As you may be aware, from January 1st 2012 the UK loses its rabies free status. This is the result of an EU ruling to abolish the UK’s current practice of having a 6 month rabies quarantine and blood testing in order to bring us in line with the rest of Europe. As a result of this, New Zealand have now implemented new procedures which mean that as of January the 1st any animals that are to be shipped there must have had a rabies jab and had a blood test following a 30 day waiting period. They may then be shipped to New Zealand 90 days after this test has been administered, subject to their passing the test. Australia has also implemented the same requirement for rabies vacinating and testing. Pets may then be shipped to Australia 150 days after this test has been administered, subject to their passing the test. A final 30 days of the mandated 180 day waiting period may be spent in Australian quarantine.
The pet passport scheme (pets) is used for animals travelling between the UK and approved countries. Whilst your pets can usually leave from most UK airports, only Doncaster, Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester are authorized to accept pets back into the country.
We would recommend you contact DEFRA on 0870 2411710 or see their website for up to date information on PETS, information on this site is a guide only, and should not be relied up on to be correct at the time of viewing. However, as a general guideline, the Pet Passports issued in the UK can be summarized as follows
You will need to check with your vet if they are DEFRA approved and if so, they should hold a supply of PETS Passports issued to them by DEFRA.
The next step is to have your pet microchipped, followed by the rabies vaccination.
Your vet should then complete the Passport document and should you wish you can also have a photograph of your pet inserted in the Passport (completely optional!), and if required, you should take a photograph with you to your vet to attach to the Passport. The photograph should be no bigger than 6 cms wide and 8 cms tall and should be clear and should feature only your pet. (Family pictures would look great but aren't allowed!)
At this point the passport becomes effective for pets departing from the UK however the following must be completed in order for the passport to be used for pets arriving in the UK.
Once sufficient time has elapsed following the rabies vaccination (DEFRA advise is that the optimum time for this is 30 days after the rabies injection) your vet should do a blood test to confirm that a sufficiently high level of rabies anti-bodies are present. Should your pet fail this blood test, then your vet will have to re-vaccinate and test once again. This blood test is a requirement for re-entry into the UK but if your pet will not be returning to the UK, the test may not need to be done .Therefore if you feel that at any point in the future you may wish your pet to return to the UK, it would be best to keep the rabies injections up to date.
Once your pet has a positive blood test result you will only be allowed to bring it back into the UK six months after the date of the blood test and providing you have kept up to date with your pets injections and boosters, you are free to bring your pets back into the UK from approved countries as and when required.
Finally, once overseas and preparing to return to the UK, your pet must also be treated for ticks and parasites by a qualified vet in the country of departure who must record this information in the Passport not less than 24 hours and not more than 48 hours before entry into the UK.
Jets4Pets will assist you at all stages of your pets visits to your chosen veterinary practice to ensure that your travel plans are carried out with the utmost of ease and simplicity.
Pet Travel Scheme (PETS)
