Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

The idea that quarantine prevents a rabies epidemic is a bit of a joke. As far as I have read, in all the years that quarantine was required, not one dog in quarantine developed rabies during their quarantine period (though many of them died) - however, something like a dozen humans who entered the UK during the same period brought in rabies ...

... and to echo what others have said, the OP isn't seeking to cirumvent the law, she is trying to find a way to avoid her pet having to go through quarantine. Not the same thing. The PETs scheme is one way to "avoid quarantine", so obviously "avoiding quarantine" isn't necessarily a sign of nefarious intent.

BTW, the pet foster scheme in France (that I referred to in a previous post) is described here: http://freespace.virgin.net/passport...rfamilies.html

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

There's always cryogenics :)

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

Foster parents for pets -Thanks this is just the sort of thing that I was looking for. I certainly do not want to break law - but given that our dog is having his rabies jabs every year I do find it a bit odd that we have to go through all this just because we live in India.

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

I personally do believe quarantine works and has kept the UK rabies free. Last year a puppy rescued from Sri Lanka developed rabies in quarantine at Goddard Veterinary Group quarantine kennels. Apparantly it had its rabies jabs. There were several dogs that were street dogs and were rescued and brought into the UK. One of the pups tested positive for rabies.

I know quarantine is hard on the animal and emotional for the owner, but I think anything is better than rabies because once that occurs in the UK, they will not know what has hit them. Foot and Mouth was hard enough to deal with, rabies would be even harder.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7368808.stm

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

I had heard about that recent case, which is why I deliberately worded my post the way I did (I was referring to the period before the PETs system, when quarantine was required for all). One of the key statistics that was used to argue against the quarantine system was that not a single one of the thousands of quarantined dogs developed rabies - and the whole point of quarantine was the assumption that some dogs brought into the UK would have rabies, and the 6-month quarantine would allow the disease to develop and those dogs to be identified (and euthanized). It used to be on the page I just posted, but it's no longer in there.

I lived in the US for many years. I never once felt in danger of rabies, even though wild animals have the disease.

There are other far more relevant health risks in the UK that we don't have Draconian rules and regulations about. Let's ban smoking altogether, for example ... and ration alcohol ... and build cars that can't exceed the speed limit.

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

Quite a few have. Google it.

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

It is wlll known on the dog forums, that dogs coming into the uk on pet passports, bring other diseses into the uk. The uk government were warned that the pet passport scheme was too lenient, but they did their usual head in the sand.

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

We are finding rabies in quarantine kennels now. However, if what you say above is true, that means that the numbers of rabies cases in dogs entering the UK, are rising.

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

I googled and found this, regarding the 2008 case: http://www.hpa.org.uk/hpr/archives/2008/news1808.htm

Extract: "The UK has been free of indigenous classical rabies for over a century. Since 1922, 29 cases of rabies have been reported within quarantine in the UK, the most recent in 1990." This was the only authoritative site I found with this kind of statement (though I haven't spent all day looking).

- this conflicts with the statement previously carried on the Passports for Pets site (http://freespace.virgin.net/passports.forpets/) that I can no longer find (this was several years ago, during the run-up to introduction of the PETs scheme). During my Google search, I found several statements of no rabies cases during quarantine, but none of these was from an authoritative source.

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

Do you work in a quarantine kennel? Or is that the Royal "We"? :rofl:

Re: ways to avoid quarantine
 

I know for a fact the Goddard Vet Group case was real, I know Jeremy Robinson - I used to work for him and the BBC/MAFF had no reason to make this story up for attention so I believe them. Apparantly any case that is diagnosed while in quarantine still officially makes the UK 'rabies free' as it was contained.

Just after I left Goddards, the staff that worked for this particular surgery had a dog diagnosed with some disease it had picked up on a camping trip in France, I shall try and source the link for you as I cant remember the name of it. It was the quick thinking of the vet who had treated this disease before in Europe that saved this dogs life.

Im sorry, but harsh though it is on the dogs, quarantine works. I know there are many people that have lived in countries with rabies and had no problems living along side this virus, but who cares? We do not need rabies in the United Kingdom and should never get complacent about relaxing our quarantine laws.

One vet I have worked for (and in the past as a locum nurse there have been many), he had studied the disease and seen animals with it and would never want to have to see it again - the enormity of this virus will never be realised until it hits us.

Quarantine is harsh, its a guilt trip each time you look at your pet (God I used to be in tears leaving my cat in Byford) but if there is a chance that it can detect diseases BEFORE the animal leaves the kennels then we as pet owners must 'suck it up' and accept it.

Just because other countries have the disease and 'cope' with it, why should the UK if they do not have to?

The puppy that had rabies at the Goddard kennels actually had his rabies jabs, now imagine had he been able to go to his home straight from the plane and had bitten someone.

Because they (that person) would not have suspected rabies, they would not have had a rabies jab and without the rabies jab, rabies is ALWAYS fatal.

Im sorry to sound harsh, but keep the UK rabies free and if that means quarantine, then so be it.