# Moving a bulldog from USA to UK



## Highpass (Apr 3, 2014)

Does anyone have experience moving their dog across the pond? 

I've been looking into relocation services and they're all asking for around $5000 to move our dog, which is 5x the price of a human's airfare and 2x the price of the dog itself! 

It seems we are particularly unlucky because we have a snub nosed breed and "regular" airlines won't fly them even in "safe" weather conditions, or so I'm told.


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## _shel (Mar 2, 2014)

No, airlines wont take the risk generally because it really effects their health. Not done it myself but seen loads who have and the other way to the USA and Australia. $5000 doesn't seem that bad from some of the quotes I've seen. 

Do a few searches on here and you will find plenty of people who have done it in the past.


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## Highpass (Apr 3, 2014)

Ah, got it. Thanks


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## AmyD (Jan 12, 2013)

I paid about that to have my cat brought over from the US.


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## nyclon (Apr 3, 2011)

Probably not cheaper but another option is a sea crossing if you are worried about the dog's health. I think it's the Queen Mary 2.


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## Highpass (Apr 3, 2014)

AmyD said:


> I paid about that to have my cat brought over from the US.


How much was that, out of curiosity? Maybe we can glue whiskers and a tail on to pass him off as a cat.



nyclon said:


> Probably not cheaper but another option is a sea crossing if you are worried about the dog's health.


I've actually looked into that, seems Cunard is the only ship that'll do it - seems way cheaper than flying but as they only have 5 kennels per cruise and a dog this size uses 2, I was told to book over 12 months in advance. We'll see, might be the way to go.


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

Many airlines have a summer embargo on flying livestock, between late May and early September because the hold conditions are too hot.Check with you airline, we had to wait until early September to bring our dog back from HK to Spain.only KLM had the right conditions at the time nearly 3 yrs ago. Very expansive, but worth every penny, our dog is part of our family.


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## bluesky2015 (Sep 3, 2013)

hahaha, now a days its hard for humans to get into UK and you are worried about a Bulldog..


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## Pallykin (Mar 30, 2014)

We had a bulldog in the UK, and we were unable to bring him with us when we moved back to the US, as they have breathing problems due to their snub noses. We had adopted him from an old man who could no longer care for him. He went to a new good home - I'm sure he was okay. But it was hard.

At the time, I was doubtful about his inability to fly, but I've since read that it's true. It's common to sedate dogs for transatlantic flights - but snub nosed breeds like the English Bulldog can stop breathing when sedated. As hard as it was to give him up, having him die like that would have been far worse.


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## AmyD (Jan 12, 2013)

It is NOT common to sedate dogs for travel. Most airlines will not accept a tranquilized animal.


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

AmyD said:


> It is NOT common to sedate dogs for travel. Most airlines will not accept a tranquilized animal.


Totally agree, sedating animals is a dangerous practice,they need to drink a little fluid provided and not vomit, if they were sedated. I was told when we transported our dog and cat to HK, and was worried they would be so frightened, that they just sleep with the darkness in the hold, and the 'hum' of the aircraft engines. They arrives at our HK I house very bubbly and bouncy, as if they had just had a long kip.
Sadly we only brought our dog back from Hk, the cat died of severe diabetes and very old age in HK.


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## Pallykin (Mar 30, 2014)

AmyD said:


> It is NOT common to sedate dogs for travel. Most airlines will not accept a tranquilized animal.


My experience is from a long time ago, so perhaps this has changed. My recollection is that at the time, they were using something along the lines of Valium.


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

Pallykin said:


> My experience is from a long time ago, so perhaps this has changed. My recollection is that at the time, they were using something along the lines of Valium.


I think, like you say, they did sedate animals in years gone by, but stopped doing it, and also stopped flying livestock, in hot conditions, because too many pets had severe problems and some died in transit, dogs and some breeds of cat with a snub noses also had problems with breathing, and airlines couldn't guarantee their survival on a long haul flight, so many stopped flying them. In 2007 when we took our pets to HK they just had a small water bowl attached to the inside of the cage, with a funnel on the outside to fill it,just enough to keep pets hydrated, without over filling their stomachs.


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