pet travel health assessment confirms your pet is fit and healthy enough to fly, meeting the airline and destination country's requirements
A BOAS evaluation is a specific assessment for flat-faced (brachycephalic) breeds — like Pugs, French Bulldogs, Bulldogs and Persian cats — who face a higher risk of breathing difficulty during travel and may need extra clearance before flying.
If you're relocating your pet in or out of the UAE, a travel health assessment is one of the checks that needs to happen before your pet is cleared to fly. It's about more than paperwork — it's about confirming your pet can handle the physical stress of travel safely, especially given the temperature, altitude and confinement involved.
At British Veterinary Hospital in Dubai, we carry out travel health assessments and BOAS evaluations as part of the wider preparation process for pets travelling to or from the UAE, working alongside our pet relocation team to make sure nothing gets missed.
Why Travel Health Assessments Matter
Airlines and destination countries have specific health requirements pets must meet before they're cleared to fly, and these vary depending on the airline, the route, and whether your pet is travelling as cargo or in the cabin. A travel health assessment confirms your pet meets those requirements, and flags anything that needs addressing before the move.
This isn't just a formality. Some conditions that seem manageable day-to-day can become genuinely risky under the stress of air travel — which is exactly what a proper assessment is designed to catch before it becomes a problem mid-flight.
What Is BOAS, and Why Does It Matter for Travel?
BOAS stands for Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome — a condition affecting flat-faced breeds whose short skulls can lead to narrowed airways and breathing difficulty. It's most commonly seen in breeds like:
French Bulldogs
Bulldogs (English and other varieties)
Pugs
Boston Terriers
Persian
and other flat-faced cat breeds
Because breathing difficulty can be made significantly worse by heat, stress and confinement, many airlines either restrict or place extra conditions on flying brachycephalic breeds — particularly as cargo. A BOAS evaluation assesses the severity of your pet's airway function and whether they're fit to travel, which can directly affect what your airline will allow.
What's Included in the Assessment
General Health Check
A full clinical exam to confirm your pet is generally healthy and fit to travel.
Breathing and Airway Assessment
For brachycephalic breeds, a closer look at airway function and breathing under exertion, to assess BOAS risk specifically.
Documentation for Airlines and Authorities
Certification confirming your pet's fitness to fly, in the format required by your airline or destination country.
Frequently Asked Questions
Most airlines and destination countries require confirmation that a pet is fit to travel before allowing them to fly. Requirements vary by airline and route, so it's worth checking as early as possible in your relocation planning.
Flat-faced (brachycephalic) breeds such as French Bulldogs, Bulldogs, Pugs, Boston Terriers, and Persian cats are most commonly affected, since their airway structure makes them more vulnerable to breathing difficulty under the stress of travel.
Book A Pet Travel Health Assessments & BOAS Evaluations in Dubai
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