Shipping Your Pet and Vehicle During a PCS
What the military covers, what you pay for, and the quarantine paperwork that trips people up.
7 min read · Reviewed by PCS relocation panel
Two different systems, two different sets of rules
Your household goods shipment and your privately owned vehicle move through the same government-arranged system. Your pet doesn’t — it’s on you to arrange and pay for, with its own destination-specific paperwork that has nothing to do with your HHG or vehicle timeline.
Treating all three as one moving parts checklist item is the most common mistake here. Each has its own lead time, its own cost structure, and its own way of going wrong if you start too late.
The checklist
- 1
Know that pets are not a government-funded PCS expense
Unlike your household goods and one privately owned vehicle, pet transportation isn't covered by the military. You can ship a pet at your own expense as part of a PCS move — budget for it separately, and expect it to be one of the more expensive lines in your move.
- 2
Check the pet limits before you plan around more than two
DoD policy generally limits shipped pets to dogs and cats, no more than two per family, and the pet has to travel accompanied by its owner — it isn't a standalone cargo shipment you can schedule independently of your own travel.
- 3
Start destination-specific quarantine research the week you get orders
Requirements vary widely and some are strict — Hawaii, Guam, and many overseas locations require rabies titer tests, extended vaccination timelines, and quarantine periods that can run from a few days to several months depending on your paperwork and timing. This is the step with the least flexibility on this whole checklist; starting late can mean your pet is held on arrival.
- 4
Confirm whether the government will ship your vehicle at your destination
The government will ship one POV under 20 metric tons to most overseas locations — larger vehicles mean paying the excess yourself. Some overseas locations restrict or don't allow POVs at all, or have emissions/size rules that rule out certain vehicles, so check your specific destination before assuming your car is coming with you.
- 5
Budget the separation time and cost
Overseas POV shipping typically runs 4–8 weeks — plan your arrival transportation (rental, borrowed vehicle, public transit) around that gap rather than assuming your car will be waiting for you. For CONUS moves, you'll generally drive your vehicle yourself and get mileage reimbursement (MALT) instead.
- 6
Watch your household goods weight allowance separately from vehicle shipping
These are two different systems with two different limits. Going over your HHG weight allowance gets billed back to you, often around $1 or more per pound — worth a household inventory check before your pack-out date, especially if you're also shipping a vehicle and want to keep your move's total cost predictable.
If you’re shipping both a pet and a vehicle
Overseas vehicle shipping (4–8 weeks) and destination pet-quarantine requirements often run on different clocks — plan your arrival logistics (rental car, temporary lodging that accepts pets, someone to help with a quarantine drop-off) around whichever one lands later, not the average of the two.
If your gaining installation is somewhere with strict pet import rules, it’s worth confirming the quarantine facility’s own hours and requirements directly — they can differ from the general destination guidance you’ll find in a search, and getting it wrong on arrival day is a hard way to find out.