New to forum; need to travel w/ gecko

[finnerthesinner]

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Hi everyone! So I'm going off to college in the fall, and I recently got a baby leopard gecko named Moxie. The problem is that the college I want to go to is in New York, and I live in Washington (on the west coast). My family is debating two options:

1) Send me and Moxie on a plane. I'm aware of the cons of plane flight, including it being loud and really stressing Moxie out. However, it's faster, which leads me to my next point...

2) Taking a road trip to New York. This will apparently take a week, and it's definitely less stress on all of us, and I can keep Moxie in her tank in the car.

What I'm really asking is twofold: how should I transport her and myself, and if I were to do the road trip, how do I keep her warm enough without an outlet for my heat lamp and uth?

Thanks!

[acpart]

Welcome to GU.
Don't take her on the plane. I don't think it's permitted (and if it is, it's likely you'll be charged a lot of money to do it --if you find out differently, go for it).
You still have 2 options:
--take the road trip. She'll be fine during the days if you keep her in a deli cup with air holes punched (you can buy them pre-punched) in the car. It doesn't have to be super warm, just comfortable for humans. This is how a lot of leopard geckos travel to reptile shows. I have a friend who moved a few years ago from the south to Boston and brought all his geckos packed in deli cups in a cooler where they stayed for a few days. You can have a temporary plastic cage available to put her in every evening.

--mail her to you. Geckos travel through the mail every day. They are sent next day air which means they leave in the evening and arrive the next morning by 10:30am. You can watch a video about how to package up and mail a gecko here: Ship Your Reptiles - Ship Live Reptiles Easily, Securely and Affordably. The most important thing is to be able to arrange a reasonable address for delivery. A college dorm postal box won't do it.

Speaking of college dorms, please be sure the gecko is permitted. Good luck on getting into college and enjoy your time there. My twin boys are both graduating college next month. It was a great experience for both of them.

Aliza

[muffin_song]

Seconding Aliza - my gecko was shipped from Massachusetts to California, and we used Ship Your Reptiles. It was really pretty easy.

I actually called United once, and alas you're not allowed to bring reptiles on board :/

[Elizabeth Freer]

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[restrictionavm]

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Hi! I'm really glad that you're considering options for moving to college with your leopard gecko, not without it! It's cool when people don't want to part with their animals. As far as I know, the airline ESA policy has a clause about reptiles. I think you can create a therapy animal license for your gecko. Then you won't have problems flying with your Moxie pet in your arms. I saw a girl who was traveling with her iguana. That animal was an ESA. I talked to her a little bit during that flight. She said that people with anxiety disorders find the company of a therapy animal very helpful. Can you include your gecko in the ESA before you leave?