thesavages

Has anyone moved to the UK and left their dog behind for a few months? The details of bringing a dog back are fairly straightforward, but it's less clear what you do if your dog travels separately. (We think that we'll be in a state of flux for a few months, and renting a house for 6 months with a pet seems much harder in the UK.)

Thanks!

Jonathan

spouse of scouse

Hi Jonathan, welcome to BE. See this link for the info you're looking for
Your pet must arrive in the UK no more than 5 days before or after you, or you’ll have to follow different rules.
https://www.gov.uk/bring-pet-to-uk

thesavages

Yes, hence my question. I've been through the government web site repeatedly without finding anything useful. Has anyone had experience with the "different rules"? It seems that the move becomes a "commercial transfer", but I can't find the details.

Thanks, Jonathan

spouse of scouse

Have you read all the information that's given by clicking on different rules in the link I provided? Step by step guidance is provided. You can't import your dog under the 'personal import of animals' rules if you'll be arriving more than 5 days before or 5 days after the dog. So the guidance provided by following the relevant links below is what you need to do.

Contents

1. Animals and germplasm covered by Balai
2. Movement between the UK and EU countries
3. Movement between the UK and non-EU countries
4. Holdings in the UK and EU
5. Licences you may need
6. Bringing in rabies-susceptible animals to the UK

thesavages

Sorry, I must be missing something obvious. As I said, I've been through the government site repeatedly and not found what I need.

• The Balai directive mentions wild dogs only, not pets other than a link to the original pets page.
• The "importing animals from non-EU countries" link again directs you to the 5-day-rule, but also mentions getting a license for importation. There's no license listed for pets, but it seems strange to require a new license for a pet.
• It also says "complete form RM01 to apply for a specific license for animals (excluding pet dogs, cats or ferrets)", but doesn't give an indicate of what to do for pets

Generally there's a circular link of where the "+/- 5 days" page redirects you to other pages, which then direct you back to the "+/- 5 days" page for pets.

What am I missing?

(I can't post URLs as I'm a new member.)

thesavages

I found this web site with some useful insight, but I'm not sure how well it lines up with the actual UK government requirements. United Kingdom Pet Passport - Current Dog and Cat Import Requirements for Transport

angie_329

Not done that but here is some info. To avoid animals being brought in for illegal resale or breeding as 'owned pets' the 5 day rule helps ensure a pet is linked to an owner, I was told at heathrow.

If an animal is being brought in without an owner a different set of paperwork is needed. It is indeed classed as a commercial movement (and the livestock regs seem to apply) . In the EU a government vet has to fill a specific form in.

You could ask a pet relocation travel specialist about this to see what they say. Where are you travelling from?

Pet travel companies can find a fosterers in the UK or board pets for a short period while you find accommodation in the UK, if you are not getting it beforehand.

However if you are solely concerned about being unable to rent with your dog, it is possible to rent with a dog, particularly outside London and in a ground floor flats or house with garden. When I worked in relocation we placed many, many families with dogs in rental. Properties outside London mainly rent unfurnished so the landlords are not that bothered.

You may have to pay a slightly higher deposit. For the future an MP has produced a bill to allow people to have pets in rentals.

(https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/...n-by-landlords)

We used to do this and it worked well. I suggest you write a 'bio' of your dog with photo for the estate agents. Breed, Age, temperament, showing he is part of the family. The other important aspect is to confirm that one of you will be at home during the day, Or that the dog goes to doggy day care or has dog walkers visiting to take him out . So that the dog will not be left alone for long periods of time. This is the main thing landlords are worried about, barking dogs if owners out all day.
Many landlords like six months rent to start with so they see if they are happy with their tenants.

Kath143

Hi, I brought 2 dogs over from Australia to UK on the same flight. They were in the hold in airline approved crates. After landing at Heathrow they were checked and monitored for 4hrs then delivered to me at the place we were staying at. I used Jetpets An international company. Leaving them behind wasn’t something I would entertain not even for a few weeks.

brits1

We moved back to the UK in 2010 so the rules may of changed but we left our very much loved dog at the Kennels where she was boarding for 6 weeks, (they also arranged flights and paper work for our pet) we picked her up at Manchester Airport and all was well and good (she's 16 next) . Good luck

Kath143

Hi again. The best advice I can offer is start getting quotes from international pet transport and they will guide you through what you need to do and what quarantine requirements there are if any. The only thing I needed to do was get Rabies jabs and check all the vaccinations were put to date by the vet with certificates as proof. With regards to landlords there are places that allow animals. The UK is more pet friendly add certainly more dog friendly than Australia. Hope this helps. Good luck.

brits1

Hi, where are you moving from? we found rentals allowing pets to be very accommodating here in the UK, we have had 4 rentals (long story lol) and all excepted our pet (dog), my friend liked at home that said no pets so she offered a pet bond and references from her last rental agent (overseas) and she had no problems. Good luck

thesavages

We're moving from the US (Charlotte). We'll be retiring and we're not sure where we will live, so we plan on moving around for a few weeks at least. We can leave our dog with a family member in the US, and possibly have them come over with the dog when they visit us.

scot47

How does the dog feel about your plans ?

thesavages

I think Rusty, our 9-isn year old redbone coonhound will be very happy at my Son's house in Charlotte. A big house, an acre of land, and a friendly face. I'm not sure how Rusty feels about flying, though the statistics show it's nearly as safe for dogs as it is for humans. (Rusty is a rescue, so we're not sure how old he is, but we've had him 8 years.)

scot47

If he is with familiar faces in a familiar place I am sure he will be ok.