From the breeder's arms to yours, wherever home is.
Five gentle ways to bring your puppy home, from a free local meet-up to a flight nanny in the cabin. Every trip begins with a licensed-vet exam and ends with a photo like the ones below.
Five gentle ways home, from a free local meet-up to a flight nanny in the cabin. Every trip begins with a licensed-vet exam and ends with a photo like these.
How would you like to meet your puppy?
You choose after you reserve, in your PetPay account. Your Travel Concierge recommends the right one for your puppy's breed, size and route.1
Gerry · Cavalier · Windham, MEMeet your breeder and your puppy at a public place near them, a date and spot your Travel Concierge sets up with both of you.
Shadow · Cockalier · Eldridge, IAYour breeder (or their nanny) brings the puppy to a nearby public spot, typically their closest airport, police or fire station. A longer drive may cost more, depending on the breeder's distance, time and availability.
Grayson · Mini Dachshund · Irving, TXAn approved ground partner drives your puppy to the address nearest you in a climate-controlled cabin, played with, watered, cleaned and checked on constantly along the way.
Theodora · Mini Goldendoodle · Wilmington, NCWe book the flight and coordinate with the breeder. Your puppy flies in a pressurized, temperature-controlled compartment and you meet it at your airport, usually the same day.
Kian · Pomeranian · De Land, FLA flight nanny, usually an off-duty flight attendant, carries your puppy in the cabin from the breeder's arms to yours, same day, with texts, photos and calls the whole way.
The right breeder is rarely the closest one. That's fine.
These families didn't limit themselves to a zip code. Their puppies came home this month, with a person or a climate-controlled cabin the whole way.
From "reserved" to the delivery photo, in seven steps.
Most puppies are home in one to three weeks. Travel is booked in advance while the vet exam is scheduled; if the exam turns something up, the booking moves. Tap a step.
Seven steps, reserved to delivered.
Travel is booked in advance while the vet exam is scheduled; if the exam turns something up, the booking moves. Tap a step.
Reserve on PetPay, then pick one of the five options inside your account. Your Travel Concierge confirms it fits your puppy's breed, size and route.
Flights and drivers need lead time, so your Concierge books now (flight details 7–9 days out; ground pickup 2–4 days after booking) and you sign the Travel Work Order. Meanwhile the breeder schedules the exam.
Full physical, fecal test, vaccines and deworming, all recorded on the Veterinary Health Report. Not its parents' paperwork. Your puppy.
Findings are communicated to you through your Customer Advocate. The report is uploaded to your PetPay account; a hard copy travels with the puppy.
Airport pickup instructions in PetPay, a driver calling with an ETA, or a nanny texting from the gate. Your Concierge hears what you hear.
Government-issued ID at handoff. The delivery photo is uploaded to PetPay by you or whoever delivered, and that confirms delivery.
Book it before the puppy arrives. Bring the Veterinary Health Report and vaccine record. This visit sets your puppy's baseline and keeps the Health Guarantee in force.
Pawrade isn't a carrier. We set the standard, and only partners who meet it move our puppies.*
not for a minute. ♡Never alone, not for a minute. ♡
*Transport is performed by approved, vetted third-party partners who abide by Pawrade protocols and coordinate with your Travel Concierge. Pawrade does not operate as a carrier.
Your puppy sets the schedule. Not the calendar.
Six simple rules, all written for the puppy. If one of them moves your date, that's the system working.
Those weeks with mom and littermates build immunity and good manners. Some breeders hold certain breeds to 12.
Toy breeds lose body heat and blood sugar quickly. A little more time at home makes the trip easy on them.
Physical, fecal test, vaccines and deworming, 3–5 days before travel. If something needs attention, the trip waits.
Checked at every airport on the route. Too hot or too cold, the airline waits a day. Ground cabins are climate-controlled year-round.
Bulldogs, Frenchies, Pugs, Shih Tzus and Cavaliers travel by flight nanny or ground, never as standard air cargo.
The Certificate of Veterinary Inspection is required by law for interstate travel and is included with every puppy.
What to expect when you're expecting.
Flight details 7–9 days out; airport pickup instructions in your PetPay account.
Airlines only fly puppies between 45–85°F. If it's outside that, we rebook, usually the same day.
Pet-approved flights are booked, tracked and rebooked by your Concierge. You just show up.
Flight nannies fly with the puppy in the cabin; if a flight fills, they take the next one and keep you posted.
Puppies aren't set down in public areas. That's safer for them, so a soiled coat on arrival is normal. Dawn soap, warm water.
Bring photo ID, or name a friend in advance. Meet at the spot in your PetPay instructions.
An ETA at pickup and another when they're close. Your Concierge hears the same.
Climate-controlled cabin; played with, watered and checked constantly, never walked at rest stops.
Ground routes cover many miles; arrival is a window that can stretch with traffic and weather.
Drivers keep moving rather than hold a puppy in the van, so deliveries can land late. The puppy comes first.
Rural routes lose signal. If you can't reach the driver, your Concierge can.
You or your named person, with photo ID. Double-check the address in PetPay.
What the last three feet look like.
for a happier tomorrow. ♡
Customer videoA teacup puppy flies home with an Airpanion nanny
Customer videoSabine the Teacup Maltipoo comes home
Customer videoLincoln the Mini Dachshund comes home
Yorkie“I especially love the cute text messages from the drivers. We love her.”
Labrador“The transport company was great with providing updates and pictures during transport.”
Cavapoo“George arrived safe, sound, and so happy directly to our doorstep.”
Jack Russell“I got our new puppy at the time that was said, great communication with drivers.”
Maltipoo“She arrived alert and happy. She immediately ate and used her puppy pad.”
Shih Tzu“It was the most beautiful homecoming with many people. Great communication every step of the way.”
Six things that make travel day easy.
The state health certificate, the Veterinary Health Report and the vaccine record come with the puppy on every option. A travel carrier is often provided by the breeder where available, sometimes for a small fee; your Concierge will confirm. Ask your breeder for a small blanket or toy that smells like the litter; it eases the first nights. The breeder's food brand is in your PetPay account so you can have the same bag waiting.
Flight details land 7–9 days before departure; pickup instructions are posted in your PetPay account. Drivers call with an ETA, flight nannies text photos from the gate, and your Travel Concierge sees the same updates you do. Phone, SMS or email, your choice.
The Puppy Guide's pre-arrival list: book the 72-hour wellness exam (no vaccines for the first 10 days), buy the breeder's food and puppy Nutri-Cal, set up a crate or playpen, potty pads and bowls, and puppy-proof cords, plants and cabinets. Have Dawn dish soap ready; puppies often soil in transit and transporters can't bathe them.
You or a person you name in advance must be at the handoff with government-issued photo ID. That protects your puppy from being released to the wrong person. Then someone takes the delivery photo; upload it to PetPay and the breeder is paid.
Airlines pause pet travel outside 45–85°F, a rule that protects your puppy. When it applies, your Concierge rebooks, often the same day, and tells you first. If you're booking a hotel or flight to meet the puppy, choose refundable fares.
It's the booking agreement for the trip. You have one calendar day after signing to change your mind in writing (support@petpay.com); after that the transport is booked. Date or mode changes after booking carry a $100 change fee plus any rebooking costs, unless the change comes from the vet exam, which your Concierge handles at no charge to you. Please be at the handoff, or name someone who will be. Travel Department: Mon–Fri, 8 AM – 5 PM EST.
From the Pawrade blog
The questions every family asks about the trip.
A puppy is a newborn. Pawrade requires the licensed-vet exam and pauses travel on a finding; your breeder sends the puppy vaccinated, dewormed, bathed and cleaned. Your part, from the Puppy Guide, before the puppy arrives:
Typically one to three weeks after you reserve. Travel is booked in advance because flights and drivers need lead time; the breeder schedules the licensed-vet exam for 3–5 days before departure; Health First reviews the report and talks to you. If the exam turns something up, the booking moves. Toy breeds wait until 2 lb or 12 weeks, for their safety. Your Concierge gives you real dates and keeps you posted at every step.
The booking moves. Health First communicates the finding to you through your Customer Advocate, and the breeder's veterinarian addresses it (a positive fecal is treated and re-tested, a cough is resolved) before a new date is set. The sale isn't cancelled; the trip waits for the puppy. The report, with the finding on it, is uploaded to your PetPay account.
No, for two reasons. Health: littermates and the breeder's other dogs haven't finished their vaccines; parvovirus and other pathogens travel on shoes and clothing and persist for months, so one visitor can infect a kennel. Safety: the AKC advises breeders not to host home visits from unknown buyers, which protects their family, their dogs and your puppy. Local pickup is in a public place, and a licensed veterinarian has already examined your puppy in your stead.
For most breeds, yes, with the rules followed: a pressurized, temperature-controlled compartment; no travel outside 45–85°F at any airport on the route; a licensed-vet exam days before. Snub-nosed breeds and very small puppies are the exception; they go by flight nanny or ground. The AVMA notes defective carriers, not flight itself, are the most common cause of injury, which is why an airline-approved carrier is required.
Short-nosed (brachycephalic) breeds such as French Bulldogs, Bulldogs, Pugs, Boston Terriers, Shih Tzus and Cavaliers have narrower airways and don't cool themselves well. In the cargo hold no one can watch them, so:
Airlines will not transport pets outside the cabin when the ground temperature at origin, connection or destination is above 85°F or below 45°F. Between 20 and 44°F a veterinarian's acclimation letter allows travel; below 20°F nothing does. In peak summer and deep winter this is the most common reason a standard flight is rebooked. Flight nannies aren't subject to it; ground cabins are climate-controlled.
Her immune system is still building until the vaccine series is complete (around 16 weeks). Parvovirus lives in soil for months, and one sniff of the wrong patch is enough. Until your vet clears her:
1 Rates apply to most routes and standard-sized puppies; an additional fee may apply for oversized puppies or considerably distant destinations, based on booking availability. Breeder Meet-up fees, if any, are set by the breeder based on distance, time and availability. Financing shown as four interest-free payments where offered at checkout. Travel dates are estimates; the signed Travel Work Order governs. Transport is performed by approved third-party partners; Pawrade coordinates and does not operate as a carrier. Customer photos and quotes are from verified Pawrade reviews. †MetLife: NH, NY, RI, SC and TN residents excluded.