backseatdriver Posted April 9, 2004 Share Posted April 9, 2004 I remember hearing that if you get stationed at Mildenhall or Lakenheath you have to put your pets in quarantine for X number of days/weeks. Is this still in effect? What's the story on this? I'm hoping to get stationed at Mildenhall, so I'm curious as to how this works (I've got 2 dogs). [ 09. April 2004, 18:39: Message edited by: backseatdriver ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lovelacm Posted April 9, 2004 Share Posted April 9, 2004 I'm at Ramstein, and as of 2002 the quarantine was still in progress for guys headin' to the UK. We're lucky over here on "The Continent" as they don't make our feline/canine children go through that fun process. The quarantine is long... heard 6 months from friends.. am I smoking crack or am I right?(Someone correct me if I'm wrong!) The folks at TMO should be able to give you the info you'll need... plan on contacting them early and get the required paperwork.. USDA forms signed, shot records, Vet Records, etc. It was a pain for us and our cats and we moved here to Germany! Just start early and anticipate problems... What kinda bird you on? I've got friends at both bases I'll be glad to put you in contact with. Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M2 Posted April 9, 2004 Share Posted April 9, 2004 Still 183 days from non-EU countries, so if you know someone in Germany or Belgium, for example, who is willing to take care of them and have them chipped (electronically in their neck). See this story, The End of Britain's Strict Quarantine Laws. I have a bud who got to the UK about 18 months ago and he left his dogs in the States due to the quarantine. The Brits keep talking about changing it, but as the US has not eliminated rabies, it hasn't happened. Full gouge here. Sorry, wish I could have provided a better answer! Cheers! M2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AirGuardian Posted April 10, 2004 Share Posted April 10, 2004 Just talked to our local British International Officer and his wife. They are planning to bring they're cat and dog back. (Why a cat you ask, I wouldn't waste my time..) Anyway, they indicated that if they have the prescribed shot records for rabies, parvo, etc. to prove consistent vaccination, the pet would only be restricted for a day or two. True or not, you might want to look into this since it seems brand new for UK folks... IT was the Brits who told me, and they think they're always right anyway - I just keep shoving the lost colony issue right back at them... Good day! Since our Rottweiler is German, does she have a free pass if we go back periodically? With the current German state of affairs, doubtful - they're starting to smell like the Frogs. [ 10. April 2004, 01:18: Message edited by: AirGuardian ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M2 Posted April 10, 2004 Share Posted April 10, 2004 AG The ROE is different for Brits bringing their animals back and non-Brits bringing their animals into the UK for the first time. The former can do so under the Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) program (see second URL in my response above). The US is considered a "long haul" country. It is all very confusing and as stated ealier the best thing to do is contact TMO who should understand it all. Good luck, and remember the in the UK is worth the trouble! Cheers! M2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AirGuardian Posted April 10, 2004 Share Posted April 10, 2004 Aaaaaah, Cheers, or bugga if you're not a happy camper with the pet relocation program... Thanx MMMax! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M2 Posted April 11, 2004 Share Posted April 11, 2004 AG Always trying to help, much like you. I would love to go to the UK or Germany after Belgium, those and only those assignments would keep me past my 20. The UK has always been a concern due to one Mad King George. No, not George III, the British monarch afflicted with porphyria who lost the "Colonies," but a West Highlander White Terrier by that name who we've had for over seven years now. "George" is like our third child, and we cannot imagine not having him as part of the family. Luckily, we had him chipped when we came to Belgium, so we would be able to take him to the UK without the quarantine. There is more about the quarantine here, but unfortunately it is not good news. That web site also has some links to quarantine facilities. However, the bottom line is, "under the UK Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order of 1974 (amended) all domestic cats, dogs and mammals coming into the UK must be quarantined for six months. The only exemptions to this regulation are for pets coming from the Republic of Ireland, for commercially traded dogs and cats from the European Union, and for dogs and cats entering under the PETS programme." Quarantine information for pets that do not qualify for the PETS program can be found here. One more bit of bad news, to the best of my knowledge, the costs of quarantine are not reimbursable, and from what I understand not cheap either. Lastly, having brought George over to Europe twice, the easiest way to do it is to bring them when you travel. No, we didn't do it that way (sts), we shipped him seperately both times and it was a royal PITA! Both German and Belgian imports are costly and logistical nightmares. However, when we returned to the States we handcarried and checked him in almost like a piece of luggage. As long as you have all the health certificates (which the base vet can help you with), it is a piece of cake. Probably more than anyone cared to know but maybe it may help one day... Cheers! M2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AirGuardian Posted April 12, 2004 Share Posted April 12, 2004 But once again, you have proved to be a wealth of knowledge, or shall I say pillar of knowledge - I see you with beer in hand and a bar under your elbow, you might be wearing a U.S. postal outfit at the corner of the bar. Whereas, I dare not take Cliff Claven's word for it - but I do trust yours! Thanks for the extra info, I'll guess I'll wait for changes in a few years hopefully (doubtful) if I pursue the Guard slot at USAFE or elsewhere in Europe! Later brotha of a different motha, and you drink from a better tap....needless to say! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RAFYankee Posted April 13, 2004 Share Posted April 13, 2004 Backseat, UPDATE!!!! The good news...the quarantine is NO LONGER in effect for properly documented pets from the US (as of Oct 2002). Under the PETS Passport scheme extended to the US in 2002, if you are willing to do some work you can bring your dogs over with NO six month quarrantine in the UK. Your pet must wait six months before entry to the UK, but they can now do this at home in the US with you running around doinig what ever your dogs do. I'm a RAF/USAF C-130 exchange dude, and we brought our dog over here no problem, possibly on the same airplane. Here's how it works... Your pet must be part of the PETS travel scheme implemented in Europe and extended to the US in Oct 2002. Basically, your pet must be micro-chipped with a European-readable chip (most stateside vets can handle this and most chips used today are already Euro-readable (AVID chips are the most common). Then your pet must be vaccinated for rabies and this documented (even if they just had a rabies shot, it must be redone...but this should not be a problem). A week or so later their blood is drawn and sent for testing/documentation to Ft Sam Houston (for US military members.) This is actually pretty easy to do and most military vets can send the blood away for you. Then you wait six months, and your pet is ready for shipping. While you're waiting, find a kennel in the UK to pick up your buddy at the airport in the UK when he/she arrives (you can't do it) and they will "quarrantine" the pet for a day or two for a BASIC health/records check (PETS can help you find one close to Mildenhall and it was nowhere near the nightmare you'd expect. The kennel was professional and easy to work with). You can then pick up the little nippers from the kennel and take 'em to their new home. NOTE: British Airways is (or was when we shipped our dog) the only approved airlines to carry pets from the US to the UK. BA may tell you that the kennel needs to be sealed by the their dept of agriculture, but this is NOT true under the PETS scheme. We had a little chat with BA about this the day we shipped our dog, but they eventually found the person who knew about PETS and they let her on the plane no prob. BOTTOM LINE: If you can start the process six months before you leave, you have the paperwork squared away (all paperwork MUST have the micro chip number on it), and you fly British Airways, your pet CAN come with you. You need to geet in touch with the PETS folks in the UK to reallly get the up-to-date info. Call +011 44 8702411710 (a UK number hence the UK counrty code of 44, and we're Zulu time plus one hour), or check out the web site www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/quarantine Hope this helps! RAFYankee [ 13. April 2004, 15:39: Message edited by: RAFYankee ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MLH Posted August 30, 2004 Share Posted August 30, 2004 I have read up on the PETS system so you can take animals overseas without the 6 mo quarantine. However, here in Austin, all I can seem to find is the AVID chip ($35), but not the AVID Eurochip. They can order it for me, but it's $150 for the chip. Has anyone had experience with this and do you know if the normal AVID chip is ok? Also, am I understanding correctly that the chip itself doesn't hold info on your animal's medical record, it just has in ID number? So when we go overseas, are we to bring a vet record to prove they've had rabiis shots and the like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beaver Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 I have my dog in Japan, and we didn't get the chip until after we got there. I don't really know what's on the chip. Probably just the ID. You have to bring all you pets shot records, and there is a limit on how recent your dog's rabies shot has to be. I don't know about the european requirements, but you didn't specify over which sea, so I hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MLH Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 Do you know which chip you got? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RAFYankee Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 MLH, You will need the "Euro" chip. Our dog had a US chip, so we had her chipped again with a Euro chip (it's a wonder she doesn't interfere with our TV reception). It's better then having your four-footed friend get all the to Europe and having them sent back 'cause they can't read the chip. And yes, the chip is just for identification. No records on it. I include a message I wrote to another guy on this board about the PETS program. I know you've read up on it, but just in case... The good news...the quarantine is NO LONGER in effect for properly documented pets from the US (as of Oct 2002). Under the PETS Passport scheme extended to the US in 2002, if you are willing to do some work you can bring your dogs over with NO six month quarrantine in the UK, possibly on the same airplane as you. Your pet must wait six months before entry to the UK, but they can now do this at home in the US with you running around doing what ever your dogs do. I'm a RAF/USAF C-130 exchange dude, and we brought our dog over here no problem. Here's how it works... Your pet must be part of the PETS travel scheme implemented in Europe and extended to the US in Oct 2002. Basically, your pet must be micro-chipped with a European-readable chip (most stateside vets can handle this and most chips used today are already Euro-readable (AVID chips are the most common). Then your pet must be vaccinated for rabies and this documented (even if they just had a rabies shot, it must be redone...but this should not be a problem). A week or so later their blood is drawn and sent for testing/documentation to Ft Sam Houston (for US military members.) This is actually pretty easy to do and most military vets can send the blood away for you. Then you wait six months, and your pet is ready for shipping. While you're waiting, find a kennel in the UK to pick up your buddy at the airport in the UK when he/she arrives (you can't do it) and they will "quarrantine" the pet for a day or two for a BASIC health/records check (PETS can help you find one close to Mildenhall and it was nowhere near the nightmare you'd expect. The kennel was professional and easy to work with). You can then pick up the little nippers from the kennel and take 'em to their new home. NOTE: British Airways is (or was when we shipped our dog) the only approved airlines to carry pets from the US to the UK. BA may tell you that the kennel needs to be sealed by the their dept of agriculture, but this is NOT true under the PETS scheme. We had a little chat with BA about this the day we shipped our dog, but they eventually found the person who knew about PETS and they let her on the plane no prob. BOTTOM LINE: If you can start the process six months before you leave, you have the paperwork squared away (all paperwork MUST have the micro chip number on it), and you fly British Airways, your pet CAN come with you. You need to geet in touch with the PETS folks in the UK to reallly get the up-to-date info. Call +011 44 8702411710 (a UK number hence the UK counrty code of 44, and we're Zulu time plus one hour), or check out the web site www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/quarantine Hope this helps! RAFYankee [ 31. August 2004, 04:43: Message edited by: RAFYankee ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M2 Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 We had both of our dogs chipped here in Belgium, and they both got the AVID chip. It does only hold an identification number, and you have to register your animal with PETrac (a member of the AVID group) in Norco, California. You can choose either a one-time registration fee of $40 for up to eight pets, or $15 for a single pet. There is a $6 information change charge, such as for changes of address, but they have special rates for military personnel. By the way, at the AVID site I noticed... "On the chip side, you can purchase AVID® microchips that can be read only by an AVID® scanner or you can purchase AVID® microchips (called EURO Chips) that can be read by our competitors' scanners also. The price of the chips is the same." (source) Hope this helps.... Cheers! M2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MLH Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 Yeah I read that and it does say on the site that the price of the chips are the same, but i guess bc the vet here has to order the Euro chip he doesnt have, they all want to charge me $150 for the chip......maybe I'll wait until I move to another city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zach braff Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 REVIVAL - Got a bud with orders to Lakenheath. He's got all the quarantine/vaccine info and is taking care of it, but is getting nowhere with TMO on the actual process of shipping the animal (cat) overseas. Anyone know what companies/airlines are best? Approximate cost? Thanks in advance. zb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uhhello Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 REVIVAL - Got a bud with orders to Lakenheath. He's got all the quarantine/vaccine info and is taking care of it, but is getting nowhere with TMO on the actual process of shipping the animal (cat) overseas. Anyone know what companies/airlines are best? Approximate cost? Thanks in advance. zb TMO won't help at all. Go to the UK PETS website. It has all the details he needs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeMamaSucka Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 (edited) REVIVAL - Got a bud with orders to Lakenheath. He's got all the quarantine/vaccine info and is taking care of it, but is getting nowhere with TMO on the actual process of shipping the animal (cat) overseas. Anyone know what companies/airlines are best? Approximate cost? Thanks in advance. zb zb, TMO is useless, I recommend calling the LK Airman & Family Readiness Center (or whatever it's called these days) and asking for the PETS expert. Since this process is such a pain in the arse, they've actually employed an expert at RAFL/RAFM. DSN #'s available (I'm TDY, so I don't have it on-hand, sorry) I think they've had this employee/SME for about 6 months or so.... Best airlines? I can't answer for sure b/c my info is outdated--but in 2007 it was only a choice between Continental and BA. Cost? Airliner cost can reach up to about $1,000 to ship a pet under this method (varies with size, and under PETS scheme, it only increases) We added up the total cost after a PCS in '07 to get our dog there w/out quarantine and it was about $3,000 total.....not easy, and not cheap. Add in that the gov't contract at the time was with American Airlines, who wasn't part of the PETS scheme and it included an interesting check-out/cabride/check-in in NYC in order to get our damn dog to the BA cargo hangar. Don't ignore the quarantine pick-up requirements either (not cheap, and not as easy as others have mentioned--in our case at least--they said they had to keep our dog for 6 months initially b/c our health certificate for the flight over was only a copy and not embossed......my wife started bawling, and they gave up the pooch) If your friend's fam loves their dog as much as my wife loves ours then $3k isn't too much, but they should know what they're getting into before they start the process. Caveat: This info is based on my experience which happened over 3 years ago.....I would check up on the websites provided above for more accurate info. Also, as a side note, we PCS'd back to the states a couple of months ago and the process couldn't have been easier.....get a health certificae from the base vet, ensure the temps you're flying your dog to aren't too high, and your GTG. Cheers! JMS Edit: Ensure your bro has all of his $hit in a sack.....saves ALL of his paperwork, and don't mess with the order or requirements dictated in the PETS website--anybody who knows Brits knows that they are sticklers for paperwork and bureacracy. Edited January 15, 2011 by JoeMamaSucka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uhhello Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 zb, TMO is useless, I recommend calling the LK Airman & Family Readiness Center (or whatever it's called these days) and asking for the PETS expert. Since this process is such a pain in the arse, they've actually employed an expert at RAFL/RAFM. DSN #'s available (I'm TDY, so I don't have it on-hand, sorry) I think they've had this employee/SME for about 6 months or so.... Best airlines? I can't answer for sure b/c my info is outdated--but in 2007 it was only a choice between Continental and BA. Cost? Airliner cost can reach up to about $1,000 to ship a pet under this method (varies with size, and under PETS scheme, it only increases) We added up the total cost after a PCS in '07 to get our dog there w/out quarantine and it was about $3,000 total.....not easy, and not cheap. Add in that the gov't contract at the time was with American Airlines, who wasn't part of the PETS scheme and it included an interesting check-out/cabride/check-in in NYC in order to get our damn dog to the BA cargo hangar. Don't ignore the quarantine pick-up requirements either (not cheap, and not as easy as others have mentioned--in our case at least--they said they had to keep our dog for 6 months initially b/c our health certificate for the flight over was only a copy and not embossed......my wife started bawling, and they gave up the pooch) If your friend's fam loves their dog as much as my wife loves ours then $3k isn't too much, but they should know what they're getting into before they start the process. Caveat: This info is based on my experience which happened over 3 years ago.....I would check up on the websites provided above for more accurate info. Also, as a side note, we PCS'd back to the states a couple of months ago and the process couldn't have been easier.....get a health certificae from the base vet, ensure the temps you're flying your dog to aren't too high, and your GTG. Cheers! JMS Edit: Ensure your bro has all of his $hit in a sack.....saves ALL of his paperwork, and don't mess with the order or requirements dictated in the PETS website--anybody who knows Brits knows that they are sticklers for paperwork and bureacracy. All good advice. Although, always double check whatever the supposed PETS base rep tells you. We found the guy back in 09 to be quite lacking in anything useful. Hopefully they have someone new in the slot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toro Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 Revival - this might get more expensive Shipping pets during PCS could cost nearly $4,000 under new rules Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cragspider Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 So does this only apply to people PCS'ing to and from the Pacific region? I love my dog just like everybody else but thats just nuts charging that much to ship your pet. Guess that United is just trying to make as much money as they can on the customer. Let's just see how this turns out for everybody out there. On another not did anybody have any major issues shipping their pets over to Germany recently ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schokie Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 It makes a big difference which airport you fly out of. The location will change the contract carrier. The same airline will also have different policies depending on which airport you fly out of. They have different pet facilities at different places which drive the changes. The rotator mentioned in the article may not be that helpful. The one that used to fly to EGUN had limited pet spots that booked up quick. My dogs are so large I had to ship them over here as cargo anyway, so this change makes little difference to me. However, it is quite frustrating that the DoD does nothing to help move pets overseas. I can see their point of view, but it doesn't help me calm down the wife who sees the dogs as furry children. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van1 Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 (edited) I took in a stray dog during a one year remote at NSA Souda Bay, Crete and ended up bringing him back when I PCS'd out in Aug 2008 using the rotator. He weighs in at about 28 lbs and it cost me $100 to fly him from LGSA to Norfolk. Nice thing is at the stops along the way at Sigonella and Lajes the animals were deplaned and the owners were allowed to take them out for walks. Kind of broke up the trip for him. Yes, I did have to make arrangements well in advance to get one of the pet spots. I wanted to avoid going commercial out of Athens at all costs. Cost me $200 to fly him on United from Norfolk to Omaha. Edited February 14, 2012 by Van1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcf5566 Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 We are PCSing back to the States in May from EGUN. American Airlines still let us book him as excess baggage. If we were going to try to ship him back with one of the Pet moving people, all the estimates were in the $3500-$4000 range. We're taking him back in April so he can hang out at my parents' farm for a month or so, so the cost ended up being about $800 for my wife's plane ticket and $150 for the dog. Still a decent sized chunk of money, but way better than the other options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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