USAGypsies

We have 2 cats and 1 dog. Both cats are from the UK originally. The dog is from Texas.

The cats were both avid microchipped (again) on 26th December 2007. They were then rabies vaccinated after. Then they had their blood drawn (titer?). The results came back showing all is well. It's now fast approaching a year since their rabies shots. I will need to get them their booster shot and plan to do so next monday (within a year from the last one). Will I need blood drawn again? Does the rabies vaccination need to be done by a particular kind of vet or I can take them to the 'walk-in' at Banfield/Petsmart for the shot?
Do I have to wait 6 months again from he booster shot? I'm thinking they are good to go and that I will just need to have all my paperwork ready and that they will need tick and tapeworm treatment 24 hours before flying?

When I bought them out here from the UK originally, I needed to get them both checked over by an 'international travel accredited' (something like that) vet (sorry, bad memory). The vet had to see them 24 hours before flying and sign them off as fit to travel. Will I need to do this again going back into the UK?

I did look at the DEFRA site but I couldn't see any mention of a last minute health check.

The dog will need to start from scratch as he is in need of all shots and having his 'bits' cut off

Thanks everyone. Need to start getting my act together because if the citizenship get's done on the quicker side of what I've been quoted, we'll need to have our furballs ready to rock.

PS I flew my pets via British Airways on the way to the US but think we'll most likely return via Virgin. Anyone else taken Pets with Virgin?

sans

Hi the health check before they fly they all have to have and you need a fit to fly certificate.....Not sure on the process when its already been done, i have only done it from scratch....But you can ring the PETS Travel scheme help line up and they will tell you what needs to be done...Their phone number is on this link..

http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/quarantine/index.htm

Jerseygirl

There's info in the Wiki...also try the search facility to search this forum...there's loads of threads about taking pets back to the UK.

dunroving

As mentioned, you should do a good Advanced search to scour through all the past threads for clues, but in terms of an animal that has already done the first part (ID chipped, rabies shot, positive rabies titer test), if time then drags on and the animal is due for a rabies booster, you need to be sure the booster is given by a "USDA approved" or "USDA accredited" vet (not sure what the term is, but it's NOT the same as the type of vet that has to countersign the third country cert at the very end of the process). Make sure they note the ID number on the rabies cert. There is NOT an extra 6 months after this - as long as your rabies is current (and boosters given by an accredited vet), you basically are just keeping your DEFRA/PETS "eligibility" ticking over and you can return home at any time, following the last few steps (third country cert, last-minute health check and tick/flea treatment or whatever it is).

USAGypsies

Fab, thanks so much for this. I've never heard of a third country cert

dunroving

It's a form you fill in towards the end of the process, that serves a similar purpose to the "pet passort" ("Pet passport" doesn't apply when you are bringing your dog in from the US). After arriving in the UK, you can use all your US paperwork/third country certificate to get a PP if you want to take pooch to Paris.

The third country cert is notoriously difficult to locate online, but if you do a search you'll find several posts with links to the cert ... quite some time to go for you, by the sounds of it so not urgent (yet!)

MarkMC

[QUOTE=PS I flew my pets via British Airways on the way to the US but think we'll most likely return via Virgin. Anyone else taken Pets with Virgin?[/QUOTE]

I may be wrong but when i was looking into flying my dogs i was told Virgin don't fly animals. This was to Australia it may be different from the USA.

dunroving

Yes you are, and yes they do, at least to Sydney, plus other countries/cities, at least according to DEFRA (and they usually know about these things):

http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/quar.../noneu-air.pdf

Scout

Several from this forum have used Virgin to fly pets out of the States. I don't recall hearing anything bad about them, in fact I only remember good things about Virgin.

If you're flying out of Florida, be warned. The airlines will not fly pets out if the temps are over 90 degrees farenheit so plan to fly them in the cooler months.

Here's the steps to move a pet (they can also be found in wiki).

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...34#post6524634


Steps for shipping your pet from the US to the UK
(microchip the pet first)
Steps:

1. Get the rabies shot
2. Wait about 4 weeks and have your Vet draw blood and send to the Kansas Lab for results.
3. Once you get the results of the titer test wait 6 months.
4. Have the certificate endorsed by the USDA (Federal) Vet ....this is not the same thing as a USDA Certified Vet. A lot of Vets are USDA certified but the Federal Vet works for the USDA......once the certificate is endorsed it's good for 4 months....if you don't leave the country in that time frame, the Federal Vet must endorse a new certificate. Make sure you do not let your rabies vaccination expire. Get it renewed at least a month before it is due to expire.
5. Once you are ready to fly and have your date booked, get a Health Certificate to fly your pet out of the country. It must be issued within 10 days of travel. This is not the same certificate as the UK Pet Travel Scheme one. This is the certificate required by the airline to fly any animal in the US anywhere. This certificate may say that the Federal Vet needs to endorse it as well and British Cargo incorrectly advised us it must be endorsed by the Federal Vet, but the USDA tells us it is not required..........I had the Federal Vet endrorse it anyway (on the day we flew out no less) because after all the wrong advice we got from our Vet and maybe inadvertantly BA Cargo, I no longer trusted anyone to know what they were talking about.
6. Between 24 and 48 hours of travel, have your Vet give the dog the tick and tapeworm treatment. Make sure to read the DEFRA requirements for the proper drug that must be used. Make sure your vet completes the Pet Travel certificate regarding the tick/tapeworm treatment.
7. BA requires that you arrive at cargo with your pet at least 4 hours before flying. .........when you count that extra time, the length of the flight and the time it takes to pet to clear customs, you are probably going to have a somewhat soiled and smelly dog on your hands when you collect her/him. BA was great at Gatwick for helping us to clean our dog Scout up and provided loads of blankets for her to rest on in the car. Our dog messed her crate 5 minutes before we picked her up. If British Customs had been a bit more speedy and hadn't taken 4 hours to clear her we would have been fine. DEFRA cleared her almost immediately, but Customs took their time.

Our dog is blind and diabetic. She was exhausted the day after the flight but has since perked back up a good bit. I would advise a visit to the Vet for any animal with a few days arriving back in the UK to give them a quick looksee.

We faxed our customs forms to the UK several days prior to our flight as BA told us to do, but don't count on that speeding Customs up any.

MarkMC

Sorry for answering, i won't bother in future that was what i was told from many export companies in the uk.

Englishgirl

I think you will find Virgin do not fly animals to australia, they do to USA

Virgin Atlantic are accredited to carry pets under the Government's new Pet Travel Scheme. The PETS scheme only applies to cats, dogs and ferrets and must travel in the cargo hold.

The PETS scheme is available on the following routes:

Barbados
Boston
Los Angeles
Miami
New York - JFK
New York - Newark
Orlando
San Francisco
Washington
Pets can also travel to Johannesburg on Virgin Atlantic, however as the destination is not part of the Pet Travel scheme, different regulations apply. Please ask for more information when you call.

For all enquiries and bookings

dunroving

Don't get your panties in a bunch, I didn't have time for a long answer and I was trying to help the OP. It's not about you ...

MarkMC

I never said it was about me, maybe you should learn some manners.

dunroving

No, I did.

I'm not going to walk over eggshells just because you take the huff so easily. You said "I may be wrong". All I did was respond to what you said, in providing the OP with accurate information. I could have said, "You should be more careful not to post inaccurate information when people are trying to make important decisions," but I didn't.

Maybe you should learn not to be so thin-skinned. If you think I have bad manners, you obviously haven't read some of the brutal comments elsewhere on this Forum.

dunroving

This is copied and pasted from the "Sydney" box of the DEFRA form I downloaded from DEFRA yesterday and posted the link to:

"British Airways World Cargo, Quantas, Cathay Pacific (via Hong Kong), Emirates SkyCargo (Via Dubai) Virgin Atlantic (via Hong Kong)"

I think Sydney is where the OP was asking about ... perhaps that route has been closed down to animal transport and DEFRA hasn't updated the form ... ?