Has anyone ever moved to or from the EU from/to the US with a dog? Or shipped one for any other reason? Beyond vet fees and the airline fee (looks like it averages about $200?) and the crate, what sort of costs am I looking at? Was it horribly tough on the dogs? Flight would be direct, less than 8 hours. This is all very tentative and at least 8 months from now. Just curious for some information/anecdotes.
I bought a puppy from Italy a few years ago and had her flown over. She was driven to Frankfurt airport as she could then have a direct flight to Atlanta. Flight was delayed hours due to Hurricane Irene coming through the Southeast. Then after she landed she was stuck in customs for hours still in her crate. Then right into my car for an 8 hour drive home. My puppy did just fine and didn’t seem any worse for wear. She still travels like a pro:)
Go to USDA’s website and look up animal exportation. They have a page where you can put in species and country of destination for the exportation forms and requirements for the EU. Depending on the country sometimes 8 month is far to close to get everything in order. Being it is the EU you are probably good on time but get the ball rolling now.
Thanks for the info, Blume Farm! What kind of puppy did you get? Poor girl with the rotten weather timing!
Thanks, Rudy. I’ve looked up the requirements and I’m fine on time and I know what I need to get done, I’m just wondering about any hidden costs or details that might be missing beyond the basics on paper.
You’ll have to factor in the vaccines, titers and time frame, and the costs of the health certificates as well. Those costs are going to vary based on your vet and the country of import/export.
[QUOTE=weixiao;7904274]
Thanks for the info, Blume Farm! What kind of puppy did you get? Poor girl with the rotten weather timing!
Thanks, Rudy. I’ve looked up the requirements and I’m fine on time and I know what I need to get done, I’m just wondering about any hidden costs or details that might be missing beyond the basics on paper.[/QUOTE]
She is a Logotto Romagnolo. Great dog, a little quirky, but I attribute that to be European:)
Traveling to most EU countries with pets is actually quite easy. England is difficult (although getting easier), being an island nation, but all mainland countries are easy. I write HC all the time for folks traveling with pets to the EU. Have one client that has a summer house in France (how nice is that?) and they travel back and forth with their schnauzer. Mostly need to show proof of rabies vaccination, must be microchipped, dewormed and treated with flea/tick preventative. HC must be stamped by regular vet and USDA vet.
Going to England now is better because the pet does not need quarantine, but you must have Rabies Titers done via Kansas State on a certain time line, and must be dewormed and flea treatments applied by the vet on a particular time frame relative to travel date. Makes things a bit complicated but not impossible. I had a client move to England last year with two dogs and a cat. We just wrote out a calendar schedule of when each thing needed to be done and signed. Went though that checklist and all was well. The only issue they would have had was if their plane was delayed as the dewormer had to be no more than 4 days (I think) before travel. Got a letter from them about a month after they moved and went smoothly.
I took my dog (Border Collie) to France for the summer once. Long flight that was delayed but flight attendants were very good at checking up on him and keeping me informed. This was years ago and I probably wouldn’t do it again unless I was moving back there, but I remember just having to get a health certificate for him.
Oh, and they drilled a bunch more holes in his crate at the airport - for extra ventilation.
I will also always remember the kindness of one flight attendant in the airport (we were rerouted) that took the shoulder strap off her luggage and gave it to me so I could walk him through the airport as for some reason i didn’t have his leash. This was over 20 years ago but I still remember that kind gesture.
I appreciate all the info, guys, thank you!
Another random importing question that isn’t relevant to my dog, but you guys are such a wealth of knowledge I wonder if you know: I know the EU prohibits importing dogs with docked tails/cropped ears unless the tail dock was for a medical reason, but do you know what the restrictions are if the dog has a naturally bobbed tail? Is there any way to prove that? How do you have to prove the dog has a cropped tail for a medical reason? Note from a vet? Just curious!
I think a vet’s notes would suffice; if you are in Europe now, I’d get a vet’s note saying that it was already docked (for whatever reason) so if you return you have a “local” vet certifying that the tail was already short. Coming to the US that would not be a problem. In Australia, I believe puppies born with a natural dock get vet’s notes to certify that they were born that way.
My dog’s dam was recently shipped from Australia to the US and then back again (for breeding). I have one of her puppies here with me now, and he’ll be going to Australia in a few months. It’s most definitely a long day for them, but according to the owner in Australia, they all seem to do fine on the trip. I think it would be really good to increase their crate time (if you don’t do a lot of crating already) prior to shipping. A dog that is rarely in a crate would have a much harder time on the trip than one that is regularly crated for longer periods of time.
Thank you!
