Quarantine does its job.

I saw this too - just shows you can't get complacent about these things. Puppy was from Sri Lanka - seems a strange place to be importing from I thought?

> I saw this too - just shows you can't get complacent about these things. Puppy was from Sri Lanka - seems a strange place to be importing from I thought?

If it wasnt a pedigree pup (probably not as I'm sure breeders in Sri Lanka are just as concerned about the health of their dogs as we are over here), it was probably a 'poor puppy, look at the state of it, lets take it home' kind of situation.

Another case to show quarantine has'nt had its day.

I wondered if that was the case too pugnut

I would imagine it was an import of a family returning to the UK or someone rescuing a dog when out there.

Phew!  Yes, it is only through tireless hard work and the efficiency of quarantine that we are still rabbies free.

The people who brought that dog in have certainly been taught a lesson.

>it is only through tireless hard work and the efficiency of quarantine that we are still rabbies free.

Having imported several dogs myself and never once having had any paperwork checked when we reached the UK, I think it's pure luck and a matter of time that we're still rabies free unfortunately.

M.

I think the Pet Passport scheme has made a lot of people very complacent, and that always leads to trouble. Especially seeing that PP animals never need have their immunity retested, and we know from on here that the titre level can fall (whose dog was it failed the 121-day test to drive into Sweden having passed the 30-day test?) after a successful blood test.

Well I waited until 121 days and my pup failed, but someone else had both the 30 day test (passed) and the 121 day and failed the latter.  Which is probably why Sweden insisted on the longer time after vaccination, to be sure immunity lasted/took a decent time after initial vaccination.

I could never understand the Pet Passport rule about having to wait six months to enter/re-enter UK if there was no retest at that time to show immunity still sufficient, if the 30 day result was being taken then why the wait?  The Swedish position makes much more sense, 120 days after vaccination blood is checked and no waiting period after the result.

> The puppy was one of five brought by a rescue charity from Sri Lanka to the quarantine kennels in the Chingford area of north-east London

according to the BBC news report.

Why on earth do people want to rescue dogs from Sri Lanka?  Don't we have enough dogs in our own rescue centres that need rehoming without bringing more in from abroad?  Thank goodness rabies has been contained this time.

I never doubted it would be contained if the law is followed and the dogs put in Quarantine, of course the question mark remains over the other four pups.

I agree sad as it is that there are welfare/rescue problems in other countries, if someone really wants to rescue charity should begin at home and they should take one of our own first.

By all means people can contribute to education nd welfare abroad to charge the fate of the canine population there, but bringing dogs here is rather wrong until our own rescue problems are gone.

as it bit the woman who brought it in....couldnt have happened to a more appropriate person!!!

I'm just glad Chingford has been reported as NE London, I fed up people saying it's in Essex and then friends jokingly say 'Essex girl' when they see me!   ;-)

Why on earth do people want to rescue dogs from Sri Lanka?  Don't we have enough dogs in our own rescue centres that need rehoming without bringing more in from abroad?

I have to admit I assumed it was someone who was moving back here and bringing a rescue when I first heard it.  I cannot understand why a charity would want to bring rescue puppies back here, put them through six months of quarantine when we have such a problem here already.   I know a lot of rescues bring dogs from Ireland, but I think that different. I can't help feel it is a waste of resources, that may have been better spent helping them in their country of origin.

> I know a lot of rescues bring dogs from Ireland, but I think that different.

I think it is exactly the same and dogs should not be brought over here until our own rescues are all homed.  What is the point in bringing Irish rescues here when our own then have to be put to sleep.

they have the same problem in the USA where a large proportion of rescue dogs are put to sleep yet some people are still bringing them in from Mexico etc.

I think it is exactly the same and dogs should not be brought over here until our own rescues are all homed.

The rescues that have been brought over from Ireland (or at least the cases that I am aware of) are all purebred or first crosses, taken in by breed rescue (labs,gsd and bc in the main) where people can be on waiting lists for months and months waiting for a dog.  These adoptees generally want a specific breed and cannot find one in the general rescues, so they would not home those dogs still waiting anyway, and breed rescue don't tend to have endless dogs waiting for homes or pts any they cannot place - those dogs that do end up waiting for a home tend to be the ones with problems that are harder to place.
That's my own experience of it anyway.

I definitely think that rescuing breeds from abroad (I don't class Ireland as abroad) should not happen. As others have said we've got enough in this country without doing this.  Surely with all the breeds, cross breeds in rescue over here there would be something to suit everyone!

> as it bit the woman who brought it in....couldnt have happened to a more appropriate person!!!

sam thats a bit harsh, i'm sure the person did not bring it in with the intention of it biting anyone! while obviously it biting anyone is a bad bad thing i don't think its right to wish a rabies bite on someone, let alone someone who was probably trying to do a good deed.

dunno if i agree, that seems a very isolationist attitude- after all they are all dogs with the same characteristics that we love, appart from it being easier to do why is adopting a dog from here a better thing to do than adopting one from overseas? can't understand why you'd decide to as for the price of one incoming you could help several that are here but i can respect the choice

I read today that the woman who brought over these pups has brought up to 40 over in total.

eek, what does she do with them??

I think she runs her own rescue centre ...

ETA: Yes, here's the article.

40 :-o good grief!!!

why is adopting a dog from here a better thing to do than adopting one from overseas?

Well, for a start, the cost alone of flying 40 puppies over and keeping them in quarantine for six months here could have done far more for other dogs in the country of origin if used over there.

here's a good example of why.

Ok, not sri lanka, but a quick google has brought up this centre in Bangalore doing an excellent job, not just helping the animals, but raising awareness etc.
http://www.cupabangalore.org/

40 x £4500 (to bring a puppy over) would go a long way to supporting several such centres I'm sure.

yes i know and if it were me thats what i;d chose to do, but despite the fiscal daftness they are still doing a nice thing for dogs.

I went to India last October and saw plenty of stray dogs.  Only one had my sympathy - and that was obviously someone's pet that was loose and was in danger of getting run over - it had no road sense at all.  (no I didn't try to catch it - a) because of rabies!, b) because there was nothing I could do with it even if I could have caught it without getting run over myself)  When you see humans living in poverty one can't loose sleep over dogs.  All the strays were very independant and looked fairly fit.  Certainly no worse than any of the monkeys that were also everywhere.   I would not give money towards this venture of importing puppies - they may be sweet little puppies when they are rescued but not by the time they come out of quarantine.  As in the Bangalore case money is better spent neutering strays.  I suppose it is just as well we are all different.

jeangenie

this is what i was stating in my other post about the p/p vacc a couple of weeks ago

i read in the paper that the dog came over bye a charity case

Sri Lanka has a HUGE rabies problem and to be honest this woman is totally irresponsible to import street dogs ( the highest risk catagory !) into a rabies free country - can you just imagine if the dog had bitten another dog .

Her and her charity are regarded as something of a 'loose cannon' by the main animal welfare groups  - the best way of helping the street dogs in these countries is to support the many animal welfare groups that already exist 'on the ground' there.

as it is, her stupidity has cost the lives of the three other dogs that were also imported in with the affected pup - and anguish to the un vaccinated kennel worker that was bitten and now has to wait for up to 11 months to see if they will develop this dreadful disease.

Yvonne

I always thought Vets and quarantine workers had to be vaccinated?

I can't imagine the stress of the poor kennel girl waiting to see if she has a death sentence (Rabies is incurable).

personally i agree with you ceejay, i think that either investing in rescue here or endevouring to spay and educate overseas would work better, but i still think these folk are trying to do the right thing.

they all were vaccinated, no symptoms so far so they should be fine. scary scary time though i imagine.