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TAKING YOUR PET ABROAD
What do I need to do?
In order to re-enter the UK you need to satisfy certain
criteria.
• Your pet needs to be microchipped.
• Your pet needs to be vaccinated against rabies (usually
2 injections to ensure an adequate response).
• A blood sample is taken after the final rabies
vaccination (currently 3 weeks) to ensure adequate
antibody levels.
• Your pet cannot return to the UK until 6 months after
the date of the blood sample was taken, however you
can leave the country before this point.
• A Pet Passport needs to be issued by a government
official veterinary surgeon (all the vets at St Anne’s are
authorised to do so).
• Before re-entering the UK a veterinary surgeon needs
to administer treatment against ticks and tapeworms.
This needs to be between 24 and 48 hours and is
noted in the passport.
• Rabies vaccinations need to be given as per the
licence in the country they were administered. The
expiry date will be entered into the passport and this
must not be exceeded even by 24 hours.
• You must travel by an authorised route or carrier. If
considering air travel then contact the airline in
advance to make arrangements.
What if I am travelling to either an EU or
non-EU country?
• Animals travelling within the EU can travel with a valid
Pet Passport without restrictions. They can return to
the UK under the scheme providing the above requirements are all met and have not left the EU in the
previous 6 months.
• Animals travelling outside the EU, but to a listed
country (see above link), may need a separate export
health certificate to be issued. This may stipulate
health checks or other blood tests and varies from
country to country. We advise contacting DEFRA for
further information well in advance of travel. If the
country is listed then animals can be imported under
the PETS.
• Animals travelling to a non-listed EU country may
need an export health certificate. They will need to
enter quarantine for up to 6 months on return to the
UK.
• Some countries may require import certificates as well
as export certificates and may make changes to their
import requirements at their own discretion. For this
reason it is recommended to contact DEFRA for all
non-EU countries and the country’s embassy for last
minute changes.
The UK is fortunate in being an island nation which has
advantages when it comes to preventing diseases from
entering the country. There are a number of diseases
that are exotic to the UK which these treatments
reduce the transmission of. These include the Fox
Tapeworm (Echinococcus multiocularis) which can
infect humans and cause serious, potentially lifethreatening disease requiring surgery and often lifelong
medication. Tick treatment is primarily to prevent the
importation of the Brown Dog Tick (Rhipicepalus
sanguineus) which can spread the potentially fatal
Mediterranean Spotted Fever in humans. Tick
treatment also has the advantages of preventing the
import of ehrlichiosis and babesiosis that affect dogs.
Are my pets at risk abroad?
Many countries have diseases that are not seen in the
UK and certain preventative measures may need to be
taken while abroad to reduce the risk of infection. This
will vary from country to country and may include
heartworm prevention, tick prevention, fly prevention
amongst others.
Diseases to be aware of include
leismaniasis, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, hepatozoonosis
and heartworm. Although basic preventative
measures can be advised by vets at St Anne’s, we
always recommend speaking to a local veterinary
surgeon once at your destination.
It is also important
to note that some EU countries require yearly rabies
vaccinations for resident animals, this exceeds the
requirements for the PETS but is to prevent spread in
potentially endemic countries.
For Further Information:
Contact St Annes Veterinary Group on 01323 640011
http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlifepets/pets/travel/pets/index.htm
By Phillip Speer
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