Dog - Travelling by Ferry

Ace1

We are planning a holiday in France and hope to bring our dog with us. Does anyone have experience of doing this on the Rosslare to Cherbourg route ? We have the pet passport.

Thanks for any comments.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Ace1 wrote: »

We are planning a holiday in France and hope to bring our dog with us. Does anyone have experience of doing this on the Rosslare to Cherbourg route ? We have the pet passport.

Thanks for any comments.

You might be better off asking that question over on petsireland

www.petsireland.invisionzone.com

Some of the people there are involved in re-homing dogs oversea's.

kerrysgold

No, I don't have experience of doing this, but I think the dog(s) have to stay in the car.....again, I'm not 100% sure on this.

sillymoo

I found this on the irish ferries website its very informative

http://www.irishferries.com/pets/index.shtml

Hope you dog is brushing up on his french :cool:

tulipandthistle

Hi!

My friends travelled with their French Bulldog this way just after Christmas.

They were impressed this time, the cages are in a special room which they got to visit 6 times during the trip. They used to be just in cages on the car deck, very cold and stank of fuel.

Bon Voyage;)

Cori2204

Ace1 wrote: »

We are planning a holiday in France and hope to bring our dog with us. Does anyone have experience of doing this on the Rosslare to Cherbourg route ? We have the pet passport.

Thanks for any comments.

I want to do the same but now i am wondering if my dog needs the blood test as he is irish and he got the vacciantions against rabies already. I thought we would only need the blood test when we want to travel in the UK or Ireland. However we want to leave the country for good and I cant find anything that says anything about leaving ireland with a dog...

Hope someone can help.

Thanks Corinna

Mrs.T

Cori2204 wrote: »

I want to do the same but now i am wondering if my dog needs the blood test as he is irish and he got the vacciantions against rabies already. I thought we would only need the blood test when we want to travel in the UK or Ireland. However we want to leave the country for good and I cant find anything that says anything about leaving ireland with a dog...

Hope someone can help.

Thanks Corinna

as far as I know you dont need a test to go out of Ireland or the UK. We have never been checked on the way out anyway. You only have to worry about the country your traveling to. Scandinavian counties have very strict rules too.

olaola

Brittany Ferries have better facilities for your dog if you haven't booked already! They have a dedicated walking area and you can visit them as much as you want. I haven't seen the kennels on the new Irish Ferries vessel though!

LisaO

Facilities for dogs on Brittanny Ferries Pont Aven are superb but I suspect if you are travelling via Cherbourg it is with Irish Ferries on the Oscar Wilde? Had a quick look at the kennels when we used to boat last year. Look very good - are located in a secure & separate area on car deck level & huge improvement on the appalling kennels they used to offer on the UK routes. AFAIK the ferry staff will already know you are travelling with a dog from their booking system, so will advise you when you arrive at port what you need to do, where to go, etc. Think you may also be required to check in a bit earlier than other passengers.

Enjoy your hols

EGAR

What breed/type of a dog do you have? France has one of the strictest BSLs in Europe.

ValerieR

Pets can travel to the UK without any passport. On the other hand, a passport is compulsory to go to France. The blood test is part of the process to obtain this passport. There is no time restriction for the pet to go over to France but 6 months must have lapsed after the blood test (or the vaccination - I forget) before the pet is allowed back in Ireland (or the UK) from France.

As far as ferry travel is concerned ... going over to the UK, the pet can stay in the car. Going to France, the dog has to go into a travel box. We normally travel to France via the UK for the dog's sake : 2 small crossings instead of a 20+ hour one. We used LD Lines from Le Havre to Rosslare last Christmas and had to put the dog in one of these travel boxes It wasn't really big enough for him (labrador/collie cross) and he was so unhappy that we ended up putting him back into the car after 5 hours ... Very upsetting experience.

I haven't seen the set up with Irish Ferries. Celtic Link take dogs over but do not have the vet services to bring the pets back from France.

ValerieR

ingoy2k

ValerieR wrote: »

Pets can travel to the UK without any passport. On the other hand, a passport is compulsory to go to France. The blood test is part of the process to obtain this passport. There is no time restriction for the pet to go over to France but 6 months must have lapsed after the blood test (or the vaccination - I forget) before the pet is allowed back in Ireland (or the UK) from France.

As far as ferry travel is concerned ... going over to the UK, the pet can stay in the car. Going to France, the dog has to go into a travel box. We normally travel to France via the UK for the dog's sake : 2 small crossings instead of a 20+ hour one. We used LD Lines from Le Havre to Rosslare last Christmas and had to put the dog in one of these travel boxes It wasn't really big enough for him (labrador/collie cross) and he was so unhappy that we ended up putting him back into the car after 5 hours ... Very upsetting experience.

I haven't seen the set up with Irish Ferries. Celtic Link take dogs over but do not have the vet services to bring the pets back from France.

ValerieR

I was wondering if anybody had some advice, we have a 5 mnth lab/ beagle mix pup and where thinking of travelling to the UK next month with with Irish ferries and were told we can either leave him in the car or in a kennel/cage, he is use to travelling in the car on long journeys but was unsure of the kennel and he has never been in the car on his own for long periods. dont want to cause too much stress for him

Skillie

ingoy2k wrote: »

I was wondering if anybody had some advice, we have a 5 mnth lab/ beagle mix pup and where thinking of travelling to the UK next month with with Irish ferries and were told we can either leave him in the car or in a kennel/cage, he is use to travelling in the car on long journeys but was unsure of the kennel and he has never been in the car on his own for long periods. dont want to cause too much stress for him

Fiance goes to college a couple of times a year with our Golden Retriever and she leaves her in the car. The kennels would be very alien to her so best of a bad situation is to leave her in the car with adequate vetilation. only thing is you can't go down to check on them them as the car deck is off limits for safety reasons. Can be a little stressful for the dog but she is usually fine, give her a good walk before getting aboard, bathroom break and drink of water etc. then once she gets there gives her a walk straight after and lots of attention etc. Weather has never been good enough to actually get the fast cat but obviously thats so quick it would be the ideal. As hes so young try and prepare him for the trip by letting him in the car (ventilation and safety of course being paramount) for an hour or two unattended from time to time if you can keep an eye on the car from the house etc

qtmamma

We want to travel to France with our little bichon whom we treat like a child. She sleeps with us at home so I can't imagine her in a cage! Could I smuggle her on board the ferry in a bag?

qtmamma

olaola wrote: »

Brittany Ferries have better facilities for your dog if you haven't booked already! They have a dedicated walking area and you can visit them as much as you want. I haven't seen the kennels on the new Irish Ferries vessel though!

Brittany Ferries are so much more expensive though aren't they?

olaola

Just booked our trip to France with the dog on Irish Ferries! Will report back in Sept. Did anyone end up travelling with them in the end?

traleegirl101

Skillie wrote: »

Fiance goes to college a couple of times a year with our Golden Retriever and she leaves her in the car. The kennels would be very alien to her so best of a bad situation is to leave her in the car with adequate vetilation. only thing is you can't go down to check on them them as the car deck is off limits for safety reasons. Can be a little stressful for the dog but she is usually fine, give her a good walk before getting aboard, bathroom break and drink of water etc. then once she gets there gives her a walk straight after and lots of attention etc. Weather has never been good enough to actually get the fast cat but obviously thats so quick it would be the ideal. As hes so young try and prepare him for the trip by letting him in the car (ventilation and safety of course being paramount) for an hour or two unattended from time to time if you can keep an eye on the car from the house etc

I live in the UK but take my dog 'home' regularly on the ferry. He has to stay in the car so I get some travel sickness tablets from the vet, they are little yellow ones, give them to him an hour before we get on the ferry and he sleeps right through until we dock on the other side!

olaola

An update on bringing the dog to France on the Oscar Wilde.

On the website, we're told to book in 2 hours in advance. Between the weather & leaving work late we don’t meet the deadline - but get the impression that it didn’t matter at all. I think they would just prefer you to be there early so they can get your car on the same car deck as the kennels. We saw someone coming on at the last minute with their dog from a lower deck. At check-in, the lady in the kiosk just checks the passport and the booking. You go on board and one of the stewards on the car deck (deck 4) will bring you to the kennels. They were better than I expected (better than the Normandy anyway). The kennels are in a separate room, and they smell like they've been hosed down with bleach (there is a power hose in the corner). So they're clean, but still damp - so bring some newspapers to put under your dogs bed to keep it dry. You put the dog in, you get a card to show reception when you want to visit them. The steward also checks the passport.

We visited the dog three times during the crossing, you have to go to reception and they'll call a steward/AB to bring you down. They have a 'run' and a large litter box with poop-bags at the end. So the dog can stretch their legs. Our dog has never used a litter tray, and she won't pee inside so she never went to the toilet on either legs. She was also so happy to see us that she didn't seem to want to do anything else other than squirm!

Arriving in France, you just drive off the boat, no questions.

Before we left France we booked the dog into a Vet in Courseulles-sur-mer. Nicer than any doctor's surgery I've ever been in in Ireland! It was about €45 for the tick & work treatment, and the vet checked the chip & her general health. She seemed very familiar with the process.

On your return journey - you have to check the dog in at the Irish Ferries desk in the terminal first. We had driven up to the kiosk, and the lady told us to park the car over at the side and just come back out to her when we had it sorted. An Irish Ferries employee fills out a form and checks her chip with a reader, and checks that it matches her passport. You get a poster to stick on the inside of your windscreen (the glue is a bitch to get off) and you cannot remove that until you've gone through customs in Ireland. I think she the form she fills out goes into the ship's bag & goes to customs in Rosslare. Going back on the Ferry is the same routine as the Irish leg.

Arriving in Ireland is fairly non-eventful. We were in the queue for customs and a gentleman from the Dept of Agriculture just came up to us and asked if the 'chip was read ok in Cherbourg' - we said yes and we went on. That was it really.

Here is a pic of the kennels - with Holly looking very dejected! Tip! The bottom kennels nearer the door are bigger & deeper. The one she was in on the way over had a moveable side, so when we came to see her, the dog in the kennel next door had moved the wall in on her space (like that episode of Black Books).

ValerieR

Thank you for the report on your trip ! Much appreciated. Our last trip direct to France wasn't a very nice experience for our dog (and us as a consequence!). Maybe we try again with Irish Ferries one day!
ValerieR

PS - Hope you had a nice holiday "en France"

olaola

We did thanks, and I have the waistline to prove it

MoonDancer256

We used Irish Ferries to transport our 5 cats and 2 ferrets when we moved to Ireland from France earlier this year; I was pretty happy with the whole experience overall

I've yet to travel with my new puppy though, saving that til next year

Eve82

olaola wrote: »

An update on bringing the dog to France on the Oscar Wilde.

On the website, we're told to book in 2 hours in advance. Between the weather & leaving work late we don’t meet the deadline - but get the impression that it didn’t matter at all. I think they would just prefer you to be there early so they can get your car on the same car deck as the kennels. We saw someone coming on at the last minute with their dog from a lower deck. At check-in, the lady in the kiosk just checks the passport and the booking. You go on board and one of the stewards on the car deck (deck 4) will bring you to the kennels. They were better than I expected (better than the Normandy anyway). The kennels are in a separate room, and they smell like they've been hosed down with bleach (there is a power hose in the corner). So they're clean, but still damp - so bring some newspapers to put under your dogs bed to keep it dry. You put the dog in, you get a card to show reception when you want to visit them. The steward also checks the passport.

We visited the dog three times during the crossing, you have to go to reception and they'll call a steward/AB to bring you down. They have a 'run' and a large litter box with poop-bags at the end. So the dog can stretch their legs. Our dog has never used a litter tray, and she won't pee inside so she never went to the toilet on either legs. She was also so happy to see us that she didn't seem to want to do anything else other than squirm!

Arriving in France, you just drive off the boat, no questions.

Before we left France we booked the dog into a Vet in Courseulles-sur-mer. Nicer than any doctor's surgery I've ever been in in Ireland! It was about €45 for the tick & work treatment, and the vet checked the chip & her general health. She seemed very familiar with the process.

On your return journey - you have to check the dog in at the Irish Ferries desk in the terminal first. We had driven up to the kiosk, and the lady told us to park the car over at the side and just come back out to her when we had it sorted. An Irish Ferries employee fills out a form and checks her chip with a reader, and checks that it matches her passport. You get a poster to stick on the inside of your windscreen (the glue is a bitch to get off) and you cannot remove that until you've gone through customs in Ireland. I think she the form she fills out goes into the ship's bag & goes to customs in Rosslare. Going back on the Ferry is the same routine as the Irish leg.

Arriving in Ireland is fairly non-eventful. We were in the queue for customs and a gentleman from the Dept of Agriculture just came up to us and asked if the 'chip was read ok in Cherbourg' - we said yes and we went on. That was it really.

Here is a pic of the kennels - with Holly looking very dejected! Tip! The bottom kennels nearer the door are bigger & deeper. The one she was in on the way over had a moveable side, so when we came to see her, the dog in the kennel next door had moved the wall in on her space (like that episode of Black Books).

Appreciate the info. Heading on Oscar Wilde in 2 weeks with my shih tzu. Good 2 know what 2 expect

rebel10

Can i just ask a question? My parents have a place in France. My mum has two dogs she would love to bring over for the summer next year. I asked my vet about this and he said it wouldn't be worth it. He said the trip over is fine once they have all their shots and passport but that coming back into Ireland is the problem. The dogs would have to be quarantined for several weeks and costs a fortune. How is this the case when so many people take their dogs on holidays? What should i be doing to enable them to go with mum? Thanks in advance:)

andreac

afaik theres no quarantine anymore once you get the pet passport. But im not 100% on it. But you do need to organsie the pet passport well in advance as some of the blood tests have to have a few months in between them.

rebel10

andreac wrote: »

afaik theres no quarantine anymore once you get the pet passport. But im not 100% on it. But you do need to organsie the pet passport well in advance as some of the blood tests have to have a few months in between them.

God thats great if there isin't any quarantine. Here was me thinking our vet was on the ball!:rolleyes: Will check all that out.

andreac

The reason i know is that i show my dog and know loads of people who travel to europe and back without quarantine to show their dogs, but the pet passport has to be organised and this can take months so id check it out soon. Doubt you can get it in time for this summer though, but you want it for next summer so you should be fine then.

olaola

I think your vet is misinformed Rebel10! See here from Dept of Agriculture: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/pets/

We're going to try Celtic Link Ferries this year, it's a good bit cheaper then the Irish Ferries/Brittany Ferries. And it's free to bring your dog on board - you can leave them in your car if you wish. They do say online that they cannot accomodate bringing your dog back from Cherbourg, but I rang last week, and they have just been issued a licence to carry animals back from France.

rebel10

Lads thats brilliant thanks so much! This will make mums year! Will try and sort out their passports now! Thanks so much!:)

Gvillage

My neighbour needed a way to get his dog to France about a month a go. I recommended Celtic Link Ferries. I might be wrong but they seem to be the only ferry operator in Ireland that do not charge for carrying pets. I did here that there was an option of leaving the dog in the cabin or else there was a kennel on board.

He said something about if he went for the dog in the kennel, because of their position on the ship, they could not be visited during the sailing.

olaola

We've booked Celtic link for this Sept. We can keep the dog in the car. They say we can visit, but we'll have to wait and see!

suraheg

Hey guys,

am moving to london in the next few months and wanna bring my JRT. I have a car now, so was going to drive over with my car and leave her there and drive home and leave my car here. Annoying i know but i dont want the hassle of having a car while im there. I was going to try sell it then once i have it home.
But was wondering if i dont have a car and want to travel back with my dog will i be able to bring her on the ferry and put her in a kennel? Or do i need to have a car to bring her on in??

Thanks!

getz

suraheg wrote: »

Hey guys,

am moving to london in the next few months and wanna bring my JRT. I have a car now, so was going to drive over with my car and leave her there and drive home and leave my car here. Annoying i know but i dont want the hassle of having a car while im there. I was going to try sell it then once i have it home.
But was wondering if i dont have a car and want to travel back with my dog will i be able to bring her on the ferry and put her in a kennel? Or do i need to have a car to bring her on in??

Thanks!

you do not need a car to bring a dog on the ferry,but you would need to book a kennel with the ferry company[at no cost] as there is only a limited amount of kennels on the ship