Delta Airlines Pet Cargo in 2026: The Embargo, Who Still Qualifies, and What to Do Instead

Delta airlines pet cargo is Delta Cargo's service for flying animals as freight in the aircraft hold, on a booking that is separate from the owner's ticket. As of September 2026, Delta Cargo has a temporary global embargo on household pet shipments. The only exception is for active-duty U.S. military members and U.S. State Department Foreign Service Officers moving on permanent change of station (PCS) orders. Most pet owners have two choices: fly a small pet in the cabin, or use a different carrier.

This guide covers what the embargo means, what eligible shippers must do, where Delta's own documents contradict each other, and how airline pet rules differ from the digital animal ID that Animal Passport builds for livestock. Last updated: September 27, 2026. Byline: Animal Passport editorial team.

Is Delta Cargo shipping pets right now?

For most people, no. Delta Cargo's pet product page says the company "has implemented a temporary global embargo on household pet shipments," with a limited exception for active U.S. military and Foreign Service Officers (U.S. diplomats) traveling on PCS orders (Delta Cargo, 2026). Delta's passenger page, Shipping Your Pet, says the same thing: "Until further notice," Delta ships pets only for military and Foreign Service travelers with active PCS orders, and they must provide a copy of those orders (Delta Air Lines, 2026).

Delta's travel-agent portal, Delta Professional, describes an embargo on all pet-in-hold (AVIH) bookings. It "applies to all shipments and all stations globally," and "currently there is no end date" (Delta Professional, 2026). The same page says Delta still accepts service animals that cannot fit in the cabin.

Station embargoes that apply even to military and diplomats

Delta Cargo lists international stations where it will not accept pets even from eligible military or Foreign Service travelers: Amsterdam (AMS), Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG), Frankfurt (FRA), London-Heathrow (LHR), Seoul-Incheon (ICN) and Tokyo-Haneda (HND) (Delta Cargo, 2026). If you are on PCS orders to Europe or East Asia, check your full routing with Delta Cargo before you plan around this service.

How the policy got here

Delta stopped carrying most pets as checked baggage on March 1, 2016. After that date, only pets of U.S. military and Foreign Service members with active transfer orders, plus service animals, could travel as checked bags. Every other pet had to ship as freight through Delta Cargo, according to a Delta waiver notice republished by the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA, 2016). The current embargo goes further and closes the cargo route to civilian pet owners as well.

Who still qualifies for Delta pet cargo?

According to Delta Cargo and Delta Professional (2026), eligible travelers must be one of the following:

• An active-duty member of the U.S. Armed Services on PCS orders.
• An active U.S. State Department Foreign Service Officer, or their spouse, with change-of-assignment orders to or from a U.S. embassy, consulate or mission.

On the day of departure, Delta Professional says the traveler must be able to show a government-issued active military ID or Foreign Service ID or official passport, together with the orders. Eligible travelers still have to meet every standard live-animal rule, including temperature limits, breed embargoes, IATA container requirements and health certificates (Delta Cargo, 2026).

Delta pet cargo requirements for eligible shippers

These rules come from Delta's Shipping Your Pet page, the Delta Cargo pet shipment page, and the Delta Cargo Live Animal Preparation Guide dated April 2026.

Booking

• Book the pet separately from your own flight through the Delta Cargo Customer Service Center at 1-800-352-2746 (Delta Air Lines, 2026).
• You cannot book pets as cargo until 14 days before departure. Delta also says a pet is not guaranteed to fly on the same flight as its owner (Delta Air Lines, 2026).
• Delta accepts international pet bookings at least three days and no more than 14 days before departure (Delta Cargo, 2026).
• Delta allows only nonstop routes or routes with one connection (Delta Cargo Live Animal Preparation Guide, April 2026).
• Delta does not ship warm-blooded animals on flights of 12 hours or longer. Delta says this rule follows IATA care requirements for cats and dogs (Delta Cargo, 2026).

Crate: IATA LAR Container Requirement 1

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) publishes the Live Animals Regulations (LAR), which it calls "the worldwide standard for transporting live animals by commercial airlines." A new edition took effect on January 1, 2026 (IATA, 2026). Delta requires dogs and cats to travel in crates that meet LAR Container Requirement 1 (CR#1). The April 2026 guide specifies the following:

• The animal must be able to stand, sit upright, lie down naturally and turn around.
• The crate needs a solid top and bottom, fastened with metal nuts and bolts in every hole. Plastic clips and zip ties are not allowed.
• The door must be a single, hinged metal door with a lock.
• Ventilation openings must be on at least three sides, and on all four sides for international travel. Openings can be no larger than 1 in × 1 in for dogs and ¾ in × ¾ in for cats.
• The crate needs a spacer rim that sticks out at least ¾ in, absorbent bedding, and food and water dishes you can fill without opening the door.

Delta Cargo (2026) prohibits wire-mesh, wicker, cardboard, collapsible and knock-down kennels. It also prohibits kennels with plastic doors or plastic side latches.

Health certificate and documents

Delta requires a health certificate from a USDA-accredited veterinarian or veterinary authority, issued within 10 days of travel. International trips need an international health certificate that is signed or endorsed within the same 10-day window (Delta Air Lines, 2026). The United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS) says you should contact an accredited vet "as soon as you decide to travel." APHIS also notes that the destination country sets the entry rules, which "can change at any time" (USDA APHIS, 2026). You also need to fill out Delta's Shipper's Certification and Journey Declaration form and bring original copies of all documents (Delta Cargo, April 2026).

Temperature, breed and sedation rules

• Temperature: Delta will not ship a pet if the temperature on the ground at the origin, connection or destination airport is above 80°F (27°C) or below 20°F (-7°C). A Certificate of Acclimation is required when temperatures fall between 20°F and 45°F (Delta Air Lines, 2026).
• Breeds: Delta does not accept brachycephalic (snub-nosed) dogs, cats or their mixes on Delta or Delta Connection flights. Its list includes pugs, all bulldog breeds, Boston terriers, boxers, shih tzus, Persians, Himalayans and several mastiff- and pit bull-type breeds (Delta Cargo, 2026).
• Sedation: Delta does not allow sedating household dogs and cats, including with any medication that causes sedation (Delta Air Lines, 2026). It will also refuse animals that are visibly ill, aggressive or need medication during the flight (Delta Cargo, April 2026).

International shipments

For international pet bookings, Delta Cargo requires a professional pet shipper who is a member of the International Pet and Animal Transportation Association (IPATA). Military and Foreign Service travelers on PCS orders are exempt from this rule (Delta Cargo, 2026). For dogs entering the United States, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) sets the rules. Those rules depend on where the dog was vaccinated and whether it has been in a country at high risk for dog rabies in the previous six months (CDC, 2024). Delta adds that dogs entering the U.S. must be at least 6 months old and microchipped, and must have a completed CDC Dog Import Form receipt (Delta Air Lines, 2026).

Where Delta's own sources disagree

We found three places where Delta's current pages conflict. Follow the stricter or newer figure, and confirm by phone.

• Minimum age: The April 2026 Live Animal Preparation Guide says cats and dogs must be at least 12 weeks old for domestic cargo and 15 weeks old for international cargo. The older Delta Cargo pet shipment page still lists a minimum of 8 weeks.
• Check-in timing: The April 2026 guide suggests arriving 4 hours early for domestic flights and 6 hours early for international flights, with check-in closing 2.5 and 4 hours before departure. Delta's passenger page says to arrive 4 to 6 hours ahead for domestic flights. The older cargo page lists 150 minutes for domestic and 270 minutes for international.
• Ground temperature exposure: The older cargo page says a pet may be exposed to temperatures between 10°F and 85°F for up to 45 minutes. The April 2026 guide and the passenger page use a 20°F to 80°F acceptance window.

Delta pet travel options compared

Delta Cargo also offers GPS On-Demand tracking for $25 per device on shipments leaving 13 U.S. airports, including Atlanta (ATL), Los Angeles (LAX) and Seattle (SEA). Military members get discounts on airfreight charges, but not on fuel, security or country-specific fees (Delta Cargo, 2026).

Step-by-step: shipping a pet on Delta Cargo with PCS orders

1. Confirm your status and your routing. Make sure no station on the route is embargoed and that no flight lasts 12 hours or more.
2. Check that your pet's breed and age are accepted, using the stricter April 2026 minimum ages.
3. Buy an IATA LAR CR#1 crate early. Delta says getting a pet used to the crate "can take weeks to months."
4. See a USDA-accredited veterinarian. Get a health certificate within 10 days of travel, plus APHIS endorsement if you are going abroad.
5. Call Delta Cargo at 1-800-352-2746 no more than 14 days before departure, with your orders ready.
6. Check the forecast for every airport on the route on the day of travel, and rebook if temperatures fall outside 20°F to 80°F.
7. Offer food and water within 4 hours of check-in. Then drop the pet off at the Delta Cargo facility, not the passenger ticket counter.
8. Pick up the pet at the cargo facility. Domestic shipments are ready about two hours after arrival and international shipments about four hours after arrival (Delta Cargo, 2026).

Delta's April 2026 guide notes that, under IATA LAR section 1.3.8, Delta Cargo is not liable for an animal's illness, injury or death caused by natural causes, pre-existing conditions or inadequate packaging. Talk with your veterinarian about the risks before you book.

If you are not eligible: realistic alternatives

• Fly your pet in the cabin. Delta allows up to four pets in Delta Main and Comfort, and two in domestic Delta First. Pets cannot fly in Delta One or Delta Premium. The pet must be at least 8 weeks old for domestic travel (Delta Air Lines, 2026).
• Use a professional pet shipper. IPATA members can book with carriers that still accept pets as cargo. Confirm that carrier's current rules directly with it.
• Check destination bans. Delta does not allow in-cabin pets to or from destinations including the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii and Hong Kong (Delta Air Lines, 2026).

Airline pet documents vs. Animal Passport: not the same thing

Government pet travel documents and airline acceptance rules are official requirements, and no private app replaces them. In the European Union, the European pet passport is a standard-model ID document for dogs, cats and ferrets. It is issued by authorized vets to EU residents and records the microchip, rabies vaccination and owner details. Pets entering the EU from outside it need an EU animal health certificate instead (European Union, Your Europe, 2026). For U.S. exports, the official route is a USDA-endorsed health certificate (USDA APHIS, 2026).

Animal Passport is a different product. It is a digital animal and livestock passport built on muzzle biometrics, because an animal's nose print is unique, like a fingerprint. A phone camera captures the nose print, and the record ties together the owner, breed, estimated age, body condition and vaccination history. Age is estimated from a dental photo and comes with a confidence score. Body condition is scored from 1 to 5 using a side-profile photo. During the August 2025 floods in Pakistan, farmers used it to reclaim livestock after paper tags washed away. Animal Passport is not a government-issued travel document, is not accepted by Delta in place of a health certificate, and does not give veterinary diagnoses or legal advice. You can read more livestock ID coverage on the Animal Passport blog.

The bottom line

As of September 2026, Delta pet cargo is effectively closed to civilians, and Delta has published no end date. Military and Foreign Service families on PCS orders can still use it, but they must meet strict crate, health, temperature and breed rules and avoid six embargoed international stations. Everyone else should look at in-cabin travel or an IPATA pet shipper. Because Delta's documents differ on age and timing, confirm every detail with Delta Cargo before you commit.