katesbackagain

Helpful as ever, thanks, Scout!!

The 6 page carbon copy you had, would that be what the airline is talking about when they ask for the health certificate? I just assumed that the vet would just write a note and sign it or something to that effect. And did the vet provide the 6 page one for you, or did the USDA send it. Did you pay to have that one signed as well as the Third Country cert, or did they give you that for free since you were there anyway?

Sorry for the million questions, it's just that as TaraC says, the more you read on their websites, the more bricks you sh*t!!!

Scout

LMAO.....I'm an Altanta native.......well almost. I lived there nearly all my life. I'm an American.........married to a Brit and yes I am glad we moved to the UK since hubby is much happier back home.

Scout

The Vet had the Cert.........all Vets in the US should have them since it's a form required by the USDA to fly any pet in the States. I didn't pay to have it signed if I recall correctly and for the life of me I know I paid a fee for the USDA Vet to sign the DEFRA form but I don't remember it costing as much as ya'll are quoting. (I can't find a receipt in my Pet folder)......I have no idea what this Third Country cert is ........I don't remember it or it's something new. I can't find anything in my file about it. Sorry.

TaraC

That explains the y'all. My husband (from Missouri but has lived in Virginia for 16 years) says it all the time. It's the one thing my family busts his chops for. He does give as good as he gets though, so it usually ends up being a draw.

TaraC

Kate: The USDA people told me that the regular vet will have the six-page document. However, if you're flying with Virgin they also have ANOTHER pet health certificate that you need to fill out to leave the US. Plus, the third country one (Scout: that's the PET scheme certificate that we need). So, right now -- unless I'm really messed up, I have three certs for the USDA to sign:

the US 6-pager
the third country
Virgin's PET health certificate

I'm not sure why Virgin has the third one, but I'm going with the flow. Heck, it's only MORE money, right?

TaraC

I'm not sure that was the EXACT phraseology I used, but it works!

katesbackagain

Hehehehe!!

Sorry if I confused you, Scout. The Third Country Vet's cert is the DEFRA one, as Tara said. I'm going to get my pup's blood test done tomorrow so I'll talk to the vet and make sure she has the 6 page document, and also take with me the one Virgin sent so she can look it over and know that she'll need to sign both later on. I can understand the airline wanting that one as well as the official 6-page one. My vet's really nice and I don't think I'll be charged for her to sign these.

EDIT: I just re-read your post, Tara. (Coffee hasn't kicked in yet!) I don't think USDA needs to sign the health cert or Virgin's version, just the DEFRA one. If they do, I'm screwed, as I'd have to drive to Miami a few days before I fly to get two of them done before they expire. I'm gonna send an email to both DEFRA and USDA just so I have a response in writing. Just my luck I'll get someone really anal checking in my dog at Heathrow, and if the i's aren't dotted......

TaraC

Hi Kate: Thanks for checking with the USDA. I'm with you -- really anal about all this. I just know I'm going to get someone who had a hard time getting to work or just got out of bed on the wrong side.

katesbackagain

You're welcome. I just emailed both, pretty much the same content for each. I just found yet another version of the DEFRA form on the USDA website, and this one has additional boxes to fill in entitled "Consignor" and "Consignee", and a "Clinical Examination" part, so now my head's about ready to explode. I asked both agencies if I can use the older version of the form, so we'll see what they say. You watch, they'll contradict each other!

TaraC

Starting to feel really sick now!

katesbackagain

Okay, just got a nice surprise. A USDA rep just called me and said it would be easier to answer any question I had on the phone instead of emailing back and forth.

For the DEFRA/USDA stuff, I need to have the forms that Scout mentioned, which includes:

Third Country Veterinary Certificate for domestic dogs, cats and ferrets) (DEFRA certificate)
International Health Certificate (APHIS form 7001, a 6 page carbon copy document-my vet will have this)

I have to take pup to get the blood test done, wait for a positive result, have my vet fill out what's needed on the forms, and send these ORIGINALS to the USDA for endorsement:

Third Country Vet Cert (valid for 4 months after endorsement)
APHIS form 7001
Rabies certificate (make sure microchip number is on this)
Lab results for titre test

ONLY the Third country certificate needs to be endorsed, but the USDA must see the originals of the documents above. There will only be one fee of $76. I can send everything in overnight to the Gainseville office, and I will need to enclose a prepaid envelope to get the docs back. The cert also does not need to be endorsed after tick/tapeworm treatment, the regular vet can sign that part and it'll be fine.

I asked the lady how I check to see if my vet is accredited, as I thought that meant they had to be part of the USDA, and she checked in her system for my vet's name, and confirmed that she was accredited. It just means they've gone through the proper schooling/procedure, etc to become a vet.

I know that all this info has been posted by people who have gone through it, but it just feels good to know that all the info posted here is still current to this day, and it's been confirmed by the officials.

So we're off the hook, Tara! We can just fill out all the Virgin Atlantic stuff and not have to worry that the USDA has to endorse it!

TaraC

That's great news. Thanks, Kate, for doing all this. I'm going to print this out and keep it, just so I can look at it all over again when I start to freak out next time.

katesbackagain

No problemo! It's nice that someone else is going through this with me and knows how scary it is.

katesbackagain

Well, pup has been to get her test done, so our 6 month clock officially starts ticking as of Saturday (assuming she gets a positive test result, that is! Please let her get it, I can't afford another $244 for more tests!!!)

The vet, as usual, was great. She made copies of the USDA contact info I had, and also copied the info from the DEFRA website so she could read more about it.

I also heard back from DEFRA. As suspected, they contradicted what USDA said about the Third Country Cert. They said that a USDA vet has to fill out the whole cert, not just endorse it, but any vet can fill out the International Health Cert and airline forms. I'm going to have my vet fill out the DEFRA cert anyway, and if USDA want to fill out their own instead, they can.

On a side note, my pup never ceases to amaze me. The travel carrier I had for her was too small now that she's grown a bit, so I went and got a different one. This one is suitable for airline use, but I may need to get another later if she grows any more. There's only about a 1 inch gap from her head to the top of the carrier, but that's when she's sitting, not standing, so I may be okay. She took to this thing right away. I thought I'd have to work on it for days, but I chucked a couple of her treats in there, and she was nervous at first, but now she even sleeps in it.

TaraC

I'm wishing you well for your test. It's really pretty easy. We did my cat's on the same day as her vaccination, even though she had been about two month's overdue for the actual vaccine, and her tests came back way over the .50. So, I think the test limit is really pretty low, so your baby should be fine.

Isn't that nice about DEFRA? Your person contradicted mine (which is why I'm now getting everything from them in email as well, just so I have it in writing!). My DEFRA person said my vet can fill out the third-country, but USDA needs to validate. Grrrrrr.