Cats to UK - complicated....

Me and my wife are moving back to the UK soon (ie, in about 3 weeks), and, I guess it's my own fault, but we didn't look into what was involved in bringing my two cats, who came over from the UK with me 7 months ago, back with us. And the thought that we have to be parted from them for six months is heartbreaking.

When I came over, I didn't have sufficient time to get the full pet passport done, but the cats had their rabies jabs, as well as their boosters for everything else. I needed to get all this done so they could get their "fitness to fly" forms. My thought is this - since they had their jabs over 6 months ago, and I have the paperwork to prove it, do you think it would be possible to get the blood test done now and get their paperwork based on this, if a vet over here in the US would liaise with my old vet back in the UK? Or might my old vet back in the UK be able to issue the pet passport "retroactively" if they received the proper blood test results from a vet back over here?

Failing that, what is everyone's experiences with quarantine? If they can't be with us, I like the idea that we might be able to visit them. What are the costs involved, and can anyone recommend a good facility south of London?

Thanking you all in advance.

Do your cats have their microchips?  You HAVE to wait six months after the blood test.  There is no way around it.  Sorry.

I'd try calling the Pets Helpline.  I emailed them twice and they seem pretty good with getting you information. 

Did you have them microchipped before the rabies jab?  That seems to be the most important thing - microchip first.

Good luck with everything.

**********************************************

PETS helpline

Telephone: +44 (0)870 241 1710

(Monday to Friday - 8.30am to 5pm UK time)

Fax: +44 (0) 1245 458749

Email: pets.helpline@defra.gsi.gov.uk (please enclose your postal address and a day time telephone number)

Because your cats originally came from the Uk you might be in a different position than most of us....you'll have to check into that. But, the most consistent advice I've received about quarantine is DON'T! The facilities are not the best, it's expensive and many animals have sickened and died in quarantine. My personal opinion is that if my cats can't be with me, I'd rather they be with someone in a private home than in an impersonal kennel situation. Good luck because there don't seem to be any shortcuts through the system.

Yes, dont do quarantine.

We were quoted at £5 per cat per day for the whole six months. We have two cats and they need special food as well for health reasons which bumped the price up even more...

So we settled for putting them in a very nice set of kennels back in the US until they were cleared for PETS travel, and they came straight to us, delivered to our door after that period was over........and the kennels cost us $450 for all that time, the price difference is astounding.

Just curious, Shugga, how did they come straight to you? Did you have a friend helping to get him "ticked and wormed" and to get him to the airport? We're still not certain whether our cat will have all the things necessary to travel with us, but I hate to make someone else take care of all those end details.

They came straight to us as we used Airborne Animals Inc. who took care of everything stateside for us. For an extra fee, their partners in the UK will deal with the cats when they arrive in the UK, sorting all the paperwork and then driving them to your house.

The extra fee was minimal really, it would have costed us the same amount in fuel to go down there ourselves.

www.airborneanimals.com is the website addy for them.

Sorry for the late reply.

We're using World wide Animal Transport. The DEFRA vet recommended them. Apparantly they can track your pet whereever it is. My kitties are supposed to fly on the same plane as us.
We're taking them from Vancouver,BC to Heathrow. There was no direct flight from Seattle.

Here's a question just slightly off subject: Has anyone ever had to reschedule their pet's flight due to too high or too low termperatures? When I talked to the person at Northwest Airlines she said our cat can't fly if it's hotter than 85 degrees. We're planning on flying out on the 3rd week of June and I'd say higher than 85 degrees is a pretty strong possibility! But then the flight would be at night. Next question: would it be based on the temp. at the time of flight? Has anyone come across this?

I flew northwest and on the sheet provided by them for the vet to sign "Certificate of Acclimation for xxx weather condition"  it states if the outside air temperature is that at any point during the planned routing.  I assumed that to mean at anytime during the loading of the plane and takeoff. If I had any questions I often called northwest's toll free number and they were always quite helpful in that area! I see from your post that you did talk to them. Did they not explain that statement? It's worth a call again. You may get a different operator and might be more helpful.  I flew mid december and almost had the reverse problem!  Where are you flying from airmom? I would definately suggest a night flight if possible.  I always checked the air temp at the time of the flight.

airmom-  when I spoke with Air Canada (that's the airline we're using) I asked about the temperature thing, as we're leaving on June 19th. They said it's the temp of where the plane is taking off from, as you never know how long you'll actually sit on the runway before taking off. We're further north, so they did not seem to think it would be a problem.  

But that's a tough one. Suppose you can either hope for a cool day and chance it, or rebook.  Though if you're flying at night, it may not be a problem.

We flew our cat (9 years ago) from Vancouver to San Diego, in August and we did run across temperature issues.  We ended up putting her on a really early morning flight and that satisfied the issues.  We had no problems after that. 

Thanks, that's all helpful to know. I think I will call Northwest to get more info. Since I last posted my husband has started pushing for flying British Airways. They are much cheaper at the moment, at least on this route. Problem is, they don't fly pets out of Detroit. They do fly pets out of Chicago. Now how does that work? We would have to have the cat fly separately to Chicago and then transfer onto the flight to Heathrow? And what happens if they are two separate airlines? And that would put the cat's departure earlier, which would mean higher temperatures... This just gets more and more complicated. I'm feeling sick about it.

Airmom - I would seriously consider driving the kitties to Chicago, rather than having them fly connecting flights. Vets seems to recommend that where you can avoid flying them, do so. 

The airline stats scare me. Every airline that flies animals now has to report their stats on "losses" and "deaths" (which by the way - what are "losses". I mean, how to they lose them??)  Most seem to be about 2-5 a year. 
You could also use an Animal Transport company, who could take care of things for you. Things such as booking, figuring out the best route, getting your pet to the terminal, etc. etc.

I had the same concerns about flying my cat the first time I did it, so I called up a pilot friend of mine who got his start in the baggage handling end of things.  He said that they take animal passengers very seriously and the baggage hold is indeed heated and pressurised.  They have a special hold for animals.  If you are worried about your crate coming open and the animal getting out, use zip ties to close it up.  If they break the zips, then they will generally replace them.  Also put a sign on the crate, saying if you break the zip, then replace it.  I always attach a zip-lock bag to my crate with a leash (I put a harness on the cat) so if they need to access her directly, then they have a means to keep a hold of her.  you can put replacement zip ties in the zip lock bag as well (I also put a card with my full contact information in it also).  Also, put a tag on the harness/collar with his/her name and your contact number. 

I have flown this cat all over everywhere and i've never run into problems.  I have grown to trust the airlines and they have always taken good care of my kitty.