Help on an international move with rescue dog

[MeanderingMarissa]

Hi! I’m new here and looking for guidance and advice from the community on how I might be able to get my dog – Bef (means “cow” in Haitian Creole) – back to the US with me from the Dominican Republic.

I moved to DR in 2016 to serve as a short-term volunteer with a local non-profit, and ended up staying longer than I expected. A big reason that I am still here nearly 5 years later is that in 2017 I found the sweetest little puppy outside the apartment where I live. Someone had abandoned her, something that is sadly quite common here (my then-roommate and I also rescued two kittens we found – the kittens are now all grown up and living in California with her). I had initially tried to find a more stable, permanent home for the puppy, but I became attached and decided to keep her. Now Bef just turned 4 years old and she is the best thing in my life.

But, the day has finally come that I’ve decided to move back to the US, and I’m trying to find a way to get Bef there with me. She is a medium-sized dog, so wouldn’t be allowed in the cabin on flights (at least as far as my research has found). Due to COVID, airlines have also stopped allowing dogs on flights as “checked baggage,” and instead are requiring pets to be transported by cargo companies. So far I’ve only heard back from one such company, but the quote they gave me was for $2,300, which, honestly, is more money than I even have, and wouldn’t even include expenses for getting me to the US. I’ve also looked into sea travel, but cruises don’t allow pets on board (and are also super expensive), and a ferry I found does allow pets in crates, but it only goes to Puerto Rico, and I’m hoping to get to mainland US. I came across Pilots N Paws, but I don’t know if Bef and I would even qualify since 1) I already adopted her years ago, now I’m just trying to find a way to keep her, and 2) we’re international – I think the airport in Puerto Plata (POP) is ~650 nautical miles from southern Florida.

I don’t have any specific travel plans yet, I just know that I would like to leave DR by the end of 2021, but details will depend on when we find my replacement at work.

So I guess my main question for the forum is: Any recommendations or suggestions or advice? I’d be SO grateful for any information anyone can share!

Thank you in advance,

~MeanderingMarissa & Bef