August 15th 2006 5:40 am
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cass ( bella s mum ) here - well i got back from a two week visit to mexico a week ago, sadly without bella c/ o a massive problem caused by the ' reputable airline ' KLM- check this out for an unbelievable lack of service and , in my opinion, callous attempt to rip us off to the tune of almost $2000 ( still unrefunded at time of writing despite being promised a full refund a whole month ago )
shipping bella from mexico to england is a real biggie for her and me - i visited lots of quarantine kennels in person before making a booking, and similarly made loads of telephone and internet enquiries about her travel arrangements - the whole business being not only incredibly expensive but also potentially traumatic for bella, i really wanted to get it right
on the klm website they looked like a great company so i rang the main enquiry number a few times over a period of several weeks and asked every question i could think of - i was advised that as i wanted to be on the same flights as bella, my best option was to book bella as accompanied baggage rather than as cargo - 'is there any difference in the two services ?' i asked - ' oh no - absolutely none - just go back to the website, book the flight and then ring us back to let us know what you ve booked - all you ll then have to do is pay about £400 excess baggage charge when you - check her in ' - ' do i need to pay excess baggage for the empty air kennel on the way out to mexico?' ' oh no - you can take any two pieces of hold luggage up to 55 kilos' - so i did as she advised and immediately went online and booked the incredibly expensive ticket -
normally i pay between £180 - £400 for a direct flight from gatwick to cancun - this klm flight was almost £1000 and anything but direct but i didnt mind as obviously i expected to pay more for shipping bella - i rang back and informed them and was immediately given the cold shoulder now i d parted with the money ' you need to call another number ' - i did, explained the situation and was asked to call back in two days - when i did this i was told that bellas flight wasnt authorised, that i d need to ship her as cargo for the last part of the journey ( at a cost of another 900 euros ) and that no, i couldnt get a refund. the dutch guy i spoke to was disinterested and rude - ' just get on the plane '
i called the uk rabies control people who stated that yes, she does have to come into the uk as manifest cargo and that it would be highly unusual to fly her as accompanied baggage for even part of the journey.
i then spent hours calling back and eventually, after a 2 hour call during which i was left on hold most of the time, was told i would receive a full refund as the ticket had been mis sold and the service totally mis represented . this guy was actually interested in what klm were doing to me and i was told that the initial wrong advice had been traced to a new member of staff, and that the refund would take ' atleast six weeks ' - but no maximum time scale was stated and this promise has never been confirmed in writing - today a month later i m still £1000 down leaving me unable to afford to make other arrangements for bella.
her shipping is so urgent because hurricane season is now upon us, and indeed while i was there we had tropical storm ' chris ' off the coast
other direct costs so far have been;
£197 for an air kennel that i will now never use ( i was told by klm that i d been misled about being able to take this with me to mexico and that even the empty box would have to go as cargo !,
£100 i had to pay to the ' man and van' who was going to take the kennel to the airport for a last minute cancellation,
£400 on another flight as my friend who s been looking after bella was expecting me and urgently needed to be reimbursed for all the money she d spent on my behalf over the past few months for bellas microchip, vaccinations, blood test and food/ keep, plus all associated phone / coach / food expenses for this journey,
plus about £150 that the quarantine kennel are well within their rights to charge me for august, as they had kept a kennel ready for bella.
my nerves are in tatters, as are my finances and schedule, and i feel like i m on the verge of a nervous breakdown - it was heartbreaking to have to leave bella again and i m not coping with life at all well this week - especially as while i was there my friends confirmed that certain influential individuals have stated their intention to kidnap bella - the man involved wasnt in mexico at the time but will be by the time i go back, putting bella and i at physical risk because of this delay
i woke up crying a few mornings ago and have been drinking heavily this week ( i dont drink at all normally ) and this situation has put such a strain on my homelife that there was a huge row over the weekend and i am now homeless - i was living back with my folks to save money for bella, but sadly my mum had a stroke this summer - i just cant be a source of aggravation to her but also i cant help crying - my dads an old guy who cant cope with emotions, and reacted aggressively to my sadness, causing my mum to start sobbing uncontrollably - shes not on any preventative medication and any upset could cause another seizure, so here i am sleeping on my sisters sofa and feeling like a total loser - i havent had a final quote from the new shipper yet and my stress levels are at maximum.
during my visit to mexico and conversations with reputable shippers, i found out that there is an embargo on live animal cargo flights at the moment because of the heat - this should be lifted by mid september. most airlines have had this in place since may, meaning that i was even more deceived by the sales person at klm than i d realised - at the time she advised me to spend £1000 immediately, there was probably absolutely no chance of bella getting on a plane, be it as cargo or accompanied baggage
where do i go from here ? i really don t know
i m putting the matter in the hands of trading standards / consumer direct, but feel very anxious about whether i ll ever get bella back now - if the refund doesnt come in this week, bella and i are absolutely screwed
do you know, when i first was told by the rude dutch guy that her flight wasnt authorised, he refused to let me speak to his supervisor and refused to put anything in writing to me , yet accused me of not having any correct paperwork for bella !!! it was like being in a nightmare - i really hope i wake up soon - this time without tears in my eyes
please say your prayers for bella, me and my folks, as we re now all in a terrible situation because of , in my opinion, klms heartless money grabbing - thank you fellow dog lovers - we really appreciate any and all good wishes right now
May 30th 2006 8:26 am
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during the very exciting month of may my pet passport application is coming along nicely and lifes great - my buddies carrie tania juan gary karen and the gang are giving me injections almost as regularly as biscuits .. this is so cool as mexicos just been accepted for the pet passport scheme in the UK and getting proved rabies free on this side of the big water will cut down my 6 month uk quarantine period very nicely ... i m flying out of cancun before the storms hit though so i ll still have to paws in kennels there for a while but hey what can you do .. es quarantino y ' know ! .. i was here for emily and wilma last year and we had the edge of stan inbetween .. i m very lucky to have been rescued in the first place so spare a thought for all my amigos .. the streetpups of mexico .. the smiliest dogs you ' ll ever give your tacos to .. life's tough on the streets and yet they keep smiling through - they could use your help though so please check out vidas.org if you could make a contribution to their work here - they're a charity that do free vet clinics in far flung central american towns and help thousands of dogs just like me - me who's gone from streetpup to club class ! well thats what mum calls it ! apparantly i m gonna have private space big enough to lie down in and sleep all the way to europe whereas mums gonna be in economy ! they don't call me princessa isabella for nothing you know ! big woofs to all my furry amigos especially osa, baloo, mischa, max - my hero !, bosh, xeba, cinco, gunny and the gang inc. shaggy and tama ( cats !!! ) and that blue eyed boy akita at tankah tres beach - you know who you are !! .. adios for now amigos and don't forget to send your spare tortillas to vidas !
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The Dog Show: Who's Your Mama?
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