In the early hours this morning (2:00am) Basil, Peter, and Jet Girl arrived safe and sound to our flat.
We hired a pet transport service to help bring them over. The process included sending full inoculation records, rabies vaccination records, and micro-chip numbers to the Ministry of Health here to get them a certificate to enter the country. With this certificate, they didn't need to go through any quarantine process - just a check by the vet at the Dubai airport and they were cleared.
The transport company came to pick them up in Milwaukee last Friday and they were boarded at a kennel in Milwaukee until their scheduled departure on Monday. We prepared their carriers with blankets & padding from home to try and give them some measure of comfort during their journey. Basil - of course - just went into his kennel like usual. He is one of the most well-traveled dogs (this is his 3rd continent) and we weren't worried about how he would manage the trip (except for the number of hours he would be caged without a chance for taking a walk). The cats, especially Jet Girl, were a bit of a worry. We got them in the carriers without any fuss, but then Jet Girl began her meowing. Overall, though, she seemed to be worried, but not highly stressed.
They flew on Lufthansa out of Chicago through Frankfurt. I'm not sure whether Basil got a walk or what the arrangements were in Frankfurt. They arrived in Dubai around 9pm last night. But it took nearly 4 hours for the airport vet to come to the holding area to conduct his health check. The transport company had someone there to manage the clearance process - so luckily we didn't need to wait around for 4 hours during the middle of the night.
When they arrived, we opened the carrier doors. Basil came rushing out to greet us. He was very glad to see us and needed to make sure that he ran back and forth to both of us. Peter also emerged right away, but he was more interested in scoping out the flat. Jet Girl was a bit slower, but within the first few minutes she came out and also started scoping the flat. Basil needed a quick bath - obviously he hadn't been let out to do his business. By 2:30 everyone seemed fine. All had taken a few drinks of water, eaten a bit, and the cats both found the new litter box.
Whew - what a major relief. This has been a worry for me for so many months.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
It's all so interesting, these stories about how you get settled. Glad you're all united again. I bet Lyra was happy to see the animals!
Great news, Jewls! I haven't taken my menagerie overseas yet (though we were just discussing the possibility around here), but I remember the feeling every time my sisters cats arrived safely! ~lmc
Have you been able to find their usual food over there or are you going to have to wean them to another brand?
Very glad that the whole family is together. I was worried about Jet Girl, too.
Glad to hear the whole family is together and the pets made it over. I was worried about Jet Girl, too.
Jeaneen clearly does not know how to use this blog and cannot tell when her first comment actually posts. She is very concerned about Jet Girl. She is also glad the whole family is together.
Post a Comment