taking our cav to australia

[Maggy's Dad]

My wife and I are emmigrating to Australia in September and we are taking our 3 year old ruby with us (absolutely no chance we could leave her behind). We have started the process and are prepared to pay the costs etc.

We are wondering if anyone has been through this, how traumatic it can be and how cavs are in hot climates.

Maggie is a very delicate little thing and we are worried about the affect the flights and quarantine will have on her. We are fortunate that the area we plan to live in is very close to the quarantine centre in Melbourne, and we can visit her everyday.

Any advice would be very welcome!

[Charlifarley]

I have absolutely no experience of flying with dogs, but I wonder would it be worth your while to talk to the people in the quarantine centre - maybe you have already - they might be able to give you advice about the long flight and its effects. I know there are people here from Australia who post, so hopefully they can help you too.
I am so envious of your move, I'm sure its not something you do lightly. I hope it all goes well for you and that Australia is everything you hope it will be.
As far as hot climates go, coming from Ireland, as you can imagine...not much experience there too !! but the weather has been quite hot and sticky here this last week, and my heavyish tri has definitley been feeling the effects, but my smaller ruby has been fine, so hopefully your little Maggie will acclimatise quickly and have no ill effects.
Keep us posted as to how you get on with your move.

[jld]

Good luck on your move. No advice on the travel, but my Dixie lives in very hot weather. It was 103 today. She just stays inside with the air conditioner and does fine. Wow, moving to Australia. What a wonderful experience.....

[Love my Cavaliers]

I have flown with Riley my little SM dog many times. She weighs about 12.5 pounds and is pretty delicate also. I keep her out of her Sherpa bag until we're ready to board and then I never hear a peep out of her until I take her out once I'm in the terminal with her. Nobody knows I have a dog under the seat in front of me. She is a dream to fly with. However, the longest flight I have taken with her is 5 hours. I did spend two hours sitting in a plane at the gate and then had to reboard another plane (for the 5 hour flight) as there were mechanical problems. I had just enough time to take her out to pee - somewhat stressful as you have to go through security again. But we made it. The first time I flew with her, she did not pee for almost 20 hours. She is used to peeing in grass and we were in the desert and she refused to pee. Eventually, nature took it's course. She has never peed or pooped in her Sherpa bag though and I don't sedate her.

Regarding hot weather, we are havig 90+ degree days with over 100 degrees heat index here in Chicago. My ruby loves to go out and sunbathe, my blenheim stays in air conditioning most of the time, Riley (black and tan) stays out hunting in our garden (she killed a chipmunk last week) and my tri (who is mostly black) would stay out all day if I let him. I don't take them on long walks though when it's this hot. Other than that, they are fine out in the hot weather.

Good luck on your move. How long is the quarantine and do they have people to hold her and love her there? Hopefully the time you need to be separated will fly by since you're getting used to a new country, culture, etc. Hope all goes well.

[kmatt]

Australia has pretty good laws about quarentine and the biggest thing is to try and get a carrier that will fit beneath the seat infront of you so that she isn't in the dark the entire trip. Also talk to your vets ahead of time and see what you could do about sedation.

Best of luck with your move.

[Sharon 7]

where abouts in Australia are you going to settle ?
You will love it!

[EddyAnne]

Jonathan where are you in this big world? I have included here a copy of an email my wife put on OzCavalier email list, intended for someone importing a Cavalier from England but the Quarantine formal procedures might similarly apply to your case.

The 1st thing you need to do is find a good Animal Transport company as there is a lot of paperwork involved in Importing animals to Australia.
There is a long period of quarantine which can be shortened to 30 days if everything is done correctly. Eg Rabies vaccination, they must have a properly documented vaccination, followed by a SUCCESSFUL titre test.
Quarantine does not start until this is done and is, 180days from date of titre test. Now this is where you can save on quarantine time, if your girl stays in England for 150 days after her titre test she will only have 30 days quarantine here is Australia. There are other tests and vet checks that need to be done before she leaves England and this is where a good company will help enormously. You also need to apply for an 'Import Certificate' before she leaves, once again a good company will help you with all of this.
Oh and also you will need to book her into Quarantine either in Melbourne or Sydney. I am not sure if Brisbane has a facility.

Most dogs tolerate the long haul incredibly well, but should be well crate trained and be very happy to be in there, before contemplating such a long trip. Also due to quarantine restrictions anything that travels with her in her crate such as a blanket or toys has to be destroyed and cannot be kept.
The best bedding for long trips is shredded news paper and lots of it, because it absorbs any accidents and your girl will be much cleaner and happier for it.

I'm just east of Melbourne and where the weather is the same. September is the beginning of Spring in Melbourne so don't expect any hot weather. Quite a few in Melbourne have Cavaliers and they cope quite well. In Summer on some days it can get quite hot and we just hide inside with the airconditioner on, and in Winter on those frosty days well we hide inside with the heater on.

On long international flights I have not heard of dogs being allowed in the passenger area, such as under seats in front of you.
.

[harleyfarley]

I wasnt aware you could take them on the plane with you, ive always thought they had to be crated and put in the hold. di

[Maggy's Dad]

Thanks for all the replies.

We are based in Ireland. I have actually lived and worked in Melbourne for a year before so I know the place quite well.

We have a great vet and they are helping us with the process. As far as I know we wont have to keep her in quarantine any longer than 30 days.

[Nicki]

Also talk to your vets ahead of time and see what you could do about sedation.

NO don't get sedation - they are not able to fly with sedation, this can be very dangerous.


If they are used to a crate anyway, most dogs just settle down to sleep.


I know of dogs who have flown to US {From UK} and Canada recently, and coped fine.

It sounds like your vet is on top of the situation, but make sure they have the most up to date information from the DEFRA site and Australian sites, as this does change from time to time.


Good luck with the move and wishing you all the best for your new life in Australia - hope you will keep us up to date