The carriage of live animals by air is regulated by various Government authorities as well as by Air New Zealand and IATA.

Domestic cats and dogs (excluding any transported for profit e.g. racing greyhounds) can travel as checked baggage on domestic services if you are travelling.

Please see the Travelling With Pets page for more information.

Unaccompanied domestic pets and all other types of animals can be flown as cargo.

Animal welfare is our primary concern - and therefore we have specific requirements for animal carriage and the containers they may travel in. These standards are based on the IATA Live Animal Regulations for shipping animals by air. Please see our Pet travel within NZ document for details.

If your container does not meet these specifications it will not be accepted for carriage. National Cargo has suitable containers available for hire, however these containers must be pre-booked by contacting the Pet Centre on 0800 737 737, option 1, at least 72 hours prior to the animal travelling.

As some flights are restricted by aircraft size/passenger numbers/perishable cargo/incompatible cargo, it is a requirement to pre book livestock.

This can also be done by contacting 0800 737 737, option 1.

Further information can be obtained by emailing us at petcentre@airnz.co.nz.

The Limitation of Liability form should be completed when shipping your pets/livestock.

Please refer to the International information for pets travelling internationally.