# Pet moving - Sharing my experience



## whiterose232 (Nov 4, 2012)

I have transported my 2 cats from Toronto to Dubai this week and would like to share my wonderful experience with those people who are looking for such information. There has been so many concerned associated with this task.

- First of all, I'm a proud owner of 2 great male cats (20months old). I have moved them to Dubai from Canada last month. Meanwhile the cats were with my kids who decided to move later.
- I was so afraid to put my cats into long journey but didn't have a heart to leave them behind.
- After series of research and study, I found out that the best airline to transport the pets is KLM. The reason is that they have one of the best pet facility at Amsterdam Airport, where they take out the pets from kennels, do the cleaning, feed them and let them exercise a bit.
- Moreover, KLM proved to be much cheaper than Emirates (Emirates: $2,500 Vs KLM $1,250).
- Other good thing was the freight forwarder that KLM recommended. I used Sea Air who are quite experienced with pet moving.
- Applying for Pet Import License also proved to be easy on Meow website without paying upfront. All they asked to send them upto date vaccination record and Rabies certificate.
- A Good Health Certificate is also required that was filled by my Vet and then Government Vet. 
- Both Cats were put in one kennel and were handed over to Sea Air 5 hrs before the flight. 
- The process at Dubai Cargo village was long and hectic. First, we went to Dnata office and paid AED290 then we went to Customs and paid AED30 and then we visit the Vet and paid AED835 (we didn't buy e-dirham card so he charged us AED35 extra). Then we again went to Dnata and showed them all the pay slips and stamps and FINALLY saw my cats. The whole process took us around 3km walk and 2.5 hrs.
- I find my cats active and in great shape. We took them home and get them out of kennel. They recognized me but the house was new to them. So since then, they are exploring the house and roaming around. They are still not eating well but I'm sure they soon will.
- I am so happy to have them around me.
- If anyone has any question please feel free to drop a word


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## IPS (Aug 21, 2012)

whiterose232 said:


> I have transported my 2 cats from Toronto to Dubai this week and would like to share my wonderful experience with those people who are looking for such information. There has been so many concerned associated with this task.
> 
> - First of all, I'm a proud owner of 2 great male cats (20months old). I have moved them to Dubai from Canada last month. Meanwhile the cats were with my kids who decided to move later.
> - I was so afraid to put my cats into long journey but didn't have a heart to leave them behind.
> ...


Good to know all this useful info !

IPS~


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## ckaroline (Mar 11, 2013)

Thank you sooo much for this information!! It made my day  I'm going to bring my dog soon to Dubai and I've been going nuts about this with the E-dirham card etc, so it's very nice to know that I don't need to get it. (For people interested; You can get a E-dirham card at Abu Dhabi International Bank in Dubai Mall) But I just find it a little bit waste of filling up this form, put in money and getting a card you will probably never use again. It's also nice to know that it doesn't seem to hard to do it yourself, the agents here charges silly high fees to help you with the import and make you feel it's so hard to do it by yourself. I'll definitely do it myself and come back with the result  Thanks once again!


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## whiterose232 (Nov 4, 2012)

ckaroline said:


> Thank you sooo much for this information!! It made my day  I'm going to bring my dog soon to Dubai and I've been going nuts about this with the E-dirham card etc, so it's very nice to know that I don't need to get it. (For people interested; You can get a E-dirham card at Abu Dhabi International Bank in Dubai Mall) But I just find it a little bit waste of filling up this form, put in money and getting a card you will probably never use again. It's also nice to know that it doesn't seem to hard to do it yourself, the agents here charges silly high fees to help you with the import and make you feel it's so hard to do it by yourself. I'll definitely do it myself and come back with the result  Thanks once again!


Glad to know that you find this information useful


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## CDN2012 (Jun 15, 2011)

We used Sea Air as well when we shipped our two cats from Toronto to Dubai. We also used KLM they are better and much cheaper for animals. We did all the leg work ourselves in Canada but used an agency in Dubai to clear them. 

How are your adjust now to the move? It took mine longer than thought it would. I was reading that cats are very sensitive to their environment.


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## whiterose232 (Nov 4, 2012)

CDN2012 said:


> We used Sea Air as well when we shipped our two cats from Toronto to Dubai. We also used KLM they are better and much cheaper for animals. We did all the leg work ourselves in Canada but used an agency in Dubai to clear them.
> 
> How are your adjust now to the move? It took mine longer than thought it would. I was reading that cats are very sensitive to their environment.


Good to know that not only that we share the hometown but the love of our cats. After the long journey, one of my cats took really longer to adjust than other. He remained under the bed hiding for over a week. But eventually he settled down as well. I'm so pleased to have made the decision to get them here. I can't imagine my life without them.

Hope we share the same feelings


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## Roadworrier (Jul 3, 2012)

whiterose232 said:


> Good to know that not only that we share the hometown but the love of our cats. After the long journey, one of my cats took really longer to adjust than other. He remained under the bed hiding for over a week. But eventually he settled down as well. I'm so pleased to have made the decision to get them here. I can't imagine my life without them.
> 
> Hope we share the same feelings



Glad to hear. Having the pet with us (dog) made a lot of difference....although it is very different for animals here as housepets are not the most popular thing in this region, our doggie adds to our lives immeasurably.


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## BodybuilderAngel (Mar 17, 2013)

I am potentially moving to Dubai in a few months & would like to bring my cat from the USA. I wonder if the processes are similar. I'm thinking of having her shipped over after I get settled in Dubai this way she doesn't have to go through the trauma of being in hotels & such before I find a place. Any insight on bringing s cat from the US? Thanks


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## Jager (May 26, 2012)

BodybuilderAngel said:


> I am potentially moving to Dubai in a few months & would like to bring my cat from the USA. I wonder if the processes are similar. I'm thinking of having her shipped over after I get settled in Dubai this way she doesn't have to go through the trauma of being in hotels & such before I find a place. Any insight on bringing s cat from the US? Thanks


Just bear in mind the weather in a few months will be at its hottest. We've heard of some horror stories of pets passing away due to heat exhaustion at the airport in the summer months. It is recommended you choose a flight that arrives in the early hours of the morning when the temperature is coolest and avoid fligths that arrive in the middle of the day.

Our cat 'Monty' arrived this week and despite having been with us in Dubai for only 48 hours has settled in very well and is comfortably curled up on the sofa beside me as I type this. However we bought Monty's cat bed and a few favorite toys with us from home, which I think has helped him settle in.

The one problem we had was our vet in Australia messed up all the paperwork. In order to be able to take him back into Australia in the future, Monty had to be microchipped. Our last cat who passed away a few years ago had also been microchipped, so when the vet filled out all the paperwork, he unfortunately used the microchip number of the old cat. When Monty arrived at the airport for his trip, it was only when he was scanned the error with the microchip was detected. This meant all the paperwork had to be resumitted, which with Easter delayed his trip by 5 days.

We used Dubai Kennels and Cattery (DKC) to handle his paperwork and arrival at this end and couldn't fault their service.


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## BodybuilderAngel (Mar 17, 2013)

Thanks for the advice Jager! I'll have to consider that when I ship her. Maybe I'll wait until October or when it starts cooling down. She's microchipped already which is a good thing.  It does look expensive to do all the paperwork/shipping which is something I might have to save for as well.


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## Jynxgirl (Nov 27, 2009)

Mine came over end of April I think. It was over a hundred degrees if I remember right... It was stupid hot at ten pm at night. They were in the warehouse/cargo section within an hour of the plane landing, in the air conditioned holding room. My cats are long haired ragdolls and didnt really have an issue with the heat as they were just carted out to me from the airconditioned room into my vehicle once paperwork was done. One of my cats was pretty terrified for about eight to ten days and didnt do well at all with the flight. The other was walking around my apartment by the next morning wanting to be petted.

For a cat, budget about 500$ for a flight (high side, think mine was 350$ from austin), and paperwork in the usa is just an export permit at your vet as long as your cats shots are up to date which was like ?? 40$ for me and on this side is like 1000 dirhams or so when you pick your cat up up. This is diy'ing it.


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## ckaroline (Mar 11, 2013)

Ok, just wanted to tell that I picked up my lovely little dog last week and everything went very smooth  The only thing was that the flight was delayed so we had to wait some extra time but overall I think it was an easy process. Just make sure that you have all paperwork, vaccines in order and it shouldn't be any problem. DKC, Dubai Kennels and Cattery has a very good import guide on their website, google them and check it out. But if you can, don't be afraid to pick up your pet yourself, it's easy and much more cheap of course. I think we paid around 800 aed here in Dubai for everything (customs fee, vet check, etc.) If your pet arrives in Dubai, go to Dubai Cargo Village and then just ask where to go, people will help you. Good luck!


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## CDN2012 (Jun 15, 2011)

whiterose232 said:


> Good to know that not only that we share the hometown but the love of our cats. After the long journey, one of my cats took really longer to adjust than other. He remained under the bed hiding for over a week. But eventually he settled down as well. I'm so pleased to have made the decision to get them here. I can't imagine my life without them.
> 
> Hope we share the same feelings



The internet really shrinks the world.


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## BodybuilderAngel (Mar 17, 2013)

Jynxgirl said:


> For a cat, budget about 500$ for a flight (high side, think mine was 350$ from austin), and paperwork in the usa is just an export permit at your vet as long as your cats shots are up to date which was like ?? 40$ for me and on this side is like 1000 dirhams or so when you pick your cat up up. This is diy'ing it.


What airline did you use & how did you book such a ticket? I'm guessing that's not an Internet booking type thing. 

Thanks for your input! :clap2:


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