cokey

Hi,

We are going to be moving from the UK to USA next year and are trying to find out how much its gonna cost us to take our 2 1/2 year old golden retriever with us.

Does anyone have any experience doing this, will I need to start saving now?!

Thanks in advance
Regards
Colin

sibsie

It depends on whether you're going to be using a specialist company (though I can't see the point in that) or having it on the same flight that you are.

Make sure the airline you're flying with takes pets, and that they will transport them at the time of year you're planning on going. You'll need to phone the airline, normally the cargo dept, and find out what their charges are. I only had to pay excess luggage costs and a one off fee of 50 Euros when I moved my cats and dog.

doctor scrumpy

Fly BA they are the best. You need to go to the vets and get a fitness to travel certificate. Most US States will allow you to bring a dog in without it having had rabies shots as the UK is rabies free. You will need to get the rabies shot done within 30 days of arrival though. If you live nr Manchester I can thoroughly recommend The Ark Vetinary Clinic nr Knutsford.

cokey

Hey

Thanks for the replies. I phoned my vet this afternoon and she
reckons that its gonna cost anything between £2-£3000 ($3.5-$5000).
And she said that he cannot travel until he is all clear on the rabies jab, which will take 6 months! If the UK is supposed to be rabies free then I cannot understand why this is so!
My wife is more likely to have rabbies than the dog as she foams at the mouth on regular occasions :P

I know that the box/crate is gonna cost a few hundred pounds but how much is the flight gonna be. Will my dog go as excess baggage?
Another site said that he would cost more that the average air fair, around £400.

I have just sent off for some quotes from specialist firms at the london airports, so i will see what they quote me.

I guess the next step is to call the airline and see what they say.

Anybodys experiences of this would be greatly apprieciated.

Regards
Col

dunroving

I think your vet is talking codswallop. 2,000-3,000 GBP? Never. I think I paid about 100 quid for the crate, maybe 100 quid for vet bills, and I think 100-150 quid for the flight (Manchester to Charlootte NC). Call the airlines' cargo depots, and get online and search for information (also do a search of this site, this question crops up all the time).

Different states have different regulations ( I think CDC is the central information place); you also have to deal with airline regs (e.g., if it's December, most arlines won't fly a pet into Minnesota, if it's July they won't fly a dog into Miami, etc.); also need to meet requirements for crate dimensions, etc.

Start with http://www.baworldcargo.com/index.shtml, http://www.iata.org/whatwedo/live_animals.htm, and http://www.customs.gov/ (look under import/export).

cokey

dunroving,

Thanks for replying, I thought that the vets quote seemed a bit steep.
I will have a look at the sites your quoted.

Did you use one of those firms to move your pet, or did you do it all on your own?

Thanks again.

Regards
Col

dunroving

I did it myself. I think you only really need to use a company if you won't be flying with the pet. If you'll be on the same flight, I think you can figure it out yourself. Perhaps the most difficult part is getting a definitive answer from your state of entry what their requirenments are. Like I said, I *think* the CDC now regulate this: http://www.cdc.gov/

sibsie

What Dunroving said. Your vet is talking donkey balls. They don't need to wait 6 months after its had the rabies jab. If you're coming back to England within a short period of time then you can get the blood test done at the US end once you're here. That part of it has a 6 month wait but certainly not to come over to the US.

Customs didn't even ask about the animals when I arrived here.

ladylisa

I think your vet is confused over the pet passport scheme which is actually for animals being brought back into the UK ( as a way to avoid quarantine) not for animals being taken out

Jan Alaska

6 months for the rabies jab to take effect ?? we were told our Jack Russell had to have his rabies jab no later than 30 days before flying ..... and he cost a princely 75GBP (or so) with American Airlines Heathrow - Chicago - Detroit. The only problem you may have is the timing, some airlines wont fly pets over the winter months because of the temp in the hold.

Good Luck !

USBound

I brought 3 chihuahuas over in january, you REALLY need to speak to DEFRA for the nearest associated vet to you. This isn't required BUT said associated vet WILL have ALL the information you require in this case. Points have been mentioned but I will re-itterate

1. Make sure the company you are flying with will allow your pet to travel both from the UK (due to cold) and into the state you are going to (due to heat) states like Arizona & California will not allow pets to fly in during the summer months because they WILL die.

2. Get the "Fitness to travel" documents, again it was recommended to us that we use a DEFRA associated vet who WILL be able to discern the travel fitness of your pet and note any possible problems that should be seen to before you fly. This cost us about 30 quid... but that was in rural yorkshire; land of the cheap.

3. Rabies jab IS NOT REQUIRED to enter the country nor is it required by ALL states, ask DEFRA which department needs to be contacted in the state you are going to, if possible get a number and call direct. They WILL be able to tell you what is required for said state. In California we were not required to get Rabies jabs when we arrived but thought it prudent to do so.

4. Ask about dog registration in your state, similar to the old dog license in the UK. Required in California, the department you contact in said state should be able to inform you on this.


the total cost of bringing my 3 dogs with Virgin was $750 including carry boxes and expedition at the LAX end. There were a few forms to sign and that was it.

Hope this helps.

cokey

Hi,

Thanks for all your replies, I can see that my vet must be a little short on cash at the moment


I will contact the correct people who actually know what they are talking about.

Thanks again people.

dunroving

A minor suggestion: Record details (date, time , name, position, company/organization) of anyone who gives you specific advice. That way if some customs official with sufficient (lack of) knowledge to be dangerous tells you you're wrong, you can at least pull out your log book and say that Jane Smith, licensed veterinarian at CDC, responsible for live animal import regs, said, rather than "He said/she said", which doesn't hold water with any "Jobsworth" customs official you might be unlucky to encounter.

cokey

Good advice dunroving,

Last thing I want is to get to the airport and get hassled by stuck up customs officer on a power trip.

This forum is first class for quality advice

Spot

Hi,

Just to add my experience.
I booked with American Airlines for London to New York back in January; they said to call 24 hours before the flight to check everything was ok. When I did this, they told me that it was too cold in NYC and the dog couldn't fly!!!
I went mad, and said that at no point was I told this was going to be a concern, so asked if I could move my flight to when the temperature would be appropriate. They said that if I did that I would be flying until May!!!
After a lot of shouting at numerous call centre managers, I got a refund from my flight, and called up BA who told be that they have special insulated cargo holds for pets and the current temperature would not be a problem.
I booked a flight with them, and flew 2 days later with an excess baggage charge of 90 pounds for my dog.
Their service was excellent, and they made sure that my dog was one of the last things to be boarded, so that I could spend time with her outside before our flight.
Upon arrival, all I needed to show was her health check certificate and we were allowed in.
I bought a cheap crate from Wal-Mart on a previous visit, but you can also get them pretty cheap online from e-bay etc.
I would definitely fly BA again with my pet, and was incredibly impressed with their customer service in this field.
So all in all for a 3 year old 40lb dalmatian, with vet fees, flight and crate it cost me about 200 quid, and was well worth it
Michelle