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Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Old Mar 22nd 2010, 1:42 pm
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Default Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Hi,

I have had a good search on the forums for specific information on moving our cats and a dog from the UK to the USA but I am not having much luck in finding anything.

We are hoping to take our 5 cats and a medium sized dog from the UK to Columbus, Ohio. My vet referred me to the DEFRA website which is great for some information and especially returning to the UK with animals but doesn't help at all with taking them to the US.

I have also tried searching for information on State and other local regulations relating to importing animals but again, I haven't been able to track down specific information.

Can anyone help please - at least to point me in the right direction?

Many thanks

Karen
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 2:56 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Hi,

i tried to post a reply to this but it disappeared... odd. Anyway i have also been looking at how to transport our cat if my husband is relocated to Michigan. I have only got one quote so far from petairuk.com who were recommended on here. It seems that it would cost around 600 pounds for their more basic service or 1k ish for the more expensive service which includes their own vet providing the fit to fly certificate. It's relatively simple to transfer cats and dogs over, there are no quarantine requirements - the animal just needs to be certified by a vet as fit to fly, and you pick them up at the other end. It's also easy enough to bring them back from the US later, as long as they have a pet passport. Otherwise i believe they have to spend time in quarantine.

I believe some airlines will even let animals fly in the cabin (that may be cheaper than the pet shipping option), I imagine that it would probably be quite stressful for them though!

If you want to pm me your email address I could forward you the quote I got as it has some detailed info on it.
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 6:45 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

We flew our dog from Heathrow to Boston. Our vet had someone who managed pet passports (rabies jab, test, etc.) and got all of the requirements / details for the US from DEFRA for us. We bought the travel crate from an internet store using the pet sizing information off the BA site, and booked the cargo flight with PBS.
Only minor issue was collection, because we had to drive to the Cargo office (about 20 mins from the airport) then wait for Customs Clearance.
If you go down the DIY route suggest making several copies of all documentation, just in case it gets mislaid during the journey.
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 9:14 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

http://www.ncrac.org/Info/StateImportRegs/ohio.htm

DEFRA is a start for the federal requirements, your vet should have an idea and there are plenty of threads going over that. Anything specific to the state, check the link above.
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 9:30 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

We're about to take our 4 dogs to the US with www.passportforpets.com

Haven't done it yet so I can't comment on the actual move, but they've been very helpful answering questions and gave me the best quote by far, compared to the other 3 companies I contacted.

Good luck!
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 10:23 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Many thanks to everyone for your replies - this is really useful. I have had another hunt through the DEFRA website and there is more there than I found on first searching.

It looks as though we are going to have to arrange a lot of the vaccinations and paperwork ourselves as to pay someone to do it for us with 6 animals to sort out, is going to be prohibitive.

From what has been said and the websites that I have read it seems that we do not need to get any of the animals vaccinated against rabies or anything else unless we think there is a chance that we will have to return to the UK. I am going to look into getting each cat and dog it's own passport to ensure that we can do that.

I also want to make sure that all of the cats are healthy enough to go. We have a Siamese girl who will be 14 this year and I am really worried at whether she will cope with the stress both from the physical side of whether she is strong enough but also from the point that she is prone to getting distressed when on her own. I haven't found anywhere that says if cats can travel together in a crate or if they have to be on their own. Sadie would be calm enough I think if she were with one of the others but on her own she would be frantic and I really don't want to sedate her. We have considered whether it would be better for her to stay in the UK and she already has two potential homes lined up - I just can't bear to leave her behind!

I did have a look at the Queen Mary 2, and whether we could afford for them all to travel over in luxury with me (it sounds lush!).

Karen
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 10:37 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Originally Posted by daisy30uk
From what has been said and the websites that I have read it seems that we do not need to get any of the animals vaccinated against rabies or anything else unless we think there is a chance that we will have to return to the UK.
Be sure to double check that. it varies from state to state but some require rabies vaccinations before being allowed in, and others you can get it soon after arriving. If you do decide to get them vaccinated (we have with our dogs) make sure you get it done at least a mth before departure as the UK vaccine takes that long to activate (something about them using dead culture instead of live here.)

I was pretty intimidated taking our 4 dogs, but so far it's been easy. Rabies vaccines were simple, with no ill affects. Had them all micro-chipped as well as apparently the chipping network is worldwide, so I figured if the worst happens and they get put on the wrong flight, we can track them down!

Then I contacted the people I linked above and was pleasantly surprised by the price; esp after some of the other quotes I got! I was told to expect to pay more for their tickets than ours, but they're actually working out cheaper.

I sent them their measurements and they make custom crates especially for their transport. They have to go into the vets again a week before, for a preflight checkup and then I just have to drop them off with them at Heathrow, get on our plane (the same one) and pick them up at the other end... that's the plan anyway!

We're aiming to get out there for the 10th Apri so I'll let you know how it goes.

Edit: if you're worried about them getting panicky in the crates maybe start getting them used to them now. If you start feeding and letting them nap in them they'll soon think of them as safe places.

Last edited by Aaarrrggg; Mar 22nd 2010 at 10:42 pm.
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 11:22 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

We flew LHR to SFO with our two westies in November last year.
There are lots of companies out there who will 'guide' you through the process for a fee, but it is pretty straight forward.
There were no vaccinations/quarantine needed to fly to the US, but we decided to get rabies shots for them and they both have a passport so they can re-enter the UK without quarantine.
We booked with Virgin and the dogs were on the same flight as us, we measured them and purchased the crates online, if you do this yourself make sure they are ATA approved and that your animals have enough space to move around in, or they will be rejected from the flight. We also put the crates in the house a few weeks before we flew and gave the dogs treats in them to get them used to being in them, although they werent shut in them until the actual flight. They had to go in separate crates, and it was the first time they had been apart. Not sure on the ruling for cats if they can fly together, i think it is based on weight possibly and each airline has their own rules, also no pet is allowed to be sedated due to the cabin pressure change.
We flew on a Monday, took our dogs to the vets on the Friday and they had their passports stamped and we were issued with a 'fit to fly' certificate, we took this to the Virgin cargo/pet section on the Monday morning with the dogs and the paperwork they had asked us to bring in.
The flight was on time and no problems, arrived the other end and had to go to the cargo place to pick our paperwork up, then drive to customs to get them cleared, then back to cargo where we finally collected them. It was a long stressful day (but only stressful as i worried about the dogs the whole flight), they were both fine and pleased to see us, and are now loving life in California.
Good luck with the move
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 11:33 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Thank you so much for sharing your experience of travelling with the dogs - although it sounds nice to have someone do everything for you, I think I would be much happier doing it the way that you did and feeling a bit more in control. As we're moving to Ohio, I think that we would have to have a stop over if we flew all the way which worries me. The alternative would be to fly into New York and then drive the rest of the way.

Regards

Karen
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Old Mar 22nd 2010, 11:34 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Oh and another thing to consider, though this does depend on where they fly too, when and with whom, but some carriers won't fly animals during summer months because of the heat on the runway etc...it's usually places like Houston and Atlanta, but if you have lay overs it might be a factor too.
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Old Mar 23rd 2010, 12:22 am
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

I brought my older cat out with me in 2004 when she was 12. We arranged everything ourselves. I did get the rabies shot and the animal control inspectors did want to see the paperwork even though Illinois is a state that the CDC says doesn't need a Rabies shot.

We flew with BMI from Manchester and BMI doesn't do the flights themselves and referred me to a cargo company who were really helpful but I can't remember their name. World Air I think. We flew on the same flight and I asked the cabin crew to let me know when she had boarded and three of them came to let me know she was aboard safely.

Anyway, my cat was absolutely fine and we kept her inside a few days and then let her out into the garden. She never did go far from the house in the UK and here she loves to go out on the deck or patrol the edge of the garden for intruders. There are coyotes occasionally seen here so I don't let her out in the dark. She is amazingly going to be 17 this year and looks fit and healthy. This is a photo of her the day after she arrived.

We brought my dog over the year before and did that ourselves too. That was on United Airlines and I booked her as excess baggage. Did all the stuff with the vet, rabies shot, letter to fly etc. No problems with her either. I used Vari Kennel for both of them. A small for the cat and a medium for the dog I think. Good luck and I'm sure they'll be fine.

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Old Mar 23rd 2010, 8:41 am
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Hi Maggie,

Thank you very much for this - it was very reassuring to read that you took an 'elderly' cat out to the US with you. She is very sweet! I have tossed and turned all night worrying about the cats. You would think I should be more concerned about my daughter and how she will settle in, but she seems to be taking it all quietly in her stride, leaving me to stress about something else!

Kind regards

Karen
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Old Mar 23rd 2010, 12:39 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

We shipped our dogs (lab and border collie) from Edinburgh to Memphis last year, and the process is relatively simple. They originally came over here from the USA in 2003, a process which involved a whole lot more paperwork and had many restrictions.

The only requirements were that a vet had to check them to certify that they were fit enough to travel, their micro chips had to be checked, and they had to be vaccinated (can't remember what for) within 2 weeks of flying. We also renewed their rabies vaccinations just in case.

They would have travelled on the same flights as my wife, but the Edinburgh - Amsterdam flight was before the pet handlers at EDI started work, so we had to send them to AMS the day before, and they stayed in the "pet hotel" there and were well looked after, and joined the main flight the following day. On arrival at Memphis it was just a short journey for my wife to pick them up, and they had already been fed and walked!

The final cost came to about £650 per dog, which included the cargo handlers (extrordinair) picking them up from our house in Falkirk, the stay in the animal care shelter at AMS, and the flights with KLM. Extrordinair were very good at making sure we met all the relevant requirements, and also got in touch with the relevant person at MEM to give us info on the procedure once we arrived. However, they did make a mess up with the pricing as some of the cost in their quote had only been for one dog. They only noticed this mistake about 5 minutes before they were due to be picked up! Unfortunately I had to stump up some extra cash, but I did manage to negotiate this sum down a fair bit.

I'd reccomend travelling via Amsterdam if this was possible.
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Old Mar 23rd 2010, 6:04 pm
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Smile Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

Hi,
I'm starting to look into moving to Connecticut, my hubby can transfer with work so it just means selling up once we have a firm date.
I'm worrying about my cat (the kids will be fine and I've had the cat longer!!) does anyone know if there is an age limit to taking a cat?
many thanks in advance!

p.s I'm new on here too so bear with me..............
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Old Mar 23rd 2010, 6:22 pm
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Default Re: Taking cats and dogs from UK to USA

@meshwill
our 4 cats flew out from the UK about 5 years ago with no hassles. Oldest was 9. No issues than getting a checkover from a vet to get a certificate to fly (Continental airlines requirement).

@daisy30uk I'm in northern Ohio so I guess our experience should be helpful. I remember speaking to someone with in the Ohio agriculture department about it. Can't recall why I was pushed their way other than the rabies issue. They told me not to bother with jabs as the UK was viewed as rabies free (just get them all jabbed after they get to the states). I'll look out later on as to who we used as the courier to set it all up if you like. They sent us the transport cages and my OH had to drop off the cats at the airport in the UK. I picked them up a day later from Cleveland Airport (they had to have an overnight in New York due to transport regulations for animals). IIRC overall cost was about 1200quid for all of them.
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