Features and Newsletters - December 2003

Moving Domestic Animals To The UK: The PETS Scheme For USA and Canada

The UK has strict rules on animal imports in order to keep the country free of rabies. These rules have always made life difficult for transferees being relocated to the UK, and many people have endured the trauma of seeing their dog or cat complete an enforced six month stint in quarantine. A recent relaxation of the rules has introduced the Pet Travel Scheme, which allows visitors to the United Kingdom to travel with domestic cats and dogs, including guide and hearing assist dogs, without having to put them into quarantine for 6 months.

When the scheme was first introduced in February 2000 it applied only to selected European countries. Other countries have since joined the programme, including the USA and Canada, who were introduced in December 2002. This timely newsletter from The Relocation Bureau aims to update you on the scheme, and reviews its initial results with pet moves from the USA and Canada.

PETS Scheme Summary

There are four basic things you must arrange before you travel so that your pet complies with PETS travel scheme rules.

• Your pet must be microchipped

• Your pet must be vaccinated against rabies

• Your pet must have a blood test

• Your pet must be treated for ticks and tapeworm

How the Scheme Works

Approved Routes

The scheme only operates on approved air, sea and rail routes from participating countries.

At the moment the approved routes from the USA are from Sanford, Florida to London Gatwick with Britannia Cargo and, for accompanied animals only, from Cleveland, Houston and Newark to London Gatwick with Continental Airlines.

Virgin Atlantic Airways currently operate an approved route from Los Angeles into London Heathrow. They are expanding their list and will operate approved routes from Newark from September, Boston and Washington DC from October, Miami and New York(JFK) from November and San Francisco from December 2003. All flights go into London Heathrow. 

The charter aircraft company, TAG Aviation, have been approved for routes from Westchester County/White plains (New York), Teterboro (New Jersey), Islip (Long Island), and New York JFK all into London Heathrow. The planes and not just the ticket must be booked for these routes to be approved.

The approved routes from Canada are all into London Heathrow flying with Air Canada. These are from Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Halifax, St John's, Vancouver and Ottawa.

Transportation

There are strict rules and conditions that must be met regarding the transportation of your pet, before the animal can be allowed into the UK.

Professional Help

To assist with the organisation of relocating your pet to the UK, it may be advisable to engage the services of professional animal transporters, who can guide you through the paperwork and regulations. Most of the problems that arise are to do with the documentation, so it makes sense to employ the services of a company who are used to dealing with the rules and regulations of PETS.

The Independent Pet and Animal Transportation Association, IPATA, is an international trade association of animal handlers and pet moving providers who are dedicated to the care and welfare of pets during transportation. Their website, www.ipata.com, is a very useful source of companies that can help with all aspects of your pets journey to the UK, from booking flights and arranging vaccinations, to getting animals onto the flight and delivering them at the other end. As it says on their website "IPATA members are not the least expensive alternative, but specialise in providing services that are in the best interest of the family pet." 

How it Works in Practice

Britannia Airways operate the approved route from Florida Sanford to London Gatwick. Their  flights are scheduled to leave Sanford twice a week during the summer season, at around 5pm Tuesday and Thursday. Britannia cannot currently sell 'flights only' in the USA, so pet owners would have to arrange their own flights separately. Flights from Orlando International Airport arrive in London at about the same time as the Britannia flights.

Easipet work in conjunction with Britannia and ensures that the PETS certificate and all pre flight requirements are in order. As part of the Ladyhaye International Pet Travel Agent they can make all the arrangements from booking the flight to delivering your pet to your destination address.

"Making Life Easier"

Easipet can also arrange the purchase and delivery of the correct size animal container. As part of their service they ask that the client fax a coy of the PETS certificate to them prior totravel, so that they can make absolutely sure that everything is in order.

Nigel Hurst from Easipet says" We're employed to make life easier for the pet owner and to help them find their way through the paperwork." 

The service costs £675 for a dog and £610 for a cat, with reduced rates for subsequent animals. This price includes the flight, all paperwork checks and customs clearance.

Easipet works with a USA vet close to the airport who carries out all the final documentation checks as well as scanning the microchip, and making sure that the container is the correct size.  This is where you should take your pet on the day of travel. In the unlikely instance that the pet container is the wrong size, there is a pet store just down the road where you will be able to purchase a new one if necessary.

Prior to take off, the animals are kept in their containers in air conditioned facilities, and are taken to the aircraft about 30 minutes before departure. Before they travel, a customs or immigration officer will apply an official seal to the container so that it cannot be opened without breaking the seal. The seal number is noted on the certificate for tick and tapeworm treatment, and you will probably be charged for this. If at any time during the journey the seal has to be broken, a new seal must be attached by a government official from the country in which the seal was broken. The official has to certify in writing on the animal's documentation that the animal did not come into contact with any other animals. The number of the new seal must also be recorded on the documentation.

Although some domestic flights allow pets to travel as hand luggage, your pet will have to travel as cargo in the hold for the journey from the mainland to the UK. Airlines have to comply with International Air Transport Association standards for the welfare of animals during the flight. This means that the animal must travel in a heated and ventilated compartment with enough food and water necessary for the journey. 

Your pet must also travel in a container that is the right size and which must comply with IATA standards. When you book the flight with the airline they will arrange for the container to be delivered to your home. The Air Transport Association of America recommends that your pet become as familiar as possible with its container. They recommend that you leave the container open in the house with an article of clothing in it, so that your pet can go in and out of it at will, and therefore become as comfortable as they can with it.

Sedation

The pre conditioning of your pet to its travel kennel is preferable to sedation. Deaths from over sedation are more common than any other cause during long haul transportation. The effects of sedation during increased altitude and aircraft pressure are variable and cannot be predicted for each breed or individual. Sedation also prevents the animal from bracing itself during any movement of the container, and thereby may lead to injury.  

Although some animals may become excitable when being handled, they generally settle down once they are in their container. In the darkened hold, animals tend to become quieter or even rest whilst they are being transported. Many owners report that their pets were quite relaxed when they collected them in the destination country.

Arrival

The Britannia flight from Sanford takes about eight and a half hours direct to London Gatwick and regularly transport pets. They recommend that the sooner you can book your pet onto a flight, the better, as advanced bookings are following an upward trend. As of July 2003,  bookings are up 25% on last year. 

Charles Munn of Britannia Airways is pleased with the way things are going. He says "Britannia Airways has had considerable success with the carriage of live animals since it was introduced as a product in 2002. I put this success down to our partnership with approved Kennels and our focus on animal welfare before any other consideration."

Upon arrival at London Gatwick the animals are delivered to the Animal Reception Centre at the cargo village, about 10 minutes from the passenger terminal. Here the animals are released on their own into a bigger cage that will allow them to have more freedom of movement. The import agent can then carry out all the documentation checks and scan the microchip. 

Any pet entering the UK from outside the European Community will be required to complete customs formalities. The pet transport company or airline will process these checks for you but will normally charge you for this service. You may wish to check that this is included in their total costs. Once the import checks and custom clearance have been confirmed as successful, the owner can collect their pet immediately, all in all about 90 minutes after landing. The animal can stay in the Animal Reception Centre for longer if necessary, but costs normally only cover the first two hours.

If the pets checks fail, every effort is made to solve the immediate problem. It is normally a paperwork error as all arrangements are scrutinised by the kennels before departure. Britannia report that so far no animal has had to stay in local kennels, but that any problems have been sorted out the same day. If, however, it was not possible to sort the problem out immediately, your pet would have to go into quarantine for a few days. 

Using an Unapproved Route

If you do not wish to use one of the approved routes then it is possible for your pet to spend just a few days in quarantine. If your pet had travelled to the UK by a route that had not been approved, but all other PETS requirements had been met, it would have to be quarantined with a view to early release. In this case you would also require an import licence. It is illegal to transport a pet into the UK unless it has either full compliance with PETS or an import licence. 

If you wish to use an unapproved route, but have otherwise completed all the PETS scheme requirements, your pet will have to go into quarantine for a few days. It will be released once the authorities have been satisfied that all other aspects of PETS have been adhered to.  

Quarantine premises are all privately owned and costs are the responsibility of the pet owner. If you know that your animal is going to be quarantined, you need to investigate the costs and location of quarantine premises prior to travel. Contact details of quarantine premises are available on the DEFRA website, www.defra.gov.uk  

You need to choose and book your pet into quarantine facilities in advance, and reserve time with a carrying agent. Most quarantine facilities can also provide the services of an approvedcarrying agent who will collect your pet from the airport and transport it to the kennels. You can visit your pet at The Animal Reception Centre at the airport after landing, before it is taken to the quarantine premises.

Import Licence

You will also need an import licence if your pet has to go into quarantine for any length of time, and this needs to be organised before you travel. The quarantine premises can fill in the application form for you and submit it to the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs. DEFRA will check your booking with the quarantine premises and then process the application form. They try to issue the import licence within 5 working days which they send to the carrying agent you have chosen. They then send you a boarding document which confirms the licence number, and is written evidence that the airline will need to see before they can allow your pet entry to the UK.

From Airport to Kennels

The IPATA website has a list of carriers in the UK that are members and gives their contact details. They will collect your pet from the airport and take them straight to the kennels. 

Air Pets Oceanic can collect your pet from Heathrow, transport it to Willowslea Farm Kennels nearby, complete all the customs and paperwork clearance and board your pet for the required time. If all the PETS documentation is in order, your pet can be released after just three days. 

The cost for this service is currently £500 for a dog and £490 for a cat and includes the customs and paperwork clearance that is involved. Air Pets Oceanic can also transport your pet to its final destination. 

Future Developments

Continental Airlines report an increase in their transportation of animals since their participation in PETS, from 3-4 animals a month to 3-4 a week. As with all new procedures there have been teething problems with the scheme, mainly regarding documentation and customs clearance; but if conditions are favourable, Continental will consider applying for more approved routes.

A spokesperson from British Airways said, 'British Airways are considering their participation in the scheme at this time. As you can appreciate, the aviation industry is not in a healthy position at the moment. The PETS scheme is a very ambitious scheme and takes a lot of money and organisation to participate in it. It requires scanning machines and extra, trained, personnel to administer it. At the moment British Airways has no plans to apply for an approved route in the near future.' 

Links

The author of this newsletter is Sally Tossell, one of our Relocation Counsellors. You can contact her by email to: info@reloburo.com. The Relocation Bureau is the UK's premier international relocation specialist. Every year we help hundreds of families with their relocation. They don't just have cats and dogs - we also help to move horses, and many other pets!!

This newsletter is one of a series of periodic mailings to HR and relocation professionals worldwide. Your contact details are confidential and will not be disclosed to any third party.
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