# Bringing pet dogs from ireland to canada process and cost???



## aaron_mcg29

I am moving to canada soon and want to know what the process and costs are for bringing 2 dogs over with me.

Any advice would be helpfull thanks.


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## hyde

aaron_mcg29 said:


> I am moving to canada soon and want to know what the process and costs are for bringing 2 dogs over with me.
> 
> Any advice would be helpfull thanks.


My partner (who is a carpenter) and I are thinking about heading over also and I've done some research into how to get our dog on board too. I've rang a few travel agents for more info and bascically a lot of airlines will do it but they dogs will be part of cargo. Air Canada, United, Continental, BA, even Aer Lingus all transport live animals as part of cargo. The price is relatively cheap - approx €100. you will need to go ahead and book your flights then ring the airline and book the dog in as part of cargo on that flight as far as I know. 
Good luck.


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## pixiepasty

If you want to fly them directly (as we do to reduce their stress levels/chances of them getting lost) and assuming you want to head from Dublin or Shannon to Toronto then you're limited to Air Canada or Air Transat. And if you check out Air Canada's freight website you'll see that they don't ship animals in winter (they'd freeze if left on the tarmac at Pearson) or summer (they'd roast). So the available dates are quite limited if you fly with them. Ours is heading out on Air Transat in June - you book using a pet freight company - you can't seem to do it direct with the airline. Get several quotes - some seem much more expensive and less helpful than others!


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## G-Mo

There's more to it that just booking a flight. You need Information from your vet stating the dog is rabies free and there have been no rabies cases reported in Ireland in the last 6 months preceding your travel. It also must state your dog has been in Ireland for the last 6 months and is over 8 months old... It is advisable to vaccinate for rabies 30 days before you travel.


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## hyde

G-Mo said:


> There's more to it that just booking a flight. You need Information from your vet stating the dog is rabies free and there have been no rabies cases reported in Ireland in the last 6 months preceding your travel. It also must state your dog has been in Ireland for the last 6 months and is over 8 months old... It is advisable to vaccinate for rabies 30 days before you travel.


Of course there is all that side of things with the dog also. Once you get the rabies vaccine, you have to get a blood check 3 weeks later to make sure all is ok and there is an appropriate level of the vaccine in the dogs blood stream. Once the blood tests have been received back and signed off from your vet - that vaccine is good for 3 years. You'll just need a health cert from vet about 48 hours before you fly to confirm the animal is in good health.
Found a pretty interesting site called Multi Cargo .ie which transport pets.


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## G-Mo

hyde said:


> Once the blood tests have been received back and signed off from your vet - that vaccine is good for 3 years.


Not all vets use the 3 year vaccine, many still only use the 1 year. Additionally, regardless if it's the 3 or 1 year injection, if this is your pets first rabies shot, they always need a booster after 1 year.


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## aaron_mcg29

hyde said:


> My partner (who is a carpenter) and I are thinking about heading over also and I've done some research into how to get our dog on board too. I've rang a few travel agents for more info and bascically a lot of airlines will do it but they dogs will be part of cargo. Air Canada, United, Continental, BA, even Aer Lingus all transport live animals as part of cargo. The price is relatively cheap - approx €100. you will need to go ahead and book your flights then ring the airline and book the dog in as part of cargo on that flight as far as I know.
> Good luck.


thanks for all the feedback..im moving to regina in sask so im not sure wheather they get transfered onto another plane or wheather there brought from calgary/montreal via road transit..dont mind the payments and vaccines cause there in great health..do they get sedated,is that an option?


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## G-Mo

aaron_mcg29 said:


> thanks for all the feedback..im moving to regina in sask so im not sure wheather they get transfered onto another plane or wheather there brought from calgary/montreal via road transit..dont mind the payments and vaccines cause there in great health..do they get sedated,is that an option?


No, it is not advisable to sedate animals for flight.


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## aaron_mcg29

G-Mo said:


> No, it is not advisable to sedate animals for flight.


ok so what about transport from montreal/calgary..do they get on another plane or do they get dropped off by road transit?


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## G-Mo

aaron_mcg29 said:


> ok so what about transport from montreal/calgary..do they get on another plane or do they get dropped off by road transit?


Um, you will want to fly them. It would be a 45 hour drive from Montreal to Calgary.


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## aaron_mcg29

G-Mo said:


> Um, you will want to fly them. It would be a 45 hour drive from Montreal to Calgary.


no sorry i meant to regina from either montreal/calgary


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## G-Mo

aaron_mcg29 said:


> no sorry i meant to regina from either montreal/calgary


Montreal is still a 34 hours drive, I don't think you want your dogs to endure that.

Calgary is a slightly more reasonable 9 hour drive... But, I personally wouldn't do it. Fly them.


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## dealdish

my husband and i plus 4 kids are desperate to move to canada.has anyone personal experience of skilled workers visa as i would love to know if he is offered work ,how long does this process take.or should we go to global visas and ask .while waiting for job offer apart from research and passports and pet tests,what should we be organizing .also i have 4 young teens who are country kids so we would love someone to recommend good small towns or villages to live


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## dealdish

may i ask how long u are living in canada,as we hope to move with 4 kids in next few months.thanks


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## G-Mo

dealdish said:


> my husband and i plus 4 kids are desperate to move to canada.has anyone personal experience of skilled workers visa as i would love to know if he is offered work ,how long does this process take.or should we go to global visas and ask .while waiting for job offer apart from research and passports and pet tests,what should we be organizing .also i have 4 young teens who are country kids so we would love someone to recommend good small towns or villages to live


What sort of work does your husband do?


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## aaron_mcg29

G-Mo said:


> Montreal is still a 34 hours drive, I don't think you want your dogs to endure that.
> 
> Calgary is a slightly more reasonable 9 hour drive... But, I personally wouldn't do it. Fly them.


is the cold weather in the winter ok for them to be outside while me and my wife are in work?


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## G-Mo

aaron_mcg29 said:


> is the cold weather in the winter ok for them to be outside while me and my wife are in work?


No! Absolutely No!!


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## SharonJ

Just for the record what type of dogs are we talking about. There are certain breeds that are banned in Canada although allowed in other parts of the world


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## aaron_mcg29

SharonJ said:


> Just for the record what type of dogs are we talking about. There are certain breeds that are banned in Canada although allowed in other parts of the world


na there not off that banned list....what would be the alternative..i dont want to keep them locked in all day..there trained to go to the toilet outside..


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## Wexford_Ireland

At temps down to -40c no way do you let dogs outside unless they are bred for it like huskies and even they aren't happy at that.

House train the dogs, keep them in an attached garage with a frost heater or look for a good home would be my opinion

John


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## G-Mo

aaron_mcg29 said:


> na there not off that banned list....what would be the alternative..i dont want to keep them locked in all day..there trained to go to the toilet outside..


The dogs hold it until you return. Dogs can hold for an hour a month up to their first year, so they should be able to wait until your return. Ours have never had an accident on days when both my wife and I have been out all day (8+ hours).

Alternately, make sure wherever you live has a mud room or laundry room with backyard access and an interior door that can be closed and separate the rest of the house. Put a good lock on the interior door and lock the dogs in the mud room and install an appropriately sized dog door to access the backyard.


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## G-Mo

Wexford_Ireland said:


> keep them in an attached garage with a frost heater


Do NOT do this. SPCAs strongly advise against leaving dogs in garages. Adding a frost heater is just asking for additional problems.


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## Wexford_Ireland

Most organisations recommend not to keep dogs in a garage because of too much heat. 

Not going to be a huge issue in winter in Canada.

As for heating , infra red lamps have been around a long time and haven't caused "additional problems" for chickens lambs hens etc etc.

Buy hey you're on a roll today so off with you.

John

EDIT Now if you mean leaving dogs in a garage all day and night only to be left out for toilet then I agree. That's just cruel.


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## dealdish

G-Mo said:


> What sort of work does your husband do?


he has worked driving heavy dirt moving machinery ie.track machines,excavators etc.also has lots of attic experience about 150,000 miles,for 20 years.


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## G-Mo

dealdish said:


> he has worked driving heavy dirt moving machinery ie.track machines,excavators etc.also has lots of attic experience about 150,000 miles,for 20 years.


I'm sorry, but it doesn't appear to me your husband's work experience is on the list for the federal skilled worker program. He will need a job offer from a company here and they will have to acquire a Labour Market Option (LMO) to employ him as an overseas worker. With that he would qualify for a temporary work permit (TWP).


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## markthevalla

Hi, I hope this helps.

We've just sorted ours out.

Flying out from Gatwick with CanadianAffair (Air Transat), direct;

Cost of our dogs carriage was $275 each, no limit on size/weight of dogs, also no restrictions on size of dog crates, unlike Air Canada who limit dog and crate combined weight to 32kg, assuming you want your dogs to be on same flight. We booked our flights with CanadianAffair, then rang Air Transat, and booked the dogs in the hold on the same flight. Remember Air Transat are based in Canada, so there's the time difference to consider.

Generally if you need to book your dogs onto a separate cargo flight, most carriers will only allow you to book this via an expensive pet transfer company, ie, BA will not alllow you to book the dogs yourself.

Be mindful, as a minimum, you'll need to get Health Certificate application thru DEFRA, per dog, it's a free application, but will incurr Vets fees for check up and issue of Certificate per dog, in our case £45 per dog. On landing in Canada there'll also be a small fee for import of each dog, think it's about $35.

Also be mindful of this;
IATA and DEFRA both agree that the minimum import documentation requirements for dogs from UK is the Health Cert issued by a qualified Vet etc, and that the final destination has governance, ie you do not require dog passports when travelling to Canada, as currently the UK is recognized by Canada as a rabies free country. However, although this also applies if you have a connecting flight in another European country, some airlines adopt their own rules, namely KLM, who, if you have a connecting flight at Amsterdam, will demand a dog passport ! I've spoken to DEFRA about this, and been advised that if the airline demand it, you'll have to provide it, after all they will have the authority on who/what to allow onboard, this could prove both an expensive and emotional and logistical nightmare !

As a back up, in case we need to come back, we've had our 2 labradors vaccinated against rabies and are getting the passports in next couple of weeks, if you also opt for this, you need the rabies jabs done at least 21 days before you fly, also you'll need dogs microchipped. Our vet fees for rabies jab was £45/dog and then it's £100/dog for the final check and issue of health cert and passport.

Reason we're backing up with passports, is that to travel back to UK, the dogs are not allowed to travel in the hold, they need to be cargo and will need Passports.

I know it seems expensive, but trust me it's way more expensive thru a pet transfer company, eg I was quoted over £3000/dog !

Hope the above has helped.

Mark


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## Stefs Newf

markthevalla said:


> Hi, I hope this helps.
> 
> We've just sorted ours out.
> 
> Flying out from Gatwick with CanadianAffair (Air Transat), direct;
> 
> Cost of our dogs carriage was $275 each, no limit on size/weight of dogs, also no restrictions on size of dog crates, unlike Air Canada who limit dog and crate combined weight to 32kg, assuming you want your dogs to be on same flight. We booked our flights with CanadianAffair, then rang Air Transat, and booked the dogs in the hold on the same flight. Remember Air Transat are based in Canada, so there's the time difference to consider.
> 
> Generally if you need to book your dogs onto a separate cargo flight, most carriers will only allow you to book this via an expensive pet transfer company, ie, BA will not alllow you to book the dogs yourself.
> 
> Be mindful, as a minimum, you'll need to get Health Certificate application thru DEFRA, per dog, it's a free application, but will incurr Vets fees for check up and issue of Certificate per dog, in our case £45 per dog. On landing in Canada there'll also be a small fee for import of each dog, think it's about $35.
> 
> Also be mindful of this;
> IATA and DEFRA both agree that the minimum import documentation requirements for dogs from UK is the Health Cert issued by a qualified Vet etc, and that the final destination has governance, ie you do not require dog passports when travelling to Canada, as currently the UK is recognized by Canada as a rabies free country. However, although this also applies if you have a connecting flight in another European country, some airlines adopt their own rules, namely KLM, who, if you have a connecting flight at Amsterdam, will demand a dog passport ! I've spoken to DEFRA about this, and been advised that if the airline demand it, you'll have to provide it, after all they will have the authority on who/what to allow onboard, this could prove both an expensive and emotional and logistical nightmare !
> 
> As a back up, in case we need to come back, we've had our 2 labradors vaccinated against rabies and are getting the passports in next couple of weeks, if you also opt for this, you need the rabies jabs done at least 21 days before you fly, also you'll need dogs microchipped. Our vet fees for rabies jab was £45/dog and then it's £100/dog for the final check and issue of health cert and passport.
> 
> Reason we're backing up with passports, is that to travel back to UK, the dogs are not allowed to travel in the hold, they need to be cargo and will need Passports.
> 
> I know it seems expensive, but trust me it's way more expensive thru a pet transfer company, eg I was quoted over £3000/dog !
> 
> Hope the above has helped.
> 
> Mark


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