Picking Up Mabel

Hands down, the most stressful part of this move to Germany has been shipping our dog, Mabel Pines, to us.

It’s been agonizing and hard, and very expensive. In fact, it cost more to fly her over that to fly our entire family of six! And I have cried everyday about it all since March. But was it worth it? YES.

Mabel joined our family in 2018. She is a Sheepadoodle (mix of Old English Sheepdog and Poodle) with the sweetest temperament and has been so perfect for us. This is her second move and I have to say the first move was stressful for her, too. She just drove in the car with us, but the complete change in environment kind of threw her for a loop. That move ended up being the best for her because she flipped a switch from being a puppy I had to worry about running out the door to play with her doggie neighbors, to being much more calm and reserved. In our new home in New Mexico, I loved that I could have her outside off leash and not have to worry about her running away and that she has been so good to listen to basic commands.

May 2018. She was the cutest puppy!

This move overseas was obviously a lot more complicated than just hopping in the family car for a move to a new place. As soon as we knew we were moving overseas, I spent hours talking to different airlines and pet shipping companies to get quotes and learn how we were going to do this. For some, it’s super simple and inexpensive. If you have a smaller dog that can fit in a soft kennel under your airplane seat, you can just have your pet ride in cabin with you for a small fee. If you’re flying to Europe with your dog and departing from the east coast, you can book your pet as excess baggage and pay $400-$600 to have your pet loaded on your same plane with you. You then just pick up your dog with the rest of your bags, and make sure you have the right documentation (immunizations and a health certificate from your vet that is stamped by the USDA within 10 days of travel).

If neither of those options work for you it can be really difficult. We knew we would be flying from Dallas on American Airlines, through London and then onto Stuttgart. American Airlines plane didn’t have a pet cargo door big enough for Mabel, plus clearing customs in London would not be the same since our final destination was Germany. We knew we had to use a pet shipper. Pet shippers make all the arrangements with the airlines and pick ups and documents for you to ensure your pet arrives safely. The quote I received ranged from $3400-$8500 for Mabel to fly on Lufthansa from Dallas to Frankfurt. My main concern was knowing that the airlines and airports shut down shipping animals when the temperatures are over 85 degrees at the time of the flight. Flying out of Dallas June 1 is iffy, and this year the temps have been brutal. Our pet shipper was still able to book her flight with Lufthansa Cargo to fly out the same day as us, and coordinated clearing customs and having her delivered to hotel the day after we arrived. It was perfect. Too perfect, of course.

We learned a few days before our departure that Lufthansa had to begin heat embargo which meant Mabel’s flight was rescheduled to the following week! When there is a heat embargo they only do one flight out to Frankfurt per week and have it leave late at night to avoid the high temps. The pet areas in the airport for cargo and on the plane are temperature-regulated, but the time out on the tarmac to load is where the danger is. When it’s too hot, animals can die. It’s good that they take these precautions.

With us flying away, I reached out to friends in the Dallas area to ask for boarding facilities they would recommend. I was heartbroken to leave Mabel in a kennel but I didn’t know what to do. Several friends shared recommendations and also offered to watch Mabel themselves and I was so grateful! I am so glad that Mabel got to spend time with my friend and her family of three boys for the week. They were so good to her and she loved them.

The day before her flight out, we received the call from our pet shipper that Lufthansa Frankfurt Animal Lounge where all animal clear customs was closing for two weeks due to Covid numbers and being short staffed. We were gutted! Not only was this more time away from Mabel and more inconvenience for our friends, but our friends were leaving on vacation and wouldn’t be able to keep Mabel for the extended amount of time. We were also now at the time limit for her customs-clearing health certificate. It would mean figuring out a vet appointment for new documentations, and spending hundreds of dollars more. Our kind friends offered to keep Mabel as long as they could.

In all my pet-shipping questions I had been asking over the previous months on Facebook groups I had connected with another kind soul who was also preparing to move with a dog out of Dallas. We had shared info we were finding with each other and recommendations. Many other dog owners were also experiencing separation from their animals when this closure from Lufthansa was announced and I had commented with our situation there. She saw my comment and reached out right away to ask if she could take Mabel for us until her next rescheduled flight. Can you even believe the kindness? To me, it’s all miracles and I never want to forget to feel so watched over by so many people. All answers to prayers.

She generously drove to my other friend’s house to pick up Mabel and took her back to her home with her two children and dog. Mabel was so loved through all of this.

It was difficult the few weeks we were apart because of the time difference between Germany and Texas. Every evening in Germany I would feel my tension and stress levels rising as I responded to text updates and tried to coordinate Mabel’s care and documents. I would be up late into the night sometimes and have trouble sleeping.

The day before Mabel’s rescheduled flight, it seemed like things were good to go. I was at the grocery store with Emme, my daughter, when the text came in that the heat embargo was going to cancelling all flights for the rest of the summer from Dallas to Frankfurt. I cried. My brain felt like cascading dominoes thinking through all the next step after step after step and what we would do.

My new friend who had Mabel then was also trying to schedule their own travel with their dog out of Dallas and so we were scrambling together on what we were going to do. The pet shipper suggested driving the dogs to Houston to fly out with KLM to Munich the following week if they were still shipping pets. We would have to have new vet certifications and USDA clearances and pay for extra transportation, not to mention all the added stress for the dogs. My kids saw me consumed in rapid messages on my phone for hours, wiping the tears in-between each send.

Hours later, the pet shipper said it looked like Lufthansa was going to do just one more flight…the one Mabel was booked on. We all held our breath hoping it would stick.

Mabel was picked up from my friend by an animal courier and checked in at the airport. They sent me this picture:

We had to shave Mabel’s hair off before this move because I knew she wouldn’t be getting brushed out. It’s so weird to see her all trimmed 😆

I didn’t sleep all night waiting for my phone to ding with updates. Lufthansa sends automatic updates once your pet is shipped in, loaded, flying, arrived, and ready for pick up. She got on! I tracked her flight online too to see her crossing over the southern tip of Greenland, then the U.K., then into Europe and finally arriving. Hooray!

Matt and I drove in a borrowed car (ours still hasn’t arrived yet) to Frankfurt — about two and a half hours away. We found the Animal Lounge and tried to translate the signs in German to figure out where we needed to go.

“Sprechen sie Englisch?” were the first words with each person we saw. I really wish I spoke German! We checked in at the first desk who told us they were still unloading the animals from the plane and that we needed to wait. Another 30 minutes and we were told they had her, we just needed to wait another 30 minutes. Then we checked in with our paperwork and paid the vet fee, and waited another 30 minutes. Then another 30 minutes. One courier waiting to pick up dogs to deliver them to their owners told us not to ask any questions because they would just make you wait longer. So we sat, and sat, and sweat and sweat. It’s been super hot in Germany and there’s no A/C anywhere. Eventually we were told to get back in our car and drive to the customs office. It was pouring rain and getting dark by then. We again tried to follow the signs in German and were able to clear customs with the fees being waived because of our military status.

Back to the Animal Lounge to wait some more. All in all we waited over 4 hours.

Then, finally! They had us pay for boarding costs and told us to head downstairs to wait at the garage door (all in German, we had no idea if we understood correctly)!

We found the garage door and met a couple other military pet owners there waiting for their pets as well. Some paying as much as $8000 for their dog to be shipped over. One soldier told us it had wiped out all of his savings moving here. The military does not pay to move dogs. We were all exhausted and so eager to see this process come to an end successfully.

The garage door opened after about 20 minutes and they rolled out a few dog kennels. When Mabel saw us she immediately started crying and trying to push her kennel door open. She was wild running out trying to go between Matt and I with me struggling to get her collar and leash on to keep her still and safe. She cried and cried, and I sobbed.

I was probably as soaked from my tears as from the rain at this point.

She was here and she was ok! When we finally got home about 10pm, she was so excited to see the kids. It was sweet to see. When we got out her tennis ball she cried and cried again. HOME AT LAST!

I have felt so much guilt around making her go through this. I’ve worried over the past several months about how she would do, if it would wreck her forever with anxiety and fear. She had hives or a rash on her legs that she wouldn’t leave alone for a couple days. I bathed her and she’s been so loved that it has all gone away. I think it was all stress induced which is totally understandable. I’m so sad that we put her through it, but I cannot bear the thought of leaving her for three years or giving her away. She is so much a part of our family and has been the best emotional support dog for us and our kids. We need her as much as she needs us.

I hope that when we move back to the U.S. that it will be easier. There are bills before congress now and many people lobbying to have a pet allowance included for military members moving overseas with a pet. The military literally encouraged us to open a GoFundMe account and ask for donations from friends and family to help. 😵‍💫 We were fortunate to find two difference organizations that offered grants to help offset the cost. After applying we learned that we received $200 from one and $750 from another through PayPal which is so appreciated. It was difficult to see some companies that seemingly take advantage of the emotional state of military families shipping a pet and charge exorbitant amounts. Many members leave pets behind with family or friends and it is heart wrenching.

I’m glad this process is over. I no longer feel my blood pressure rise in the evening in anticipation of texts streaming in with flight updates and issues. I love seeing Mabel settle in to her old routines and checking in on all the kids. We love her so much!