Hello, I know that there is already another thread about exporting pets, but I have some specific questions.
Since we have just determined that we will be moving to England, I have started preparing the cat to get ready, using the DEFRA PETS travel scheme. She was vaccinated against rabies ages ago, but I had her chipped and then revaccinated over a week ago. Now I am ready to get the blood sample needed, and it’s turning out to be considerably harder than I thought.
A blood sample needst o be taken to show that the vaccine worked, but there aren’t any DEFRA approved labs in TW, so I need to send the sample to Japan. I went to the animal hospital near Tai Da University today, and the vet there told me that I needed to apply for permission to have the blood sample serum sent to Japan at the Dept of Agriculture (or something, he wasn’t totally clear).
After obtaining permission and getting the blood sample at the vet’s, he told me that I would then need to contact Fedex myself about the shipping, and bring the blood sample to the airport myself where Fedex would pick it up, package it, and send it off to Japan.
It seems a little too complicated- has anyone else done this? Please help me out with specific vet/lab recommendations if you have, I would really appreciate it! I am leaving in June, so I already have to leave her with a sitter until my 6 month wait is up- I want to make it as short a wait as possible!
I’m guessing you are a wealthy man. From my experiences, or should I say a colleague, its rather expensive. He got married and his wife dearly loved their pet rabbit. As such, investigations into the matter resulted in the fact that he would have to have the rabbit imprisoned for 6 months once it reached the UK. (I can’t think of the proper term because I’ve lost ~30% of my English on this island due to lack of use and excessive intoxication). (ah yes… Quarantine)
The quarantine of the rabbit and the cost of its travel ended up being ~$5000 Pounds. So I hope you’ve looked into the situation. For us less sentimental folk, plans were developed to seek an equivalent rabbit already within the UK but alas he forked over the cash and its become one of those timeless expat stories.
Actually, I am a just-doing-okay woman. I am arranging for the cat to stay here while I’m gone, and then having her shipped to me a few months down the road, to avoid the whole quarantine thing. You’re right about the expense of boarding- it runs in at about 175 pounds/month, plus various other hidden costs.
Thank you for the vet’s phone number, having someone who speaks English and has done this before would be a dream!
Straydog, when you say that no quarantine is required now that Taiwan is a PETS country, does that mean I don’t have to wait 6 months after her blood test? I am leaving in a few months, but I’m keeping her here to finish out her 6 months waiting period. (We didn’t know we’d be moving to the UK until recently).
If that’s true- YAY!! BTW, I called your vet, and he seems to really be familiar with the PETS scheme and what I need to do- thank you so much!
Unfortunately, yes, you still have to ‘live out’ the quarantine period in the country of origin or in another that’s part of the scheme; still, not having to cage our pets for 6 month is a blessing.
I’m very gald to see this thread on account of the fact that I am about to do the exact same thing to get my two girls (cats) up and running on the PETS scheme… after my last tip to Europe with the wife we’ve decided that London’s calling at lot louder than Taichung these days, so as soon as the 6 month waiting period is over, we’re outta here…
Easier said than done considering I’m still at the square before square 1… My predicament is a little more complicated perhaps, in that I’m not in Taipei, but I would assume I could at aleast call up your man Stray Dog and ask if there’s any way I could drive the samples up to him for processing and shipment to Belgium you say?..
My question list sort of looks like this:
How can I be sure the chips will be compatible with the UK system?
Can the cats be chipped and re-innoculated at my local vet on the same day?
Are there special requirements or documentation required for the type of chip or type of innoculation?
Are there any special requirements regarding what vet can take the blood samples and/or insert the chips?
Do I have to apply for permission from the Dept. of Agriculture myself or can Stary Dog’s vet handle that?
Why Belgium, won’t the sample be too old to be useable by the time it gets there?
Should I be asking the people at UK PETS scheme and the TW Argi. Dept. these questions instead of hassling you nice people?
The DEFRA website lists their specific microchip brands, so I guess you could bring the list to the vet to ensure that they were compatible. My friend brought her cat already, and had no problems with the microchip.
You can get the microchip inserted and your cat revaccinated on the same visit. It takes about 5 minutes. You’re supposed to wait 4 weeks after the vaccination to take the blood sample, but I’m in a time crunch, and this is TW, so the doctor helped me out with the paperwork.
Straydog’s doctor is in Tienmu, and does everything for you for 6000nt. He takes the blood, sends it off, and deals with the dept of agriculture. Belgium is chosen because it’s cheaper and doesn’t require a special collection container. When the test results come in, he calls you up to collect them.
Straydog- THANK YOU so much for the recommendation- all of a sudden, everything became a whole lot easier.
Previous poster- I am having trouble figuring out exactly what needs to be done regarding the dept of agriculture- do you have any info on that? (I know I need to bring her in for a visit before she goes, but when? where? any help would be appreciated!)
Thanks a million for the info pattysprout, much appreciated… Still unsure of how to proceed being nowhere near Tianmu, but I’ll have to figure that one out…
No specific knowledge that I can share regarding the DofA but as I understand the info I’ve been able to weed out from the half cocked heresay that is all anyone in Taichung can provide me, it seems the DOfA needs to give permission for the blood sample to be sent overseas innitially and then at the airport some DofA official needs to sign the cat out of the country or something suchlike once the time comes to fly…
Flying is another whole mystery wrapped in an enigma since I would guess only Eva or (god forbid) China Air would have direct Taipei - London flights… the extra stress of more take offs and landings, switching planes etc. in HKG is out of the question IMO… BUT the PETS website lists approved routes and carriers that pets must arrive on and there are “no approved routes” for Taiwan… Whether this mean they have to stop over in one of the approved cities, then transit on to London on an approved route I don’t know at this stage… :s
I can’t find a list of acceptable brands. The helpline couldn’t give any more information either. Only this: “microchips meeting specifications 11784 or Annex A of ISO Standard 11785 are generally used”… otherwise buy your own scanner.
I will contact AT’s vet tomorrow, but just wondering if anyone knows what brands are accepted.
If I can use Trovan (has 10 numbers) , it will save me at least 4 hours of slogging the cats on public transit, or about $800 in taxis.
"[i]A minimum of six months before traveling, have your veterinarian microchip your pet with an ISO (International Standards Organization) compliant microchip that meets ISO Standards 11784/11785. This is a 15 digit non-encrypted microchip and is different than the microchips commonly available in the US and Canada. If your pet has a non-ISO microchip, then you need to carry your own scanner. If the microchip cannot be read then the pet will not be allowed to enter England. England no longer accepts tattoos.
Ask your vet to test that the microchip works before and after it has been fitted and each time your animal visits the vet.[/i]"
Wow , it was so easy to bring my two cats to the USA by comparison. The to do list was very small and easy. And no quarantine in the USA for cats and dogs from TAiwan (which is not listed as a rabies prevalent country) Cost of the shots were bout 1000nt each cat and transport by EVA to SF was 6000nt each cat. EVA allows you to bring one cat in the cabin with you ( I didnt as I had two cats, both of whom went into the special animal holding area and I didnt have access to them while in the air). If you are only bringing one cat then you can take her/him into the cabin with you on EVA. That is one person , one cat. If you have two travelling you can each bring a cat.
EVA does one stop service from Taipei Taoyuan to London , stopping for an hour in Bangkok and then same plane onward to London. China Airlines doesnt fly to London so you are safe
… so no one knows what brands are ISO 11784 or Annex A of ISO standard 1178 compliant?
DEFRA (who you’d think would know) suggested I contact the manufacturers (wtf?) and buy a scanner. I guess I’ll have to go up North to AT’s vet in TienMu. Not even past the gate and already mired in…
When I called DEFRA, they said their scanners read 99 percent of all microchips, but I still didn’t want to risk losing my animals, so I ended up getting the ISO chips. Animals Taiwan sells them for N$350 each.
Some interesting info on saving money when shipping animals to England:
DEFRA insists on only a select few air carriers for importing pets to the UK using the PETS scheme, and those carriers exploit your being a captive market by charging you much more than they should. You can avoid this by taking another cheaper carrier into a nearby country (France, maybe) and flying or ferrying your pets in from there.
Also, you can fly any carrier into quarantine. Simply apply for early release the moment they arrive, showing you have fulfilled all the other PETS criteria.
I am arranging for the cat to stay here while I’m gone, and then having her shipped to me a few months down the road, to avoid the whole quarantine thing. You’re right about the expense of boarding- it runs in at about 175 pounds/month, plus various other hidden costs.
… so no one knows what brands are ISO 11784 or Annex A of ISO standard 1178 compliant?