Hello,

My husbands been offered a position in Riyadh and we've accepted...I hope to also get a job there, hopefully as a dietitian in a hospital.

The thing is we have two adorable little kittens that we bought recently, they're 3 months old and we'd like to bring them along with us. Has anyone ever taken their pets to Riyadh? is it allowed? what's the process?

Hi, we brought our cats and dogs into Riyadh with us. They needed up to date vaccinations, an export permit for the country we were leaving and an import permit for SA. The import permit is vital - some sources will tell you it's not required - IT IS. Our dogs spent 18 hours at the airport in boxes while we scurried around getting import permits sorted after we were given duff info.

On the day our cats arrived we went to the cargo area of the airport, gave all our paperwork to the import guys upstairs, sat around for ages and then were given clearance papers to take down to the cargo warehouse, which had to be stamped by the customs officer. Then the cats were handed over and we took them home. It's actually quite simple and all the people we came in contact with were helpful, polite etc. You just need time and patience as there's a fair amount of hanging around. If you have children take them with you - it helps!

It's possible to have them travel on the same plane as you - which is usually a cheaper option as they travel as accompanied baggage, if they come alone they are charged as cargo. If you contact the airline you are flying with they should be able to give you all the info. Saudi Airlines don't (or didn't when we came over) take dogs or cats. Don't know where you are flying from but a direct flight would be the best option - that way they won't get left on the tarmac somewhere . . . .

Good luck
Nicola

Hey!

It's a relief to know we can take them along! how do I go about getting an export permit and an import permit?

Which country are you coming from ?
N

Pakistan

OK, well I guess you go to your local agriculture municipality or their equivalent for the export permit. You need to get all documents signed and stamped at the Suadi embasy too or they won't get in. The import permit I think you apply for thru the Saudi ebassy too. It might be worth checking that cats are allowed in from Pakistan - I know there can be problems with dogs.

Cheers
Nicola

We didn't take pets to Riyadh but we did aquire two while we were there. One was a street kitten (half feral), the other a one year old that used to belong to an English vet who had no choice but to find homes for, or destroy, his 15 cats aquired from expats leaving the Kingdom.

Where will you be living? This is very important as many of the compounds regularly cull all cats in the grounds. They don't care if they have collars on or not. Brits have to remember that in Suudi, cats are considered to be vermin. I ended up moving out of the compound and into a private villa just to keep the misses happy!

Hmm, strange....my compound required photographs and data about my cat....and yes, feral cats were taken to a government vet and neutered/spayed, then set free again in the compound. I guess it depends on the compound you live in.

We haven't decided yet, my husband is all for a compund but I would prefer an apartment. Our kittens are Himalayan Persian, so they're basically indoor cats.

Our cats too have photos at the main office (and the dogs) and also here the feral cats are caught, neutered and put back. Not been in Riyadh long but haven't heard of any horror stories of privately owned cats being poisoned etc. either on our compound or others.

N

Nic,

There's one particular cat that's driving me insane...... always dragging a dead bird/mouse/whatever along and then dumping its remains in my corridor (Plaza, opp tennis courts). Walking to my car every morning is a very unedifying experience.......

If it's yours, you and I are now officially at war.......... patchy tabby-ginger thing, no collar........ answers to the name "When I get hold of you I'm going to kill you".

TD - not mine - honest!! He obviously thinks you are top cat and is bringing you a little early morning snack - you get first bite and he gets the left overs - yum yum

I'll send the dogs round to eat him if you like ? They are dying to get their teeth into a compound cat . . . . .

N

Adopt it, and you will have a lovely little companion !
He will even do the food shopping for you