed |
| Anchorage (ANC) | No summer limit listed | No summer limit listed |
From the airline's summer 2026 station list. The airline posts a new list each spring and can add short notices for storms or other events at any time.
On days that fall outside a full closure, we choose early flights and check the forecast before we confirm. More cities and what we do about the heat: summer heat rules.
Breed rules
Since October 1, 2026, snub-nosed dog and cat breeds are not accepted in the cargo hold of Alaska, Hawaiian or Horizon aircraft. The ban covers all bulldogs, boxers, mastiffs and pugs, the Boston Terrier, Brussels Griffon, Chow Chow, English Toy Spaniel, Japanese Chin, Pekingese and Shih Tzu, and Burmese, Exotic Shorthair, Himalayan and Persian cats. Mixes count, based on the breed on the health certificate. The airline makes no exceptions.
Alaska's pages disagree about some other breeds, such as pit bull types and Staffordshire terriers, so we check those with you before we quote. Full list and options: snub-nosed breeds and flying.
Kennel rules
Alaska takes kennels in the 100 to 500 series. The combined weight of your pet and the kennel must not be over 150 lb.
| Alaska size | Outside, inches (L x W x H) | Empty kennel |
|---|---|---|
| 100 series | 21 x 16 x 15 | 9 lb |
| 200 series | 27 x 20 x 19 | 14 lb |
| 300 series | 32 x 22 x 24 | 20 lb |
| 400 series | 36 x 24 x 26 | 24 lb |
| 500 series | 40 x 27 x 30 | 28 lb |
The 737, the E175 and the A321 take all five sizes. The 717 used between the Hawaiian islands takes up to the 400. A pet that needs a kennel bigger than a 500 gets a custom quote.
- Rigid kennel held together with metal or plastic nuts and bolts, with a solid roof
- One securely fastened metal door, and no door or wire on top
- Room for your pet to turn around freely standing up and lie down naturally
- Food and water dishes clipped inside the door, handles on the outside
- Clean, leakproof, with safe absorbent bedding
- No wheels, no collapsible kennels, no broken parts, tape or makeshift fasteners
- "Live Animal" in letters at least one inch high, and arrows showing the upright position
We sell airline crates in all five sizes, set up to these rules. Our crate size calculator suggests a size from your pet's measurements. The crate size is an estimate based on the details you enter. Your pet may need a bigger crate once we see them in person, and the airline makes the final call at check-in. We will confirm the crate before we order it.
The day of the flight
Hand-in and pickup
- 1
Ready at home
Your pet is offered food and water within 4 hours of departure, with the dishes clipped inside the kennel door.
- 2
Hand-in at cargo
Your pet is handed in at the airline's cargo building, not the passenger terminal, no more than 4 hours before the flight, with the paperwork done.
- 3
The flight
Your pet flies in the hold of a regular passenger flight, in its kennel.
- 4
Pickup
Your pet is usually ready about 1 hour after landing and must be collected within 4 hours, with photo ID.
At SEA: 2600 S. 165th St., SeaTac. Alaska Air Cargo runs the facility.
On time matters. Cargo buildings are not boarding kennels. If a pet is not collected within 4 hours, the airline may need to kennel it. Before we book, we confirm who collects your pet at the other end, and we send them the address and the air waybill number.
Alaska Airlines pet cargo: questions
How much does Alaska Airlines pet cargo cost?
Does Alaska Air Cargo need a health certificate?
How old does my pet have to be?
Can snub-nosed breeds fly as Alaska Air Cargo?
What is the largest kennel Alaska Air Cargo takes?
Can pets fly as cargo in summer?
What happens if nobody collects my pet on time?
Last checked against the official pages on October 6, 2026.
Airlines and states change their rules. Always check the official page before you book.
We book this for you
We arrange home pickup in the Seattle area, the crate, the paperwork, the cargo booking and delivery at the other end. On most routes you see your price on screen in about three minutes.