Moving abroad and taking your Pet
Buying a property for you and your Pet
When buying a property with ‘Fido’ or ‘Fifi’ in mind pay close consideration to the surrounding area of the property for sale. While you may be keen to buy a property as it is situated in a cultural and historic area your dog will simply be happy in a place as long as it near a beach, woodland or park where it can exercise and have fun. Cats are very territorial so are unlikely to appreciate being relocated from their home, however transition to a new property maybe easier for a house cat. Our advice is to keep a close eye on your pet in the early weeks & months and pay them more attention than usual to help them fit in with their new surroundings. Caged animals such as hamsters, rabbits or canaries can be relocated fairly easily, most will often not even know that they have been moved.
Taking your Pet abroad
If you’re a pet owner and you have plans to move and take your pet abroad, the Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) may allow you to avoid long quarantine periods. For an up to date list of the countries that have joined the pet travel scheme check the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs website. To be eligible, your cat or dog must meet the requirements of the scheme and they must travel via certain designated areas, rail and air routes. For further help with taking your pet abroad, the PETS scheme & quarantine please write to the address below sending your postal address & daytime telephone number or call a DEFRA advisor on the help line.
Pet Travel Scheme Helpline
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Area 201
1a Page Street
London SW1P 4PQ
Tel: +44 (0)870 241 1710
Email: pets.helpline@defra.gsi.gov.uk
Quarantine Section
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Area 208, 1a Page Street
London SW1P 4PQ
Tel: +44 (0)20 7904 6214
Fax: +44 (0)20 7904 6834
E-mail: quarantine@defra.gsi.gov.uk
Travelling abroad with your Pet
The RSPCA believes that on straight welfare grounds, the potential for animals to experience stress by taking them on an aircraft is high. They further believe that when air transport is essential to take your pet abroad it must follow International Air Transport Association (IATA) rules. However the RSPCA recommends that pets only travel by air when it is absolutely essential. It would be better for the welfare of your pet if flight travel can be avoided and the animal can be transported by less stressful means such as Eurotunnel. Check our route planner and buy ferry or Eurotunnel tickets by clicking these links.
The DEFRA website can also help you plan to take your pet abroad as it provides advice on how to look after your pet during a trip, guidance on the health and welfare of your pet abroad and useful French/German/Italian/Spanish phrases relating to pet care that you may need.
For example the Spanish phrase for: My cat/dog has been vaccinated against rabies and successfully blood tested is:
”Mi gato/perro ha sido vacunado contra la rabia y se le ha realizado con éxito el análisis sanguíneo”
Pets in cars
The RSPCA recommends that dogs travelling in cars should wear harnesses, which are then attached to a seat belt. The harnesses are specifically manufactured and can be bought from most pet shops. Cats and other small animals should be put into a carrier box or cage, which should also be fastened to the car, preferably by a seat belt.
There are two main reasons:
1). Animal safety – if animals are strapped into cars appropriately then it stops them being propelled forward if there is an accident or the driver has to break sharply, which in turn could lead to them being thrown through the windscreen.
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2). Particularly with cats and dogs, if they are left loose in a car they can provide a distraction to the driver, for example by getting into the footwell area. This also can potentially lead to accidents.
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When travelling with your Pet abroad or in the UK make sure that they are insured, you can take out pet insurance through the RSPCA and also ensure support for the RSPCA by visiting their website: www.rspca.org.uk.
Further guidance on travelling with your pet, including advice on taking your pet on holiday and a selection of pet friendly holiday homes can be found on our partner site DaltonsHolidays.com.
 Daltons recommends you visit PetOwnersOnline.com for advice, news and features on all aspects of pet ownership. There is also a lively discussion forum where you can swap ideas with other pet owners.
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