Getting your new furry friend safely into your waiting arms is our top priority and shipping with Westjet or Air North makes this process possible!  We know you are both excited and a little nervous about how these details pull together, so we hope your'll enjoy the following info.

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Is shipping a safe option?  We don't want to risk our puppy!

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We have been so impressed with the careful attention that both Westjet and Air North give the dogs.  Their requirements for health, prep and paperwork are quite specific and in turn, they provide a climate controlled area both pre flight and inflight and even check the puppy's kennels for messes before they fly.  We have completed MANY flights with Westjet and the puppies have handled them beautifully.  I certainly believe flying is a preferable option to an excessively long drive.  Picking up your puppy in person has a large degree of stress to it as well... they don't know you and can't really relax enough to eat or drink while they are in transition, so a short plane ride can offer a wonderful solution. 

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What do you do to prepare our puppy for their trip?

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We put a lot of work into ensuring the puppies are both physically and emotionally ready for their airplane adventure.  We book flights for a single day so that all of the puppies travel to the airport as a group.  We prep them ahead by having them spend a bit of time in the closed kennel and learn to relax.  The puppies are given an exciting play time before their trip to tire them out and then we put them in the kennel for their trip to the airport. If a puppy is travelling alone, we'll have him ride in a friend's kennel on the way to the airport and only move him to his own once we arrive so that he can have companionship as long as possible.  We check them in with Westjet and wait with them until security claims them and then they are on their way to your arms! 

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Puppies are given a frozen yogurt dish for their trip.  This little snack keeps their sugar levels up and also delays consumption as they slowly lick at it over several hours. Your puppy will arrive with their paperwork taped to the top of the kennel (your bill of sale and immunization guide). They will also have a several day food supply taped to the top of the kennel.  If a delay occurs westjet will use this to feed the puppy. The puppy will have cozy bedding and be nestled in shredded paper that will absorb and surround any accidents, should they occur. Your puppy will have a stuffed animal with the litter's scent in the kennel with them that they can snuggle with during the ride.

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What destinations are available for puppy shipping?

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We are able to fly the puppies anywhere that Westjet services with a direct flight and CARGO service.  Unfortunately, there are many destinations that either have a layover point or are not on Westjet's Cargo list and our puppies can't fly these routes.  COVID 19 has also impacted Westjet's offerings.  Please shoot us an email if you want to know whether or not your desired destination is a possibility.

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What is the cost of puppy shipping?

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Shipping costs are typically just over $500 for a kennel flying with Westjet.   If we have more than one puppy going to the same airport, fares can be split by two families and the puppies can actually enjoy the comfort of flying together in the same kennel.  We can't guarantee the price until the size of the kennel is selected for the number of puppies going, and the flight is actually booked and confirmed with Westjet.  Shipping fees include the cost of the actual Westjet flight, the hard sided airline approved kennel, travel dish, travel blanket, stuffed toy with the litters scent, a several day sample of food, kennel training lessons leading up to the flight and days of effort as we carefully prepare your puppy for their big adventure.

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Tell me more about sharing shipping with another family.  How does that work?

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Certain destinations are popular.  Vancouver is our most popular shipping destination, with Victoria, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Whitehorse and Toronto seeing regular use as well.  All that to say, it's possible that someone from your city may be adopting a puppy from us with your identical timing.  If this occurs, we can put both puppies in a single kennel and they can head to their destination as a team.  This is WONDERFUL for the puppies as having companionship for their flight makes it far less stressful.  I'd say the same for a puppy experiencing anything... even a car ride!  A puppy who has a pal is a happy puppy!  All that to say, we will book the flight for you, connect with the second family and ask your permission to share your contact info with this family.  This does not mean you need to be best friends for life.  This simply allows you to connect as only one of the two families is allowed to be the official kennel recipient as per Westjet's rule.  The official receiver of the kennel is the one who approaches the desk at Westjet, shows their ID and claims the kennel.  The second family can then step in and retrieve their puppy as well.  Both families can be presents and enjoy the process of the puppies arriving!

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How does the booking work?  Do we pick the flight timing?

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We book the flight for you.  Often we have puppies heading to a few destinations and we do our best to book the flights as a group and take the puppies at once.  This allows us to move solo flyers into a puppy friend's kennel for the drive to the airport and the check in and then we move the solo puppy back to their own kennel as the puppies are officially handed over for their security check.

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Flights are typically on the Monday or Tuesday of the week following the litter's pickup dates.  We have to work with whatever timing Westjet is able to offer us!  As soon as we have booked the flight, we'll send you a copy of the paperwork so you know exactly when your new friend will arrive.  You can reimburse us for the flight cost once we've sent the paperwork to you.

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What information do you need from us in order to make this booking?

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We will not need anything from you until you officially select your puppy and we have confirmed those details.  Once you have that one special puppy reserved for you, and have indicated to us that you are interested in shipping, we will contact you via email with the basic questions we need answered to complete the reservation.  Typically this includes whether or not this will be a shared shipping option, who the official pickup person is, the name, legal address and phone number of this person and confirmation of the city you want your puppy flying in to. 

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What do we receive with our shipped puppy?

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All puppies who are shipped need to be in a kennel for their flight. This kennel is yours to keep.  If shipping is shared with another family, you will need to decide between the two of you who is keeping the kennel or just donate it to the SPCA.  There will be absorbent and soft bedding in the bottom of the kennel and a layer for shredded paper for extra cleanliness.  You'll receive a kennel dish and a stuffed animal with the litters scent.  A small bag of dog food (a few day supply) will be attached to the top of your kennel along with your paperwork.

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Any tips on what we should bring with us when we go to pick up our puppy?

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-Nutrical (see the recommended products page), corn syrup or vanilla yogurt when you meet your puppy.  Within the first 15 mins you have them, off him a dime sized glob of the nutrical or corn syrup or a couple teaspoons of the vanilla yogurt.  This will help prevent hypoglycemia (see the care guide - health).  If your puppy doesn't willingly lap it up, smear it into his mouth with your finger.

-A large rubbermaid with a peepad in the bottom.  Your puppy has not finish his immunizations, so the airport floor or the group outside the airport is dangerous for him!  Rather than putting him on the ground to relieve himself, place him in the rubbermaid on the peepad and give him a few minutes to circle in there and do his business.  Don't talk to him or distract him while he's in there, even if he's standing up on the edge saying "pick me up"... just wait him out for a few minutes.

-If you have a lengthy drive home and plan to put the puppy back in the kennel, come prepared with a garbage bag.  Pull any soiled or wet bedding out of the kennel and replace it with a fresh towel.  If your drive is longer than an hour, come with some softened dog food and you can add this to your puppy's travel dish at this point.  Most likely he won't eat, but at least he has the option.

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We see you have a return and refund policy on your puppies.  If we change our mind about our puppy do you refund us our shipping fees?  And will you pay the price of the flight to have the puppy returned?

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Prior to your puppies departure from BabyBarks kennel, if some strange occurrence happens in your life and you need to cancel the flight and your puppy adoption, Westjet does offer refunds for 48 hours before flights.  With this sort of "pre-departure" cancelation, you would be refunded. 

 

In regards to puppies that are within the 48 hour window, have already flown and been received by their families; the majority of your shipping payment is given directly to Air North or Westjet.  This service has then been used up, so no portion of the shipping fee is refundable.  We do not pay for flights to have puppies returned.  If you chose to return your puppy, you would need to book and pay for your puppy's return flight and we will happily retrieve them from the airport and get them settled in with their puppy friends.  Here is the good news.... desiring to return a puppy is extremely rare.  I would say that about 2% of our adoptions are returned so the odds are in your favour that you are going to LOVE your new pet!

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