Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

Hi,
Just waiting for completion date on our house and then we are off
I just have one more issue to deal with
Our dog!

I just don't know what to do for the best.
We have a 10 year old Lab called Pete who is like my first child, I am prepared to pay for him to come with us, I am thinking its about £3000.

Now my husband thinks it wouldn't be fair to put him through it at his age and thinks it would be too hot for him (heading to Perth), he is also is worried that we would pay all that money out and the first thing he would do is run out and get bitten by a snake or spider!
I am also worried that having a dog would make finding a place to rent difficult.
On top of that I just overheard my 6 year old son talking to the dog asking him if he was worried about flying in the pet section on the plane - so he obviously thinks his best mate is coming with us!

What would you do?
Is it tricky getting a rental with a dog?
Has anyone else's dog suffered with the heat or been bitten?
Answers greatly received need to decide quickly if we are going to have enough time to get his jabs etc done and sort it all out

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

If you are hoping to bring him with you, the preparation used to take more than 6 months as if the rabies shot and test isn't done early enough, your pet could spend a long time in quarantine.

The full info should be here - http://www.daff.gov.au/biosecurity/cat-dogs

Finding rentals can be a bit harder but with only one pet shouldn't be too bad. Hopefully someone will be along later that can tell you more, but it's still early here :)

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

If you are off soon you really should have started the jabs by now as process takes six months. I would not recommend subjecting a pet to six months of quarantine.

Other than that, bring him, sounds like he is a much loved member of the family. Most other pets adjust to the climate and I am sure Peter will too. I also think that there is an enormous benefit in having the pet come with you nd it will help you all to settle in and feel like you are at home. Don't underestimate the emotional benefit.

The thing that worried me most about the move was finding so where to live with two cats. I read it would be a nightmare, the reality is it was no problem at all. It might be slightly harder with a big dog, but there will be plenty of landlords that will consider it. In the grand scheme of all you have done to get this far, finding a rental with a dog should not be a show stopper.

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

Was told you have to leave 4 weeks between rabies jabs and blood tests and that as of feb this year quarantine is now only 15 days.

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

Ah just read the 180 days bit hummmm

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

The blood needs testing after the rabies jabs, this is a six month process.

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

Yes just read up its jabs then at least 4 weeks for blood test the 180 days from blood test, then only 10 days in quarantine.
Thinking I might start it off and then ask father in law to keep him for the 180 days and then send him on to us it would then give me time to find a dog friendly rental, being apart for 6 months is more appealing to me than having to give him away for good, unfortunately my husband doesn't agree :(

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

I wouldn't leave my dogs for a million! But it would ( and it is worrying me ) to leave them in the pet section ... What are the other options? Leave him back in uk? With your family? :confused: I'm sure they will take good care of him but he still will be doing quarantine when he lands.. One month from uk

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

When we rented here we "cheated" on that... We went for holidays and we rescued a dog so we brought the dog back with us. One day they sent over the Plummer to do some work then I got a phone call he wouldn't get in as there was a big black scary dog :D
They asked if was ours and I said yes , they said we didn't mention him at the sign of the lease and I said yes cause we still didn't have him...that was it !
I don't think after you rent a place they will kick you out just cause you have a dog..

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

We brought over two old english sheepdogs - one aged 9 and one aged 6 - to the outback. Came in June so they had a chance to acclimatize. They're very well looked after both on the journey out and in quarantine but, as you've realised, you have to follow the requirements to the letter, no slip ups allowed at all. We had to endure a month of quarantine in Melbourne which felt like a lifetime but it was all worth it to have the dogs with us and they've settled in very well - they seem to enjoy lying out in the shade on a 42 degree day!

P.S. Can highly recommend Pet Air as an agent in the UK. You can do the process yourself but they kept us right at every stage and were a godsend in the end when we had last minute issues with the leptospirosis bloods

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

I think that sounds I've a good plan. I would not let my husband persuade me to part with my pets, well he wouldn't try. I can tell that it will break your heart to part ways with this dog and that will not be helpful to the move. Put your foot down. :sneaky:

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

The quarantine from UK changed on 4th Feb to 10 days now.

I am so torn because I can see my husbands point he is technically an old boy now and I also don't want to put him through any distress but I think I have much more of a bond with him because he was really my replacement child when we got him I had been told I wouldn't be able to have children (which was obviously wrong because 4 years later my son appeared!).
My son adores him and being an only child they are like best mates.

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

Only you can decide at the end of the day. We decided we couldn't be without our dogs. Yes, it cost a lot to bring them over but we'd have missed them too much to be parted Our older dog was our original baby too before the kids came along. Like so many decisions to do with a move on this scale, its hard if you don't agree.

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

cost us 21k to bring 4 dogs to oz :)

Re: Advice required re shipping our dog please
 

if you dont bring him who will look after him? I got 2 dogs and i'm sure one would cry and bark all the way there instead his mum would be fine...depends on the dog and yes it is a long journey but 10 is not old! i think you can talk to the vet to see if they can give any calming drops ....