Can anyone please give us the latest position on the USA passport scheme as we have heard several different stories.
Some friends of ours own a bitch we bred that is an American Champion (Staffordshire Bull Terrier). They have been waiting for 12 months for a dog out of one of our bitches bred with the same sire as their bitch (would be half brother to their bitch). Sadly this bitch of ours has now missed twice to this dog.
So.... they want to breed their bitch now but with these same lines and are now considering using a stud dog from over here out of the sire of their bitch as they want to keep this line and do not have it as close in USA.
They live in North Carolina and am not sure if that part of USA covered on passort scheme, not even 100% when USA scheme due to or already started.
So, ideally they would/could bring the bitch over here for her mating and take her straight back before too far in pregnancy.
Can anyone provide the current state of progress on USA scheme and is N. Carolina included?
They have considered straws of sperm but to be honest it would probably work out less expensive and more reliable to come over here for a miating.
Are there any implications of doing this that I am not aware of??

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I did read in one of the military newspapers that yes the scheme has now started in the US. It said the USA so I took that as being all states. So I would say North Carolina is included. Please tell them to follow the scheme according to the schedule that is given to them, one mistake, and the pet doesn't get to go. Hope this helps. :D Shirl

Thanks for that Shirl I will get them to contact the AKC who should have all the details.
Looks like could be all systems go and us having a couple of visitors soon!! :-)

It's so recent (11 Dec) that PETS can be applied so I don't think AKC would have specific details yet.
Here is the official UK DEFRA -Pet Passport website. It provides specific information on how to bring dogs into the UK from the US, just scroll down and click on USA and Canada blue box. The link gives the necessary info, plus FAQ sheet that will help answer more detailed questions.

The microchip program that AKC is allied with under their "Home Again" is ISO compatible and is an internationally accepted. I called AKC to confirm this + my two dogs had theirs just read by a German Vet for UK titre blood testing)
hth and good luck,
toodles

Ooh, that means they can come to visit us in six months!

:( exactly brainless.....sorry but I cannot for the life of me see why anyone can support a scheme that allows dogs from a country where rabies & all sorts of other nasties, are endemic, to come here.!!! If I didn't know better, I would say this Government WANTS rabies here.....but that would be a bit paranoid wouldn't it???!!!:rolleyes:

*I would say this Government WANTS rabies here.....but that would be a bit paranoid wouldn't it???!!!*And then animals have to have compulsory vaccines....... nooooo that would be tooooo paranoid Sam, don`t even think that!
Christine, Spain.

Hmmm, it makes it sound as if countries that have occurences of rabies in wild populations have epidemics of dogs and cats who are foaming at the mouth.
I have yet to ever hear of any dog or cat owned by a friend, a friend of a friend, or even someone miles away develop rabies. I'm sure there are isolated cases out there in the US and Canada, but so far, nada. Then again, rabies vaccinations are a matter of course for the vast majority of pet owners.

I've gained the sense that because UK is classified as "rabies free", the idea that the outside world is full of easily contagious rabies. Not so. It has been controlled for quite a few decades.
And it seems that there is already a presence of rabies in the UK ---the sad story a couple of weeks ago concerning the man who died from it after being bitten by a bat.
regards :)

I know that the Eastern block countries are considered high risk for rabies, but no one there panics about it.

attitudes to contact with strange, especially wild animal ios different, and if anyone is bitten by any animal they will go and get Rabies shots. If it is a domestic animal, then the animals Rabies documents are checked for being up to date for shots, if up to date, then the person doesn't get the shots.

Every town used to have annual mandatory Rabies vaccine clinics. Notices were put up requiring people to come and have their animals jabbed.

This has now stopped, with two and 3 year vaccines, and it is up to the owner to have them updated.

If there is an outbreak, then all loose animals are rounded up, and if no proof of vaccination, or ownership, then they are destroyed. The feral cat colonies common to the cellars in the apartment blocks are gassed!!!

Right before I start I don't know anything about this- I just thought I post to let you all know what's been said at my vets- my friend (VN) is going for the rabies jabs because the vets at the practice *reckon* *something* will eventually slip the net- some dogs that have injections still get diseases that they're vaccinated against- others that are vaccinated will die- some dogs have anaethetic(Sp?) and it doesn't work on them etc- the vets think something will slip through the net that is vaccinated but still brings with it the disease- so my vets think it's a timebomb waiting to go off:)

Stacey x x x

Hi Stacey,
Not picking on you, but your vets share a rather common view. I just find it fascinating that many "experts" or professionals in the UK believe rabies to be a 'timebomb' waiting to happen.
I know that the US has had vaccinations for it since the 1960s and many States require the pet to have it annually or biannually. I don't know if there are cases of rabies appearing because of a vaccination, but I"m pretty sure that it wouldn't be that difficult for a vet or researcher to determine if it's ever been a problem. Rabies are one of those diseases that must be reported to the State Health board, so an appearance would have been documented, especially in a household pet.

Eog- they're not saying that it's anything caused by the vaccination- just that the vaccination may not work/be effective on a particular dog:) Say for instance they had a jack russel in and a GSD for an operation- in some cases the jack russel has needed twice the amount of anaesthetic that the GSD needed some dogs are just kind of immune/ defy the laws surrounding the particular drugs. Everyone working in the surgery are going for the rabies jabs themselves now- they firmly believe that something will slip through the net:)

Stacey x x x

That's an interesting concept, Stacey. Hadn't thunk of it like that before. Still, the vaccines aren't new, so they can always look to other countries who have used them for usage and application history. I know the amount used for my smaller dogs is not the same as a large dog....and that's why their costs are more for the shots. Rabies isn't carried for long by a dog or cat without showing signs of disease. It's terminal and obvious. "Old Yeller" and Albert Payson Terhune books really described what happens. :(

I have to be honest and say that rabies hasn't ever been a real concern of mine or any other pet owners that I've known. It's not really around much in the suburbs. Now hubby's family probably kept it more in mind since their dogs were out hunting and there are carriers out there in the wild. But there are a lot of other nasties to be concerned about which are much more common -- Parvo, Heartworm, distemper, mange, Ticks, etc. For a bit, I actually had to worry about rattlesnake bites --that was a new one on me :rolleyes:

I guess that I'm a snob who thinks that by the time someone jumps through the hoops and costs to transport their pet, they are likely to have been very good pet owners who take good care of the health and safety of their pet. :rolleyes: Also the new system of post-bite rabies jabs are nothing like the old 12 shots in the stomach treatment :P

BTW, Barbara, it's possible that there are already dogs/cats that qualify for transport as soon as 11 dec. When I was perusing the DEFRA website last year, they had designated a laboratory in Texas as an authorized Titre testing facility, even though PETS hadn't been authorized yet. Apparently, one could submit blood testing and wait to see if the policy would be approved. I think it originally was for military working dogs so they could go from Lackland to UK without quarantine in case PETS was approved with provisions.

Yes I did know, as I told several US contacts to get the ball rolling, as it was going to happen.

There are 1000s of dogs going back and forth across the channel to the rabies infested continent each year so what is the problem with a few 100 from the USA. Chris.

I agree Chris....I think that is wrong too...I have been against it from day one!

As it was my question that has started all this maybe I should state the position of our friends.
Their dogs do not run out in the wilderness there, they are confined to their garden else on walks on a lead where their owners are always with them so I am sure that if their dogs were bit that they would know and obviously take the necessary action.
All of their dogs are kept up to date with ALL their vaccinations and their owners would not take any risks as the dogs live in the house with their two children.
In my opinion if tests give the all clear I am sure the experts that have studied these diseases in alot greater detail than any of us should be well qualified/informed as to whether a dog is safe to travel.
It is a shame that TB is on the increase in the UK for humans considering we were not so long ago relatively TB free. So should we take the same opinion and not allow any overseas visitors to this country if TB is rife in their country?? There are no travel schemes whereby visitors have to be TB screened before entry.
Also the dog I was asking about would be staying here and visiting the stud dog then returning home so I think I must be happy with the situation as I have dogs and 3 children.