PCS season always brings its own level of chaos… but this move has been a different kind of wild. Between flying four pets internationally, dealing with a frustrating Turo claim, repairing our camper, and navigating new-build corrections before closing — it’s been nonstop.
Here’s everything happening behind the scenes (with real numbers, receipts, and lessons learned).
✈️ Flying Four Pets Internationally: The Full Breakdown
One of the biggest undertakings of this PCS was getting two German Shepherds and two cats safely from the UK to the U.S.
🐾 Our Travelers
- Jasmine – 12-year-old female GSD (~70 lbs)
- Zeus – 1-year-old male GSD (just under 100 lbs)
- Kitty – 7 lbs
- Nala – 9 lbs
We’ve flown with pets before, but this time — with four animals, three kids, and being over two hours away from Heathrow — we needed the process to be as smooth as possible.
🧱 Crates & Prep
Back in 2021, we paid $500 each for two custom-built wooden crates in Utah. Thankfully, they were still compliant and reusable. We also reused one Petmate crate and purchased one additional small crate for our second cat.
🐕🦺 How Pet Cargo Works at Heathrow
With American Airlines, all pets ship through AirPets, not through the passenger terminal. AirPets handles:
- Weigh-in
- Crate compliance
- Fit-to-fly exams
- Health certificates
- Required AA paperwork
- Transport to the aircraft
Since our flight was early and the drive long, we opted for several of AirPets’ services — including overnight boarding — which made things much more manageable.
💷 What We Actually Paid (From the Invoices)
Invoice 1 – Jasmine, Kitty, Nala
Total: £1,725
Breakdown:
- Weight Charge: £1,060
- Handling: £390
- VSC Fee: £21
- Preboarding: £35
- Health Certificate + Fit-to-Fly: £144
- Misc (crate-related): £75
Invoice 2 – Zeus
Total: £2,146.36
Breakdown:
- Weight Charge: £1,340
- Handling: £130
- VSC Fee: £14
- Preboarding: £35
- Health Certificate + Fit-to-Fly: £48
- Doc Fee: £60
- Collection from our home near Lakenheath: £259.36
- Overnight boarding: £260
We split these intentionally because one pet now qualifies for a partial reimbursement in the travel voucher.
Grand Total Paid to AirPets:
£3,871.36
(plus the original $1,000 spent on crates in 2021)
🏥 Health Requirements You Need to Know
For Dogs:
- CDC Rabies Import Form
- Valid rabies vaccine
- Microchip
- Fit-to-fly exam + health certificate
- Airline documents
For Cats:
- Microchip
- Rabies
- Fit-to-fly exam + health certificate
If you need to update a rabies vaccine before flying, plan early — the waiting periods can delay your entire PCS.
🎒 How We Prepped the Crates (What Actually Works)
We used the same system from our 2021 move:
- Food pre-measured in Ziplocs, placed inside dry bags
- Bags + leashes attached to crates with carabiners
- Collars removed for safety
- Bowls upgraded by AirPets to meet new 2025 regulations
- Crate doors reinforced with additional zip ties
- Ventilation and hardware double-checked
A lot of regulations have changed since 2021, so AirPets fixed several things at drop-off to ensure compliance.
⭐ Planning Tip
Start researching 6 months ahead.
Also — the first pet is always the most expensive. Additional animals cost significantly less.
🚗 The Turo Vehicle Damage Claim… a Whole Situation
Before we even touched U.S. soil, one of our renters damaged our 2021 Ram 2500. She admitted it, then refused to provide insurance info and eventually stopped responding.
Turo advised us to “work with the guest” because of their high deductible, but that clearly wasn’t an option.
Here’s where it gets frustrating:
- Our shop estimate: nearly $1,500
- Turo’s photo-only estimate: under $780
- After the $750 deductible?
💸 We got $18.
- Support responses were generic and repetitive
- A supplemental is allowed — but the vehicle must stay at the shop
- While PCS’ing, we cannot leave our only vehicle at a repair shop
We’ll revisit this once we’re settled in Virginia.
Side note:
Our Outdoorsy claim years ago was far smoother. They actually use the renter’s insurance — the way it should be.
🚐 Camper Work Before the Tow
Alongside everything else, we’ve been freshening up the camper to get it ready for the drive to Virginia.
So far we’ve replaced:
- Both batteries
- The electric tongue jack
More parts are arriving, but we’re making progress.
🏡 New-Build Home Update
We’re still awaiting final closing, mainly because our inspector found several issues — even though it’s a brand new build.
Thankfully, the builder is addressing everything, but it’s pushing us right up against the 30-day mark from offer acceptance.
We’re excited to finally make this house a home.
🏡 Property Spotlight – Our Mundford Home for Rent
If you or someone you know is PCSing to RAF Lakenheath, RAF Feltwell, or RAF Mildenhall, our former Mundford home is officially available.
⭐ Highlights
- 5 bedrooms + loft
- Garage & driveway
- Large garden with koi pond
- Washer, dryer, dishwasher, water softener included
- Pets allowed
- Available now
- Walkable to forest, school, pub, restaurants
- Only 15 minutes to Lakenheath & Feltwell
🔗 Full Listing:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/168259280
Please share with anyone arriving this winter!
❤️ A Huge Thank You — and Our TransGlobal Update
One part of this PCS that hasn’t been stressful has been working with TransGlobal Auto Logistics. They’ve handled the vehicle shipping side smoothly, clearly, and with real support for military families.
If you want to check them out, clicking through my links helps support my work:
🔗 General Link: go.tgal.us/kimber
🔗 Blog-Specific Link: go.tgal.us/kimber-blog
🔗 Stay Connected
Explore past issues, digital downloads, PCS resources, and more:
👉 https://linktr.ee/Thepathlessjourney
Thank you for following along during one of the most chaotic seasons of our lives.
More PCS insights — including the full military vehicle shipping breakdown — are coming in the next issue.
Until next time — keep learning, keep building, and keep finding your path.
— Kimber