Traveling with Pets

[teaden]

Hi all, the more I search, the more confused I get We will start our cruising life in a few months - hopefully! If covid allows! and we are heading from South Africa across to Brazil / the Caribbean to start with.
Whilst sitting in lockdown we have had a homeless cat make our yacht her home, she's become part of the family and now don't have the heart to just leave her behind. If we really have to, we will home her before leaving but in the meantime, I would like to investigate what is involved with cruising with a pet as far as pet import goes?
Like I say, the more I try to research, the more confused I get. I'm finding more about importing animals on planes and also most info I find is from pet transport companies, so I have no need for that. Just really battling to find out the basic requirements when CRUISING with pets. I fully understand that different countries will have different rules and regulations which can be investigated as we travel but would just like an overview of peoples experiences, whats required, vague expenses involved in vet certificates and import costs etc.
Look forward to getting any up-to-date info if anyone can let me know their experiences.
Many thanks

[a64pilot]

I think it depends on where your cruising grounds will be, Bahama’s isn’t so bad, just another few fees. Many places you simply cannot have a pet. Show up with one and they will put it down.
So it’s going to limit where you can cruise, and add another layer of expense and complexity.

[barnab]

Travelling with a cat is not too bad. Some countries will not let you in, but that's just a minority.



Finding the import requirements is not always easy, I usually have best success with googling "<country name> pet import". Don't be surprised if you only find info about arriving by plane, that's simply 99.9% of all cases, pets arriving by boat are the other 0.1% and nobody bother writing specific rules for this.


All countries require a rabies vaccine, some also an antibody test. Make sure you start this early, for the test you have to wait one month after the shot and then another few days to get the certificate - and if the test fails it's re-shot, wait another month and hope for the best.


For the caribbean I used this list of additional vaccines for our cat: Calcivirus, Leukemia, Panaleukopenia, Pneumonitis, Rhinotracheitis. This should get you into most countries.



Be aware that travelling with pets requires extra-prep, for many islands in the carib you need an import permit which you need to request before departure and don't expect a quick response - we waited four weeks for the reply from St. Lucia.


Also be prepared to spend money for vets, most countries require a certificate of good health, which means you have to visit a vet in every country before going to the next one.


Some countries in the Carib refuse any animals that have been in south america.


Other things: Cats can get seasick, don't be surprised if your cat vomits. Also, cats have absolutely no sense for the dangers on a boat, make sure your cat stays inside while on passage. You will need something that allows you to easily get in and out but keeps the cat in...


Good luck!

[belizesailor]

Ive cruised w cats. As posted, for most countries, cats are not bad.

However, be aware that the regulations for each country vary. Also, written regulations vs actual practice vary. It is your responsibility to sort all this out before each port of call.

Regulations/actual practice vary from "dont care" to the animal must be quarateened...depending on country and sometimes which official you draw.

There are a few threads on this subject here so give those a look too.

[zeehag]

https://web.facebook.com/groups/277701742402893/

this group is cat specific. founded by a sailing cat for all to learn about the good bad and ugly of sailing cat exploits.
pfds, overboard rescue, litterbox woes, mad at hoomins issues.... come learn with us...
and for the admins of cruisers forum, this is a cat only grope with love for cf and all who venture out with critters. as cf hasnt a cat only social grope, we provide. bubba daboatkat founded this specifically for cats. cf is for humans.

[Dogscout]

Peat travels with me everywhere. He is now a 13 year old male Dalmatian dog. He has flown across the Atlantic multiple times, he has a EU pet passport, and a large folder of vet records that travel with us. He also has a life jacket and a OLAS tag.

My best advise to you is to calmly look over the animal import requirements for where you intend to go to. Just like customs and immigration for people, most countries have requirements for pets and livestock. Many of the island nations have Quarantine requirements or flat out refuse animal import but most of the world has seen rabies and will accept a well documented vaccination record.

Prior to leaving the US I needed to have a federal review and stamp on his vaccination records which our normal vet administered the shot. Its really not difficult to manage, it just takes some time to look over the requirements. The US has a good web site that lists most countries requirements. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/pet-travel I imagine that ZA has a similar site.

Lots of people travel all over with little pets in airline bags in the cabin. Peat rides in his big box with luggage and he is very resilient when we fly. Just dont take it for granted. On the boat he hangs out tethered in the cockpit or down below on his bed.

I would not travel without him.

[EvaWills89]

travel with animals is really fun, they become an indispensable part of the crew. But at the same time, they will bring many problems, especially at the borders. Unfortunately, I think in modern society, most border guards will want to get rich and rob you of all the money for the passage of an ordinary cat. so be careful, and most importantly buy all the necessary things to safely transport the cat

[zeehag]

Originally Posted by EvaWills89

travel with animals is really fun, they become an indispensable part of the crew. But at the same time, they will bring many problems, especially at the borders. Unfortunately, I think in modern society, most border guards will want to get rich and rob you of all the money for the passage of an ordinary cat. so be careful, and most importantly buy all the necessary things to safely transport the cat

check out the potential destinations first beforeheading blindly out into the big wide open blue water..some places quarantine some donot..have paopers ready for officials and leave critter on boat.
cats that donotleave boat are no issue. wanderers are an issue..

[zeehag]

please note .. there was a cat went exploring in spain needs to get back
home....

A boat has just arrived from Gran Canaria or Tenerife to Lanzarote with this cat sneaked in unnoticed on board. Very friendly cat, looks like somebody’s boat cat.
I’m posting here just in case somebody is looking for this cat.

Found a cat who accidentally travelled with M/Y Suver from Valencia to Lanzarote. Seems a house/boat cat, young male, no microchip unfortunately.
Can people who are in Valencia Spain share this post. The kitty is missing his owner ��
unfortunately i can not post its picture..if someone is missing a family member of feline species please see gdm for details and please reunite with said feline...he is a sad cat missing his people and home. he is a classic tabby, appears short haired moggy. is a handsome boy but sad.

[Dsanduril]

Only piece of advice I can offer - make sure your pet is chipped and make sure every single document from the vet regarding health or vaccination references the chip number. Some places will never care, but when you get to the places that do being able to prove that your particular pet is the one for which you have documents is worth gold.

[zeehag]

chip your pets please to avoid situations like the missing cat of which i posted.. he still seeks his family and needs to be returned... has no chip--hopefully his family speaks up about his loss and finally finds him. he misses his people

[alexandraconte7]

Hi. I also travel the world and often have to transport a cat in a special transport. There is a generally accepted standard for transportation dimensions. Although it is rather difficult for a cat who constantly needs to get used to a new place. I also have a separate bag with things for the cat (drinker, toilet, etc.).