Traveling with your dog to the UK from another country is a challenge. It definitely isn’t as easy to pack up your bags and take off with your dog as it is if you were by yourself, but as I always say, taking them along is worth it!
Of course, I always advise pet owners to know their own dog and see if traveling is right for them.
If your dog is fit and healthy, and you plan to do a long term or even permanent stay in the UK, then you might be thinking about starting the process of moving with your dog.
But before you do, be aware of these common mistakes! No matter where you come from, these are easy to make.
Without further ado, here are three mistakes dog owners make when taking their dog to the UK.
- Thinking that quarantines are automatic.
A common misconception when planning the trip to the UK is that quarantines are automatically mandatory for your dog once you come into the country. This stems from previous rules which required your dog to stay in quarantine for six months, but have since been relaxed, provided your dog is vaccinated against rabies. If they are properly vaccinated before they travel to the UK and it remains valid and recorded in their health certificate or pet passport, then they can enter without quarantine. However, failure to vaccinate your dog properly could lead to them being put into a quarantine for up to four months or refused entry. Long story short: make sure your dog is up to date on their rabies vaccination before traveling.
- Not timing the tapeworm treatment correctly.
One of the most fundamental and required treatments before entering the UK is the tapeworm treatment. While making sure that you get the correct and approved treatment is necessary, it’s easy to get the window of validity wrong. For example, I have managed to poorly time the tapeworm treatment while on a return ferry to the UK. Years ago, Rocky got the tapeworm treatment in the Netherlands in the late morning of the day of travel and I thought it would be valid to enter the UK as we would be arriving next day early morning (slightly less than 24 hours), but it would not be valid as the official UK government rules state clearly that: your dog’s treatment must be given no less than 24 hours before you enter the UK and no more than five days (120 hours) before you enter Great Britain. So we were denied boarding and had to wait another day!
Make sure to ask your vet if you are confused about the validity window. The ferry operator will also confirm whether the treatment window is valid.
- Not getting the right document.
The document that you use to enter the UK may be different depending on where you are coming from.
If you are coming from an EU country, then you can use an official EU pet passport provided that all treatments remain valid. If your country issues pet passports but is not part of the EU or EU-associated countries (list is here: https://www.gov.uk/bring-pet-to-great-britain/pet-passport) then the UK will not accept your pet passport.
If you are from outside the EU, you may need a Great Britain Pet Health Certificate instead. Your vet can complete this for you. As per official UK guidance, this GB Pet Health Certificate has to be signed, stamped and dated by an official veterinarian who has authority from their government to issue it.
If your dog had been issued with a Great Britain pet passport before 1 January 2021, then they could also use this document to enter the UK.
Furthermore, if you and your dog are travelling from Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, then they will not need a pet passport or health certificate to enter Great Britain.
Make sure you don’t make these three mistakes. If you plan to move to the UK with your dog, I have written a guide that covers everything you will need and it can be found here.
Until the next adventure!
