Cathay Pacific Pet Policy: Cargo Only, Agent Booking and Snub-Nosed Rules (2026)

Cathay Pacific does not carry pets in the passenger cabin or as checked baggage. Trained assistance dogs can fly in the cabin, but every pet travels in the hold as cargo through Cathay Cargo's "Cathay Live Animal" service. Since September 1, 2025, Cathay Cargo only accepts direct pet bookings from members of IPATA or the Animal Transport Association, IATA-accredited freight forwarders, or holders of an IATA Live Animals Regulations training certificate, so most owners book through a pet shipping agent. Snub-nosed cats and dogs are accepted only on a few routes in certain months.

That model surprises people who expect to add a pet to an airline ticket. This guide follows Cathay Pacific's own Travelling with animals page and its May 2025 explainer on how pet shipments work, both read in October 2026. Cathay can change routes and conditions, and destination rules apply on top, so confirm the details with your agent.

Cathay Pacific pet rules at a glance

The table sums up the parts of Cathay's pet policy that decide how you plan the move.

Why Cathay only carries pets as cargo

Many Asian carriers keep pets out of the cabin, but Cathay goes a step further by running every pet through its cargo arm rather than the passenger check-in desk. Cathay says its Live Animal service follows the IATA Live Animals Regulations and has handled everything from racehorses to the pandas that arrived in Hong Kong in 2024. Cathay Cargo also holds IATA's CEIV Live Animals certification, an industry standard for animal handling. For owners, the upside is specialist handling; the downside is that you cannot simply turn up at the counter with a crate.

It also means you will pay cargo rates, quoted by the agent rather than published as a flat pet fee, and your pet travels on an air waybill like other live-animal cargo. Our guide to pet cargo vs in cabin explains what that means in practice.

The 2025 rule: book through a qualified agent

From September 1, 2025, Cathay Cargo accepts direct pet bookings only from three kinds of party: a member of the International Pet and Animal Transportation Association (IPATA) or the Animal Transport Association (ATA), an IATA-accredited freight forwarder, or someone holding a valid IATA Live Animals Regulations training certificate. Most private owners are none of these, so the practical answer is to hire a pet shipper. Cathay itself recommends IPATA or ATA members for their expertise and global networks, and the IPATA directory lets you search by country. For pets travelling from Hong Kong, Cathay says you can book Cathay Live Animal through any agent.

Snub-nosed cats and dogs

Brachycephalic (flat-faced) cats and dogs have a higher risk of breathing problems and heat intolerance in flight. Cathay Cargo now accepts certain brachycephalic breeds, but only from January to May and from October to December, and only on three routes: Hong Kong to London Heathrow, Hong Kong to Melbourne and Hong Kong to Singapore. Cathay says London Heathrow to Hong Kong is temporarily unavailable for these breeds. Owners must use an IPATA-certified BOAS (brachycephalic) pet shipper and meet extra travel conditions. If your snub-nosed pet is moving between the US and Hong Kong, Cathay is not currently an option. Read our guide to the snub-nosed dog breed flying ban for the medical background.

Flying on the same plane as your pet

You can travel on the same flight as your pet, but the order matters. Janice Kwan, a Cathay Cargo customer solutions manager, advises booking the pet first, because cargo space can be harder to confirm than a passenger seat. Once your agent has the pet's space confirmed, you buy your own ticket on that flight. Doing it the other way round risks a confirmed seat for you and no space for your pet.

Check-in at the cargo terminal

Pets check in at the airport's cargo terminal, not the passenger terminal, usually four to six hours before departure. In Hong Kong, Cathay has a quiet animal reception centre, and pets are towed to the aircraft in a ventilated dolly and loaded last and unloaded first to reduce stress. That long check-in window means your pet spends more time in its crate than you might expect, which is one more reason to get it comfortable with the crate weeks in advance.

The crate

Cathay requires a flight crate that meets IATA standards. Cathay's own advice is to buy the crate well before the flight and fill it with treats and rewards so your pet builds positive associations. An IATA-compliant crate is rigid plastic, fiberglass, metal or wood, with ventilation on several sides, a secure metal door, water and food containers that can be filled from outside, and enough space for the pet to stand, turn around and lie down naturally. Your agent will check size and construction against the IATA pet container rules. See how to choose a pet transport crate.

Documents and permits

Cathay is clear that paperwork is often the hardest part. Depending on the route, you may need import and export licences, transit permissions, a microchip, a valid health certificate from a registered vet, vaccination records and, for some destinations, a quarantine period. Your agent works through a checklist with you before the booking is confirmed. Cathay also notes that it has discretion over whether to accept an animal, subject to the laws of the departure, arrival and transit points.

Moving a pet to Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of the places where pets cannot simply be checked in as baggage on any airline; Japan's ANA, for example, tells passengers entering Hong Kong to use a cargo agent instead. Dogs and cats need a special permit from Hong Kong's Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) before they arrive, and the conditions, including whether quarantine applies, depend on where the pet is coming from and its vaccination and microchip history. Ask your agent to confirm the current AFCD category for your origin and apply for the permit before booking cargo space.

Flying a dog from Hong Kong to the US

For the trip to the US, every dog needs to meet the CDC dog import rules, including the CDC Dog Import Form and a microchip. The CDC's high-risk country list covers mainland China but excludes Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, so a dog that has lived only in Hong Kong for the past six months follows the simpler path. A dog that has spent time in mainland China within six months is treated as coming from a high-risk country. Our guide to pet transport from China to the US explains the stricter route.

How a Cathay pet move works, step by step

1. Check the destination's import rules and any transit country's rules, and work out the earliest date your pet can legally arrive.
2. Choose an IPATA or ATA pet shipper (or any agent, if the pet is leaving Hong Kong) and get a written quote.
3. Have the agent request cargo space on the Cathay flight you want before you book your own ticket.
4. Buy the crate, start crate training, and book the vet visits so certificates fall inside their validity windows.
5. Apply for import permits and any export papers, and send copies to the agent for its checklist.
6. Once the pet's space is confirmed, buy your own ticket on the same flight if you want to travel together.
7. On the day, deliver the pet to the cargo terminal four to six hours before departure with every original document.
8. On arrival, the pet clears the destination's veterinary and customs checks before you collect it, usually from the cargo area rather than the baggage hall.

How far ahead to start

For destinations with light rules, a few weeks can be enough. For rabies-free or strict destinations, the timeline is driven by vaccination and blood-test waiting periods, which can run to several months. Cargo space for live animals is limited, especially in peak relocation season around the end of the school year, so ask your agent to request space as soon as your dates are firm. Our guide to pet quarantine rules by country shows which destinations need the longest runway.

Getting your pet ready for a cargo flight

A pet on a Cathay long-haul flight may be in its crate for many hours once you add the cargo check-in window, the flight and the arrival inspection. The single most useful thing you can do is make the crate a familiar, safe place: feed meals in it, leave the door open at home, and build up to closed-door periods with treats, as Cathay suggests. Add an absorbent pad and something that smells of home. Talk to your vet about whether your pet is fit for a long flight; most vets advise against sedation for animals in the hold. See should you sedate a dog for travel.

Questions to ask your agent

• Is the quote for door-to-door service, or airport to airport?
• Which flight will the pet be on, and is the space confirmed or only requested?
• What happens if the flight is delayed, cancelled or the connection is missed?
• Who meets the pet on arrival, and who handles customs and the vet check?
• What documents will you prepare, and which do I need to get myself?
• Are permit fees, crate, vet visits and destination charges included or extra?

What it costs

Cathay does not publish a passenger pet fee because pets move as cargo. The price is built from the cargo charge (driven by the crate's size and weight and the route), the agent's fee, airport handling, documentation, vet work and any import permit or quarantine costs at the destination. For a long-haul move this usually adds up to several thousand dollars. Get written quotes from more than one IPATA agent and ask what each includes. Our guide to international pet shipping cost breaks down the typical line items.

Two pets, or a cat and a dog

Each animal normally needs its own crate under IATA rules, although littermates or pairs that live together can sometimes share if they fit comfortably. Every animal also needs its own set of documents and, often, its own import permit. Moving several pets on the same Cathay flight depends on how much live-animal space the aircraft has, so ask the agent to request space for all of them at once rather than one by one, and keep each pet's paperwork in its own labeled folder.

Assistance dogs

Cathay welcomes trained guide and assistance dogs in the cabin, under a separate process from pet shipments. If your dog is a trained service animal, contact Cathay's special assistance team, not Cathay Cargo, and check the documentation your route requires. Emotional support animals are not treated as assistance dogs by most airlines on international routes, so expect an emotional support pet to travel as cargo.

Is Cathay the right choice for your pet?

Cathay suits owners who want a specialist, well-equipped cargo operation, especially on routes through Hong Kong, and who are already planning to use a pet shipper. It is not the right choice if you want your pet in the cabin, if you want to manage the booking yourself without an agent, or if you have a snub-nosed breed moving on a route outside Cathay's three seasonal routes. For a comparison of agents, see our guide to the best international pet transport companies.

Frequently asked questions

Flying via Taipei instead? Our guide to the EVA Air pet policy explains why pets fly only in the hold and never on long-haul 787 flights.

Flying via Taipei? Our guide to the China Airlines pet policy covers its hold-only service, 8-crate limit and banned breeds.