Editha

It is really too late to switch vet or pet export company. Everything needs to be in place by 3 weeks before departure, hence my current panic.

Just now it is looking as if it will get resolved. The vet has just rung me and said the forms/letter are ready for collection. I'm crossing my fingers that she has done it correctly. OH will pick them up later today, but meanwhile I've asked that they are scanned and emailed to me so I can check them.

rebeccajo

It's always been my luck that no matter how well prepared I felt I was for a "big life thing", that something has to go a little tits up somewhere along the way.

Hopefully this is all it is for you - just one of those nerve wracking things that turns out OK.

Editha

On another topic entirely -- Home insurance. I'm often singing the praises of Age UK for oldies like me who are returning to the UK, but I still did not expect them to give me the cheapest quote for home and contents insurance.

I expected that there would be no difference between their quote and Saga's, since both specialize in over-50s cover, but Age UK's quote is much cheaper, and cheaper than my insurance broker's too.

Editha

This is very true.

Editha

Another thing about the pet transport crisis:

Today I came across a note I made of a conversation with a DEFRA official in January. She definitely only mentioned the International Certificate of Fitness to Travel, which was the only document my vet thought she needed to prepare. Petsaway are saying that my vet should have known about the EU form. Maybe, but I dunno. If DEFRA don't know about it, why should a Canadian vet?

Gozit

Ah. The EU "pet passport" ... I've heard of it.

Now on the contrary, on the gov.uk website (https://www.gov.uk/pet-travel-inform...#pet-passport) it says that you can use a "Pet travel third country certificate" (https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...en00650076.pdf)
Maybe this is what the vet has already filled in, and the DEFRA agent was correct?

Editha

The two forms that I've been referring to are:

A: Non Commercial Movement of five or less dogs, cats, ferrets Canada Veterinary Certificate to EU (4 pages).

B: International Health Certificate for Dogs and Cats Country of Origin Canada (1 page).

Form B was the only one mentioned by DEFRA when I rang and the only one known to my vet.

However, now that I know about A, I found it without any difficulty on the CFIA site:

Export of Dogs, Cats, and Ferrets to the European Union – Non-Commercial Movements of Five or Less Animals - Animals - Canadian Food Inspection Agency

Which does suggest to me that my vet should have known about it.

Gozit

Hope you get it sorted

Editha

Thank you Gozi. It probably will be.

Editha

The cat export crisis continues. Dave rang this morning and said all the paperwork had to be done again. The Vet's letters had not been done on headed paper, and the EU form was not filled in correctly.

I rang the vet's practice manager, with whom I have been dealing, and we agreed that she should redo the letters and I would fill in the EU form for the vets to sign. One of the vets is away today, so the forms won't be ready until tomorrow.

Dave says this will all be clearer when I get the 'instructions', but refuses to send me the 'instructions', which I've been waiting for for the last five months. His reasons for not doing so are not clear to me.

Gozit

Wtf?! Why wouldn't an apparently reputable pet shipping company send you instructions on how to get everything done correctly?

Editha

Quite.

Editha

Two weeks to go.

Incredibly, the problems over the cats' paperwork still are not fully resolved. Our 20 year old moggy is now cleared to fly, but our 7 year old has to have all his paperwork done again, because the vet had misread the microchip and has been putting the wrong number on every document.

The amount of time this crisis has taken up in the last week has eaten into the time I set aside for other things, such as calculating the insurance for our container load and backing up my computer.

There is maybe a lesson to be learned from the fact that the part of the project that we decided to DIY, the transport of our possessions, is going smoothly, but the part where I decided to rely on professional help, the transport of our pets, has been an utter cluster-*****. What is it they say about when you want something done?

rebeccajo

Aaaaaaaaaaaaah, my gerd!!!

Any chance in you getting a reduction on the fee due to the pet service mismanaging their end? I realize it's the vets error, BUT............

In the quote we received from a professional pet mover, part of the charges were their review and handling of the paperwork. Seems your carrier left it to the last minute. I tend to think they owe you............

Editha

Our contract has small print saying we are responsible for getting the UK pet travel scheme paperwork right, not him, and the fact is that it was the vet's primary responsibility. The vet has owned that and said they will cover any additional expenses we incur.

Nevertheless, if the pet mover had gone through the paperwork three weeks earlier, it would have just been a bureaucratic hassle to sort out. Leaving it until the 20th day before we fly was what turned it into a crisis.

But, I'm still dependent on him to get the cats through Gatwick, so I'm not about to fall out with him by demanding a refund.