Words can't express how awesome this is. I am in complete shock with the amount of support we have received. Newfie folks are so kind, just like the breed itself.
There have been concerns shared about the amount we are requesting to raise. Just so I have been transparent to all, I wanted to share with you folks why the amount is so much. Unlike in the U.S., Germany does not allow you to book a flight for animals directly with an airlines. In order for pets to fly with you on the Military contracted flight, the dog and kennel must not exceed 150lbs. You must use a cargo shipping service if the animal is over 150lbs with the crate. Both Typhoon and Tsunami would exceed this amount. So I reached out to our Breeder here and she informed me that there were 2 companies availble to ship the dogs. One was Pet Air and the other was Grayland Kennels. She recommend Pet Air. So I called last week and they gave me a quote of 2550 Euro for both dogs to fly from Frankfurt to Atlanta non stop. Because of their kennel size, connection flights were unavailable. With the exchange rate, the price is about $3,365. I posted $4,000 to raise for 3 reasons. First If the exchange rate changes I wanted to ensure that I had enough to pay for the flight. Second, German laws require that the dog must be able to stand completely upright in their kennel. Tsunami is completely good with his kennel we have. Typhoon is iffy. He has the same size kennel as Tsunami but he has to lower his head a little bit when standing. I'm not sure if this will be approved. I have sent the company measurements of the kennel's I have and of Typhoon. I am waiting to hear back if I need to have a crate built for Typhoon. If I do, then the price of 2550 Euro would increase significantly. The third reason I posted $4000 was to help offset the cost of having to kennel Tsunami and Typhoon in South Carolina until we arrive. The 2 T's will be flying the week before we leave (it was the only availble flights that worked for us and my Mother In-law who is picking them up in Atlanta) So a minimum of 1 week of kenneling is needed.
Please don't be offended or upset with me sharing this information. I only share it to help people understand why everything seems to cost so much. Believe me, when we had started planning this last year and the beginning of this year I had a figure in my head of about $1000 per dog. Boy was I in shock when I called the shipping company. I restled for a long time whether or not to ask for help. Eventually there was no other way to get them home with us. And as I posted before, I WILL NOT LEAVE THEM BEHIND! I have messages sent to me on FB saying this is a scam, the military pays to move pets. This isn't the case. I only acted on advice from someone on Newf.net and look what has transpired so far. It truly is amazing. I can't thank you guys enough. My Family and I are in shock from the support we have received so far. This will happen. I know it. God is providing and I am trusting in that truth. I only wish that those who would scoff at this would search their heart and look for the good in things.
[QUOTE
$3,040 raised by
73 people in
1 day.
Only $960 to go!!! ][/QUOTE]
Whooo hoooo how easy the words spread on Facebook. This gives me a nice warm feeling. Newf people are great
YES, you both are so right!!! Almost there.
Thank you Newf.net for spreading the word and helping my family out. We will most definitely share pictures, adventures, stories when we arrive in the U.S.
Sincerely,
Eric
