help needed gettuing cat from barbados to uk im clueless and only have 4 days to organise... can you help?

[tweenyb]

hi

i am in barbados and returning to the uk on tuesday.
I want to bring my cat back with me but have no idea what the process is at either end... can you advise or help?
do you know of any quarantine catteries near dorset and how much it costs?
all help appreciated as i only have to this tuesday and im desperate...

many thanks for all help xx

[lankeela]

FAB may be able to help:

http://www.bestfriend...rs/health/catquar.htm

[lankeela]

And the official DEFRA website:

http://www.defra.gov....edures/qprocs.htm#res

[eddy51]

Is this a UK cat that went to Barbados and now is coming back to UK, or is it a Barbados cat that you want to bring to the UK ?
If it is a Barbados cat you need to put it in quarantine for, I belive, 6 months this is going to be VERY expensive.
Transport of the cat is easy to arrange, just talk to your airline. The hard part is once you get to UK you must hand the cat over to quarantine on arrival.

[eddy51]

I've had a Google and the cost of quarantine for a cat is going to be around £1500, just be sure you really want to do this and can not find the cat a good home in Barbados. Remember you will need to leave the cat in the quarantine cattery for 6 months before you can be together again.
You need to contact a quarantine cattery before you arrive in UK as they have to collect the cat from the airport.

[Nosha123]

have you also tried asking your local vet?

If you dont have one.. you can try these.. I googled and found them..
Moorcroft Veterinary Practice
223 Dorchester Road, WEYMOUTH, DT3 5EQ · 01305776686

this may also help..
http://webarchive.nat...ngToTheUk/DG_10012523

as others above have said - it really depends on whether the cat is UK cat or Barbados cat.. and whether it has all vaccinations up to date.. it may need a pet passport.. and quarantine could be SIX months - and probably pretty miserable for the animal!
Good luck

[Nosha123]

This is a cattery - but not a quarantine one - though they may also be able to help you!

FOREST CATS HOTEL
232, Burley Rd, Bransgore, Christchurch, Dorset BH23 8DG

Purpose Built Accommodation Fully Heated, Covered Runs Peaceful Surroundings Any Diet Catered For Loving & Individual Attention Vaccinations Essential
Tel: [phone]

[lankeela]

The cat will have to go into quarantine for six months but you will need an import licence for it first. Carriers usually make the arrangements but I think you have no chance of getting this sorted by Tuesday.

Also you can only bring them into certain airports, and with certain airlines.

[eddy51]

If you have not contacted the airline and a quarantine cattery by now, as lankeela has said it is almost certainly too late.
If you are really determined to do this you are 95% certain going to have to delay your flight. If you arrive in the UK and have no arrangement ready you are facing having the cat put into quarantine by Uk immigration service or put down. Either way will cost an arm and a leg.

[tweenyb]

the cat is barbados born and bred, we are prepared to find a place here in barbados to look after it until we can transport it but the problem is where as we are coming up blank over here... as the people we can leave it with there is no garuantee that in 7 months time they will send the cat to us they may do a runner with the air fair.
we would prefer to bring straight to the uk and put in quarantine

[eddy51]

I can see your problem but there is no easy way out, there are plenty of quarantine catteries in the UK , but the cat has to go into Quarantine for 6 months which costs around £1500.
Why do you say ''no guarantee they will sent the cat in 7 months?''
The quarantine has to be here in the UK not in Barbados.
Once you are here you can start to make arrangements to bring the cat over right away. You could start making arrangements at Heathrow airport as soon as you get here. There is a specialist animal handling unit at Heathrow with loads of experience in this sort of thing, you could contact them as soon as you land.
You should be able to arrange everything within a week or two and then send for the cat.

[tweenyb]

Hiya thanks for your reply! i am under the impression from the people over here that i have to have the cat nuetered, microchipped, wormed and ticked and have the rabie shots etc then wait 6 months and then it can fly to the uk...also virgin said the same thing pretty much. we were told we would need to find someone here to look after it. is it different with different airlines?

do you know about gatwick? as we are flying back with gatwick.

[boxtops]

Gatwick's an airport not an airline - who are you flying with?

[tweenyb]

virgin

[boxtops]

Does this help? It says you need to book your pet on at the same time you book your own flight as they can only carry so many pets on a flight.
http://www.virgin-atl...ingwithpets/index.jsp

this also (from the same site) tells you about EU pet passports
http://www.virgin-atl...exusa_tcm4-663181.pdf - looks as if this where you got the "six months in Barbados" suggestion from. Looks also as if your pet can fly into Heathrow or Gatwick (Heathrow would be nearer for you in Dorset).
It does look as if nothing can happen, though, to enable to your cat to fly in with you next week unless all these things are in place.

[boxtops]

PS why leave the cat's air fare in barbados, couldn't you leave the cat then book its travel via credit card from the UK?

[eddy51]

I think only Heathrow airport has the special animal unit, but that is for animals traveling on their own. I am sure Gatwick has plenty of people arriving with pets.
I am afraid I know nothing about the rules for cats leaving Barbados , you need to find that out for certain at your end. But if it is true that the cat has to wait 6 months in Barbados and then go into quarantine when it gets to UK we are talking over a year before you can be reunited .
I can understand your point better now, if the people in Barbados look after the cat for over 6 months, they may become so attached to it they do not want to send it on a long lonely journey to UK.

[lankeela]

You will still need to get an import licence for the UK from DEFRA.