Bringing my dog on holiday

gazzer · 23-01-2009 3:26pm #1

I was thinking of doing a driving holiday this summer in parts of Europe. I was going to bring my dog with me and go by Ferry to Holyhead and drive from there. What is the rules for bringing dogs with you? Can they travel freely in certain countries?

Thanks

olaola · 23-01-2009 3:52pm

You'll need a pet passport. It takes approx 6 months to aquire - the first thing you'll need is a rabies shot. So book in this weekend to your vet!!

http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/index.jsp?file=pets/index.xml
http://www.ispca.ie/content/pet-passports.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet_passport

As long as you have this, you can basically travel anywhere. But your dog will need to be treated for ticks & worms 24 hours before travelling home.

ManFromAtlantis · 23-01-2009 3:55pm

Have an infraction for that comment.

NTC · 23-01-2009 3:57pm

When you take the dog to Europe, is it ok to bring it back without need to put it in quarantine?

gazzer · 23-01-2009 4:01pm

ManFromAtlantis wrote: »

u are so sad it must be a joke. why would anyone take a friggen dog on hols?

TROLL ALERT :pac:

getz · 23-01-2009 4:01pm

ManFromAtlantis wrote: »

u are so sad it must be a joke. why would anyone take a friggen dog on hols?

how dare you, i always bring my dog over to ireland with me on my hols-i am next over in feb ,he loves all the attention gets

olaola · 23-01-2009 4:02pm

NTC wrote: »

When you take the dog to Europe, is it ok to bring it back without need to put it in quarantine?

You may leave Ireland nearly straight away, but you cannot re-enter until 6 months has elapsed after the rabies vaccination and a successful blood test has been carried out.

gazzer · 23-01-2009 4:03pm

olaola wrote: »

You'll need a pet passport. It takes approx 6 months to aquire - the first thing you'll need is a rabies shot. So book in this weekend to your vet!!

http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/index.jsp?file=pets/index.xml
http://www.ispca.ie/content/pet-passports.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet_passport

As long as you have this, you can basically travel anywhere. But your dog will need to be treated for ticks & worms 24 hours before travelling home.

Thats great. Thanks for the info, I appreciate it

zillmere · 23-01-2009 4:04pm

ManFromAtlantis wrote: »

u are so sad it must be a joke. why would anyone take a friggen dog on hols?

Useful contribution, very helpful.

Rescue groups in Ireland get passports all the time. I think it takes them 2-3 weeks. They may get it done faster than usual though.

I know a couple of vets that do it regularly & could give you all the info you need. All pets in Drogheda are great or Lissenhall at Swords.

As far as I know they can travel as freely as a human apart from air travel restrictions of course.

Since you are driving I can't see a problem.

ManFromAtlantis · 23-01-2009 4:06pm

sorry i just dont het all the lovey duvy dog stuff. there are starving children in the world and some people even pay money for food for a dog???? c'mon
dont get me started on injections/wash shampoo/ nails/hair cuts / grooming/passports (that must be a joke) i have to bite my tongue but i wont pass any more judgemnet on this thread. have a good holiday by the way with or with out the mut.

olaola · 23-01-2009 4:13pm

zillmere wrote: »

Rescue groups in Ireland get passports all the time. I think it takes them 2-3 weeks. They may get it done faster than usual though.
.

I don't think there is anyway around the 6 month wait if you want to repatriate your dog back into Ireland. You don't want to end up with the bow-wow in quarantine!! And you have to pay for it!

http://www.ispca.ie/content/pet-passports-failure.html

olaola · 23-01-2009 4:18pm

gazzer wrote: »

Thats great. Thanks for the info, I appreciate it

NP - we're getting one for our dog at the moment, she's due back for her one month rabies titre next week. So she'll be able to travel 6 months hence.
Oh, and they need to be chipped too!

gazzer · 23-01-2009 4:20pm

olaola wrote: »

NP - we're getting one for our dog at the moment, she's due back for her one month rabies titre next week. So she'll be able to travel 6 months hence.
Oh, and they need to be chipped too!

Well I have her chipped since 2 years ago. I will get onto the Vet so about the rabies shots etc.. Thanks again.

getz · 23-01-2009 4:20pm

gazzer wrote: »

I was thinking of doing a driving holiday this summer in parts of Europe. I was going to bring my dog with me and go by Ferry to Holyhead and drive from there. What is the rules for bringing dogs with you? Can they travel freely in certain countries?

Thanks

you are ok between the UK and Ireland without a pet passport. just a tip on the ferries you dog has to stay in the hold ,you cannot visit him when you are at sea ,they do have kennels on the ferry but the dogs are better in the car with the window open[familiar surroundings]

olaola · 23-01-2009 4:26pm

getz wrote: »

you are ok between the UK and Ireland without a pet passport. just a tip on the ferries you dog has to stay in the hold ,you cannot visit him when you are at sea ,they do have kennels on the ferry but the dogs are better in the car with the window open[familiar surroundings]

Depending on which ferry you are using. You either leave your dog in your car, or in a kennel. You may be visit your pet accompanied by a member of staff. On the ferry to France (Brittany Ferries - Pont Aven) you may visit your dog as many times as you like, and there is a designated walking outdoor area for owners & dogs. I'm not sure of the current facilities on the Oscar Wilde, but they do have a kennel area.

zillmere · 23-01-2009 4:32pm

olaola wrote: »

I don't think there is anyway around the 6 month wait if you want to repatriate your dog back into Ireland. You don't want to end up with the bow-wow in quarantine!! And you have to pay for it!

http://www.ispca.ie/content/pet-passports-failure.html

Yeah, sorry I was thinking of rescue dogs that go to Sweden rather than dogs returning.

zillmere · 23-01-2009 4:35pm

ManFromAtlantis wrote: »

sorry i just dont het all the lovey duvy dog stuff. there are starving children in the world and some people even pay money for food for a dog???? c'mon
dont get me started on injections/wash shampoo/ nails/hair cuts / grooming/passports (that must be a joke) i have to bite my tongue but i wont pass any more judgemnet on this thread. have a good holiday by the way with or with out the mut.

Thats another stupid comment. Just because you don't get it doesn't make it wrong. Whats it got to do with you anyway?

Maybe you like a pint, a non drinker might say the same thing to you.

Phenix · 23-01-2009 5:56pm

ManFromAtlantis wrote: »

sorry i just dont het all the lovey duvy dog stuff. there are starving children in the world and some people even pay money for food for a dog???? c'mon
dont get me started on injections/wash shampoo/ nails/hair cuts / grooming/passports (that must be a joke) i have to bite my tongue but i wont pass any more judgemnet on this thread. have a good holiday by the way with or with out the mut.

so why are you posting here?

I was thinking the same OP. well, not Europe but maybe a few days somewhere in Ireland but I'd like to bring my dog with us! speaking of which, does anyone know off hand of any pet friendly hotels aound the country? We live in Dublin so preferably not somewhre to far flung that we would need to drive for 4 hours to get to?

olaola · 23-01-2009 6:23pm

http://www.dreamireland.com/ireland_by_category/pet_friendly_rentals.html

Not sure of hotels, but here is a list of a few self catering options.

AlmightyCushion · 23-01-2009 8:06pm

ManFromAtlantis wrote: »

u are so sad it must be a joke. why would anyone take a friggen dog on hols?

Banned for a week for abuse.

Hellrazer · 23-01-2009 8:14pm

People--please dont respond to posts like manfromatlanis`

I appreciate the reported posts but please dont respond.

Whispered · 23-01-2009 8:33pm

We're planning on getting a new (better) tent and going camping with our boy in Ireland. I really hope we get some decent weather, I can't wait to see if he'll follow one of us into the waves, or if he'll relax with us on a blanket on a warm night, or will he be bugging us to go off exploring. With money being tight we can't afford to go abroad, but next year, we'll be heading to france, hiring a car and bringing our dog.

We were in the south of france last year (it was a non booked, lets hop on a ferry and go somewhere type thing) and I couldn't believe how dog friendly the french are. There was a yacht show and every second person had a dog, and it really gave new meaning to the idea that people and their dogs look alike! It was brilliant. Tall thin jogger with a whippet, an old "captain" type man with a beard and moustache with a schnauzer, and the dogs happily hopping on and off the yachts with their owners.

Have a great time OP! I'm so jealous.

Top Dog · 24-01-2009 3:00am

Just one thing to note - if you get your passport for the dog you can only travel in the EU Countries. If you were to go further afield (for example Turkey) then your dog would have to go through Quarantine on the way back - nasty and expensive.

Oh and depending on the breed of dog, if travelling by ferry you can have up to 3 options;
1. Leave them in your car
2. Leave them in a kennel on board - though this has to be reserved in advance
3. Bring them up to the passenger decks but keep them in a crate

mossie110 · 24-01-2009 5:27pm

i hope the swansea/cork ferry starts up again this year, i was a frequent traveler on this ferry, great to take the dog with us, i would never leave him in kennels, i live in tralee so the journey to rosslare is a bit to far for the dog in the car, so fingers crossed

bionic.laura · 25-01-2009 2:33pm

Thanks for this information guys, very helpful.
We're hoping to bring the dog camping with us this year. First in Ireland then hopefully in the UK. It's good to know if we want to head further afield it's possible with the pet passport.

Helena: we've had some of our best adventures while camping in Ireland last year. Yeah the weather isn't always the best but a lot of the time it doesn't matter. I'd say it'll only be more fun to bring the dog along as well. Hopefully camp sites here are dog friendly.
We were in the UK last year and couldn't believe how much more dog friendly it was. They were even allowed in the pub which lead to us making some new friends after their dog came over looking to rob our dinner

percy26 · 25-01-2009 11:37pm

We are thinking of bringing our dog on hols too. Can You let me know what you find out as I don't know where to start.

Tupins · 30-01-2009 4:58pm

Hi there, I'm also trying to find a way to bring my dog to London Heathrow soon. I've checked with the following airlines:

Ryanair - don't take pets
Aer Lingus - only bring pets to the States
BMI - only transport pets on UK domestic flights or outbound flights from UK
British Airways - don't fly into Heathrow
Air France - don't bring animals from Ireland.

Help - surely there must be a way! The reason she must fly into Heathrow is that she will be flying on from there so ferry would be no good to us. I'm in Cork so flight from Cork would be ideal but would go from Dublin / shannon also.

Any suggestions please?

olaola · 30-01-2009 6:00pm

http://www.ipata.com/

http://www.airsea.ie/PetMovies.asp?pid=78
http://www.kinternationalfreight.com/
http://www.gaire.com/e/l/links.asp?type=cat&path=/Business/Transportation_and_Logistics/Special_Goods_and_Terms/Animals/Pets/
http://www.airpets.com/
http://www.petexports.co.uk/

30-01-2009 6:04pm

The lovely people on the Animal Welfare line (part of the ISPCA, I think) are great when it comes to figuring out what's needed to bring a pet where. They can also post out pet passport packs. Number is 1890 504 604.

manofmoynalty · 14-02-2010 9:36pm

I send dogs to Heathrow every week on BMI. The only option by air into the UK

Anyone not from Ireland or the UK do youselves a big favour and get prior approval from the dept of agriculture here before bring them back in. Can save a lot of hassle and money as we are a rabies free country so they are very strict

Top Dog · 15-02-2010 5:53pm

Aer Aran take dogs

Bringing my dog on holiday

Comments