Taking your pets to the USA

At Pets by Plane we can help manage your pet's travel to the USA from start to finish.

Compared to other countries, travelling to Amercia is generally less strict and fairly straightforward to organise. If you want to bring your pet to America, hereâs what you need to know.

Vaccinations

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) require that all animals be fit and healthy before they enter the US. Most animals need vaccinating against rabies before they travel to America, but the CDC actually have some fairly relaxed rules when it comes to dogs.

If your dog is coming from a rabies free country and it has lived there for at least six months, it doesn't need a valid rabies vaccination certificate. However, this does contradict laws for each state which specify that you need to have your pets vaccinated. Therfore, whilst technially not needing a Rabies Vaccination to enter we strongly advise all animals are vaccinated to avoid issues later on.

For countries deemed to be Rabies free by the CDC (the full list is available here- CDC website, you will require a fit-to-fly assessment only in the days leading up to the flight. We can provide a template format for this but generally it is a letter endorsing the health of your pet and that they have been certified as fit-to-fly.

Microchips and rabies blood tests are also not required. Things are even easier for cats; it doesn't matter where they are from, they don't need a valid rabies vaccine at all.

However, we should mention that all pets are subject to thorough inspections upon arrival in the States, and they might be turned away if they bear any evidence of disease. So, if you want to be cautious we recommend giving your pet all the treatments before it travels.

We only provide one quote price to America which factors in the ease of organising the travel. However, we will ensure that your cat, dog or other pet travels safely, calmly and is well cared for throughout their journey.

 

 

Process

The rules & policies for taking a pet into the US can be found here.

Dogs can be imported without a valid rabies vaccination certificate if they have lived continuously for a minimum of 6 months, or since birth, in a country that is considered by CDC to be free of rabies in land animals.

The UK is classed as 'Rabies Free' by the US, however, and it is a big however, all the individual US States require rabies vaccinations for both cats and dogs.

We very strongly advise all our clients to have their pets vaccinated against Rabies here by a veterinarian before their flights.

Similarly for cats, although a Rabies vaccination is technically not required by the US Centre for Disease control, most individual states have local requirements and we strongly advise all our clients to have their cats vaccinated against rabies before they leave.

Pets by Plane Tip:  If you are on a short visit to the United States, or may be planning to come back to any EU country in the next few years, you should get your pet an EU Pet Passport as this will make re-entry much easier.

The requirements for Rabies vaccinations for each individual US State can be found here.

Travel Crates:

Your pet will need a rigid air-travel crate which is compliant with the latest IATA Live Animal Regulations and individual airline requirements. Don't worry, we can supply one but if you have a well-travelled pet, and already have a compliant travel crate you can, of course, use it. Click here to go to our page which outlines travel crate requirements.

Pets by Plane Tip: Pets by Plane Tip: Your pet will need some time to get used to their new travel crate and we recommend that you should take delivery of their new 'home' at least a month before their travel date.  We will supply you with some suggestions for the best way to get your pet acclimated to the new travel crate.

If you're planning to take your pet to America and would like an estimate for using our pet export service, click here, complete the form and hit the Submit button. One of our friendly team will get back to you.

Pets by Plane Tip:  As we will need some specific measurements (in cm) for your pet, if it is a dog, and its current weight, (in kg) for both cats and dogs, have a look at our pet measuring page here before you start to complete our Quotation Request form.

Alternatively, contact us if you have specific questions about our services. We aim to respond to all quotation requests within 24 hours, usually faster.