If you tend to travel with your pet, the Transportation Security Administration has a very important message for you: do not put them through a checkpoint X-ray unit.
According to the TSA, agents are finding more pets are being placed through airport X-ray machines.
To ensure the safety of your pet, the TSA has offered the following tips for screening your furry companions:
- All pets should be brought to a security checkpoint in a hand-held travel carrier.
- Remove the pet from the carrier just prior to the beginning of the screening process.
- Place the empty travel carrier on the checkpoint conveyor belt so it can be X-rayed.
- Never place a pet in the X-ray tunnel. The X-ray at the security checkpoint is used to screen passengers’ personal property and carry-on luggage only.
- If possible, carry the pet through the walk-through metal detector during the screening process or walk your pet through the screening process if you have a leash. Best to listen to the guidance that a TSA officer is providing.
- A TSA officer will give the pet owner’s hands an explosive trace detection swab to ensure there is no explosive residue on the owner’s hands.
- After the screening process is complete, owners should return their pet to the travel carrier at the re-composure area away from the security checkpoint. This location helps ensure the safety of the pet as well as other passengers.
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Pet travel restrictions may vary by airline and airport, so check with your respective air carrier before traveling with a pet.
Air travel could be stressful for some animals, but there are ways to make a trip through security as easy as possible:
- Try to acclimate the pet to the process of traveling by familiarizing it with the travel carrier in the days leading up to the trip. If your pet is familiar with its carrier, they might be more relaxed as it travels through the security process and the airport.
- Be on the lookout for “working” canines and handlers at the airport. If you encounter a working canine, consider switching to an alternate checkpoint so that there is no interference with a government working dog’s tasks.
- Know the temperament of your pet and ensure that you can maintain control of it in a busy and potentially crowded airport.
- Travelers who have pets that may be skittish when removed from a pet carrier, should request that a TSA officer screen the pet in a private screening room.
- When traveling with service animals and pets, it is a good idea to contact your airline directly for policy details as they vary by airline and time of year.
- Travelers should become familiar with the pet relief areas at their departing airport and arrival airport.
