moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Hi anyone out ther with advice on moving two gsds to usa ?we have an elderly 12 and half year old boy and a 3 yr old girl hope to be state side late sept ! thanx

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Welcome to BE! If you do a search, you will find many threads about shipping dogs to the US, probably in the main USA section. You will need certification from a vet that they are fit to travel (especially the older dog) and do make sure they are up to date on their rabies shots. If you are moving somewhere hot, make sure that by September it is possible to ship them in, as carriers will not bring in animals when temperatures are above a certain level at the destination. When you arrive, I'd suggest having them checked by a local vet asap; for instance, if you were coming here to the northeast, the dogs would need to get shots for Lyme Disease. Dogs in the US also need to be on heartworm meds and flea and tick prevention.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Don't forget to establish a contact with a shipper or airline at least 30 days before departure date. Just inquiring about dates/cost should be enough. They changed the rules recently and the established relationship is required ahead of time.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...n+dog+Aberdeen

Hopefully this is the link to my experience of moving my border collie (pre the new changes)

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

As well as all the above...check out state requirements on bringing a dog in as some require live or not rabies jab.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Hi there
I recently moved from Greece to LA with my husband, 11 year old son a cat and a dog.
I moved my animals through my husbands relocation package which cost a fortune , nearly 10,000 US dollars. The cost all depends on the size of the animal and crate , my dog is a chocolate Labrador and needed the largest crate. To ship them yourselves it will cost half of the amount that I have quoted , if you contact the airlines they can give you a quote.
Although we shipped our animals from Greece the procedure is almost the same.
They will need a passport and need to be micro chipped ,updated rabies vaccinations and within 15 days before they fly, a certificate of fitness to fly issued by a vet ( this may vary in the UK) They will need to be wormed and de liced before they travel.
Each carrier may have different requirements and each state in the US may have different rules of entry.
Please make sure you take a photo copy of the pet passports as the company that relocated my pets lost both of them.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Also where are you moving to in the US

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

I shipped my cats over to Texas from Aberdeen 5 years ago. To save money I did it myself rather than with a professional pet transportation company. The airlines all require that the animals be in a strong crate of adequate size (the standard plastic ones you use to take then to the vet are fine.) The animals must have a "fit to fly" certificate from your vet issued in the previous week or so (just a general certificate of good health) and must not be sedated. When I booked my flight I did it over the phone with the airline (in my case BA) and mentioned that I would be taking animals. They needed to know the dimensions of the container I would be using and the total weight of container and cats. They made sure that I was on a flight that would be set up for animals (they go in a special pressurized section of the hold) and made sure I went via Gatwick where there is an animal holding facility where they could be checked by staff and watered during our layover. When I checked in for our flight the cats were charged as excess baggage. I collected them in Houston with our baggage (after what seemed like a very long wait!) There were a couple of dogs on that flight too. To get them though customs all I needed was proof of an up to date rabies shot.

Once your dogs are here they will need to be put on heartworm prevention treatment as previously mentioned. This is available only from a vet and should be started straight away.

When I moved the US was not part of the pet passport program for taking pets back into the UK. At that time we were only planning on staying for 3 years and I was told that situation could change so I organised a pet passport for each of them too. That was a bit more complicated. Our animals were microchipped already - that is a requirement. Also, after the rabies shot, they need to be taken back to the vet for a blood test to make sure that the immune response is adequate. All this is documented in a little book by the vet. This all cost as much as the shipping.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

BA no longer permits owners to handle pet shipping themselves, it must be done through a specialised freight company. Also, if your carrier is one of those little two-piece ones with little plastic connectors it may not be acceptable as they are infamous for accidentally coming apart.

We used this for our cat, much sturdier than the ones you can get in pet stores and not much more expensive; also gave him a lot more room to move around inside.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vari-Kennel-.../dp/B000TBJ4J8

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

That's exactly what I used. The BA web site at the time did stress that the crate didn't have to be specially made, but did have to be sturdy.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Its a pity BA don't do that anymore - the cost was a fraction of the quote I got from the specialized freight company.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Pets do not need a passport to enter the US...only to enter the UK. The rest about shots, micro chips etc is also not necessarily true for the US. The OP needs to check the requirements of the state they are residing in.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

HI there , sorry for any misunderstanding however a pet passport was required to ship from Greece so may be this is not necessary from the UK to the US , within Europe Pets must have a passport.
International Health Certificate – Within 10 days of departure is necessary a vet will need to issue an International Health Certificate as required by all airlines. This certificate states that your pet is in good health and OK to fly.

Rabies Vaccination & Certificate - In general, it is required that dogs be vaccinated against rabies at least 30 days prior to entry, except for puppies younger than 3 months and dogs originated or located for 6 months in areas considered to be free of rabies.

Both had to be microchipped by law to enter California , as I stated other states may be different.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

It wasn't too bad in 2009 - I think the cat's flight cost 340 pounds (may have been 380) and we bought the carrier separately for 40 pounds. London to Seattle.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

we hope to be in orange county California

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Thanx for the info !!!
will check with our Vet soon to arrange shots etc and to arrange paws crossed certified fit to fly!

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

The fit to fly certificate usually has to be issued within a week or two of the flight. Check with your airline to see what their requirements are. (Your pet shipper company should be able to tell you.)

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Where are you moving to in the US ?

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

She responded:

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Thanks for sharing such a nice information.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Not sure if this it too late now, but we are using Passports for Pets (Airsupply Shipping Agents). We are very stressed about sending our cats (our babies!) so we are using them to literally do EVERYTHING so we don't have to worry about the stress.

The fitness to fly certificate needs to be done within 10 days before flying. England does not require rabies shots, however some states and some airlines do, so this needs to be checked individually.

Passports for Pets are picking the cats up for us the day before and performing their fit to fly exam that day. They will then fly out on October 5th.

As a reference it is costing us £1040 to send 2 cats from Heathrow to Newark NJ. (This includes collection and delivery to airport, fit to fly cert., flights, crates, and all other fees at both airports).

This company has been so helpful and very understanding of our concerns, so I feel very confident with them. I'm still not going to be able about putting my girls into the crates on October 4th, but I know that they probably won't even notice!

Not sure if any of that is helpful to anyone now though :)

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Anyone bringing a pet over, don't worry about what the state's requirements are -- get that rabies shot! Rabies is out there in the USA and you want to protect your pet whether you are mandated to do so or not. The one thing to check is if the specific state requires the live vaccine.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

whats the differance between (apart from the obvious) between the two differant vaccines ??? I understand that Rabies *from my research of past few months ) is a "dodgy" thing for pets with auto immune probs which my old boy has !

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Hi we are doing the move ourselves ! for two woofers this is the only part that worries me as like you have said they are your babies !!! not really concerned about me and hubby the woofers and their flight is ALL that is on my mind !!! sure your babies will be ok ! paws crossed safe flight !!! :)

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Thanx for the above !
any idea what the differance between "live" and "dead " vaccine is for rabies ? andwhich is accepted in California?
Also does anyone know the criteria for a "fit to fly" vet exam and what the vets look for ??Thanx

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

This may help:

http://www.cdph.ca.gov/healthinfo/di...es/rabies.aspx

As to the "fit to fly," I am sure you can Google up some info. I think it will involve how much stress the dog can take -- does it have a history of epilepsy, heart problems -- with the very young and the elderly most susceptible.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

We flew our cat from Canada to Orange County California in 2008. Our vet gave our cat the Merial Purevax rabies shot which is a "live" rabies. No idea what the difference is. He then provided us with a Certificate of Vaccination which showed his annual vaccination and the date it was given and the rabies vaccination information. We also had our file with every bill from the vets office for 4 years:)

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Hi Sue

We are also trying to sort out our Boxers move to the US ourselves with not a great deal of luck. Our main problem is if we fly with BA there is no public access to the Cargo Drop off area. We have asked one of the door to door services what it would cost to do just Airport to Airport and still received a quote of over $4000 for 1 dog.
What Airline are you using and what quotes have you had?

Darren

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Hi I understand that B.A dont allow individuals to do "self" boarding changed their procedure I guess We hope to fly with Virgin and the prices of around £2000 is with us providing dog crates etc ! seems so high for the poor Dogs who only get to be in the hold (is higher than our same day flight ticket)

When are you going and is it LA? be aware also that LAX dont accept animals on weekends !

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Thanx for the info !!! :)

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

We are relocating to Tennessee in 3-4 weeks but most airlines wont fly Boxers into anywhere over 24C so Atlanta and Memphis are out of the question at this time of year. Continental look to be more pet friendly but we are yet to get a quote from them.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Hi My prices were mis quoted its in fact £3000 for the two dogs :( I have heard that the temperature can stop pets being allowed to land and again my quote was from Virgin !

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

If you do it yourself (we did 5 years ago Gatwick-Dallas with American),

DO NOT book a flight with a layover. Fly direct to LAX. That way the time the dog spends in a USA airport is kept to a minimum and if you fly into somewhere within the temperature limits, but your final destination is too hot for the dog to fly then you are in trouble.

a.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Older dog had the ok to fly !!! yes ! thank goodness ! just have little one to check now ! paws crossed !
Does anyone could tell how to make comfortable woofers for travel as in what goes into flight box etc ? whats allowed ? thinking of using lavender oil on blankets and "bachrescue remedy " ! any suggestions wld be well received !!! Thanx

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

I thought that the certification had to be made within ten days of the flight date. Is this just for your personal peace of mind?

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Don't put in anything you don't want to get peed on.

I strongly recommend Dry Fur carrier inserts instead of towels.

http://www.dryfur.com/category/pet-a...ur-travel-pads

However, in 2009 they were only sold in the us so it might be difficult to get them. We used them in our cat's carrier and also used a towel. At the end of the flight, the towel was bunched up in the corner and wet with cat pee. The dryfur pad was still in place on the bottom of the carrier, had been peed on, but was dry to the touch.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Put it's blanket and a couple of fave toys in the crate...something that has it's own scent on it for re-assurance.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

We put in his blanket but while he had his overnight stay in Amsterdam they put lots of shredded newspaper in as well.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

I came over last year via Amsterdam like Weeze and about the same time. I checked all the airlines and Continental would not fly my dog at all, no matter what time of year. They told me they will not carry any snub nosed dog, even if they are a mix breed which mine is.

As to the rabies vaccine. when we went through customs the agent said just show me the rabies cert and then barely even glanced at it. There was no way he read anything, he just wanted to see we had one!

The cost via Amsterdam btw was approx 300 euro as they fly excess baggage. KLM flies direct to Houston though.

Re: moving 2 dogs to usa in sept
 

Yes it is just for me we go back just b4 we fly to get documents etc !just a little concerned for my older woofer so hence the early visit