PadsPass: a solution to easier pet travel?
After a flight into Heathrow, Lauren Anders Brown was separated from her dog, Paddington, for 24 hours while she navigated time-sensitive importation laws that she did not understand.
Once they were reunited she discovered the fault lay with a series of errors made by her, her dog’s veterinarian and staff at the biggest airport in Britain.
Ms Brown, who had travelled with Paddington on 75 flights to nine countries, thought she had done sufficient research to prepare them for the trip but it became obvious there were “gaps in the system” that worked against people flying with pets.
It’s how she came up with the idea of PadsPass, an “international dog travel and digital dog health record”.
“I wanted to make something that would prevent me from ever getting in that situation again, that would prevent vets from ever getting in that situation again, and that would prevent dogs from being separated from their owners, [something that would let them] be able to travel,” Ms Brown said.
“I know how much of a joy it is. Especially as someone who doesn't have children, she was my child.”
Paddington, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, died in March at the age of 12.
With Ms Brown she travelled through the United States, to England, to France, Germany, the Netherlands, Andorra, Scotland and Wales before settling in Bermuda at the start of the pandemic in 2020.
“I am an American. So originally, like Paddington, I lived in New York and then we moved to London to be with my partner because that's where he's from.
“When we moved to the UK, the very first thing I did was get Paddington a passport. That opened up an amazing world of opportunities: the paperwork was just much more streamlined.”
Lauren Anders Brown travelled the world with Paddington at her feet.
Over the space of a decade they took 75 flights to nine countries. A pet passport issued by the British Government made it easier until Brexit took that privilege away.
Ms Brown is now building PadsPass, an app that could be a solution. Pet owners will have access to a “secure digital platform that streamlines veterinarian health records to government and airline officials to ensure accurate compliance”.
The information can also easily be shared with dog walkers, groomers and doggy daycares.
To move her idea forward she needs a range of people to complete a two-minute survey on padspass.com. A request for a 15 to 30-minute talk will follow.
“All of the input that I can receive from pet parents, from anyone who works in transportation, anyone who works in hospitality, airline attendants, lots of different people [will help].
“You don't have to have a dog. You just have to either work around a dog or love to travel.”
Pet passports issued by the UK became invalid with the deadline of Brexit, in January 2021. Paddington was allowed to travel on hers until October 2022.
“It's up to every country as to what they accept. The UK has done nothing to help pet parents when it comes to travelling. The EU still has their pet passport and you can still have that, but in the UK they [no longer have one] and it's never been an option in the US.
“No one's finding a way to kind of centralise, in an international way, animals’ veterinary records [and also use] that information to help streamline and understand where you can actually go with your dog according to your dog's unique health information.”
Where a dog was born, where it lives and how long it has lived there should be tracked along with its vaccinations and state of health. At the moment the onus is on the pet owner to pull it all together based on the specific requirements of the country they intend to visit.
“Even if you're eligible to go to places, it's a mind map, to put it very bluntly, as far as how complicated it can be. I always did it because she was worth it for me. She definitely was a huge part of keeping myself mentally healthy and fit and, and so for me, it was worth it. But not everyone can, or the worst is people do it wrong and then they get separated from their animals.”
Ms Brown arrived in Bermuda with Paddington in March of 2020 to visit her partner, a doctor who was here on a short-term contract.
Once the pandemic was declared and the decision was made to close the airport, he was invited to stay. Ms Brown, an independent documentary filmmaker, became a digital nomad.
“That was only made possible, kind of, by how relatively easy the process is to bring your dog here to Bermuda, compared to a lot of other places,” she said.
“It’s actually really straightforward. The biggest plus is that you need a qualified registered vet, not a USDA vet, in order to complete the paperwork, and secondly, the only timed medication that you receive is within ten days of departure. That's actually really lenient especially if plans change, weather can change and stuff like that.”
Another plus: Bermuda doesn’t demand rabies or titre tests, which often have time requirements.
“As a pet parent travelling you have to add on not only time to get the test, it has to be within the period that a government approves it, but then you have to get the information back. I was supposed to go to Cayman with Paddington once and unfortunately had to cancel because the labs were so backed up in the summer that we weren’t going to be able to get her tests back in time.”
1, Don't expect to travel fast
At present, you can't go away for a long weekend with your dog from Bermuda because animal husbandry requires two days to be able to process your permit. So you have to allow yourself a bit of time or leave your dog at home.
2, Watch the weather
I went back to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving and a drive that was supposed to take two-and-a-half hours took five because of the weather. Weather is another thing to always consider: what is the weather of the place that you're going to and where you are and do you have enough to accommodate your dog if something happens. Whether it's too hot or too cold there can be issues either way.
3, Expect to pay
If it's something that you really want to do, it is absolutely possible, but you’re going to have to pay for a pet fee in cabin; some hotels require a pet cleaning fee. But the world is changing when it comes to pet travel. Always review information and then double check it. Follow it up with an e-mail or a phone call or a message on social media to confirm so you're not caught out.
4, Book vets well in advance
I recently used a vet and they got [my paperwork] wrong. Thankfully, I did the paperwork so far ahead [of re-entry into Bermuda] that I was able to deal with the back and forth. But vets are busy. As much as they want to help people travel with their dogs because they love animals, if they have an emergency that comes in or something that's more urgent, you have to wait.
5, Be an advocate
Take the time to understand the policies of the airline and the government regulations [of your destination]. That's the only way that you're going to be able to helpfully point out to people if they don't fully understand their own company's policies, because that happens a lot too.
6, Choose your dog wisely
Consider flight requirements and how that could impact your choice of breed. And consider their temperament. You don't want to hurt or make your dog uncomfortable. So [for future pet parents who want to travel with their dog], I would consider breed and size. Lots of people love cute dogs that look really cute, but they might not have the best kind of temperament to be able to travel, especially on long flights.
Ms Brown began researching her idea last October, mindful that no one else was offering what she felt was needed.
“There's lots of other companies that keep your health records in one place or list different pet-friendly places, but there's not one that includes everything, that gives you a doggy itinerary with all the timings of everything. Because the thing that I've learnt from travelling with my dog is timing is everything.”
An experienced friend taught her not to be overwhelmed by the massive challenge of creating something that would be accepted worldwide.
“I've seen a lot of possibilities. All you have to do is start small with an idea and begin to flesh it out. You don't have to build it all at once.
“I have a great mentor back in New York who's run a lot of different tech start-ups and he said the two things you have to do are prove that people care about this and [then] go ahead and start building it.”
Ms Brown is inviting dogs and their parents to join her and Peru, her Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, at Somerset Long Bay on Sunday in hopes of better connecting with Bermuda’s dog community and hearing what they think would make travel easier. The lucky winner of a random draw will walk away with a favourite of Ms Brown, a brand new roller pet carrier by Snoozer.
“I’m going to have some ornaments that people can personalise if they want and one [that’s] a bit more special for dogs that have passed,” she said.
“I just thought it was a good way to meet people, to get to tell them a bit about what I'm doing and to hear if they've travelled with dogs – any good stories, bad stories. All of this information is really helpful especially because my first version of the platform is going to just focus on US to Bermuda travel.”
• Lauren Anders Brown’s Yappy Hour begins at 1pm at Somerset Long Bay Beach. All are welcome. RSVP onFacebook. Follow PadsPass there and onInstagram
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