Dogs to Andorra and Spain from France???

[Washy]

I have just been told that my breed of dog needs to be muzzled when it travels to Spain, it is an Akita, large husky type Japanese hunting dog, does anyone have any more information about this please?

Also to Andorra?  We are always taking day trips to Spain and Andorra and take the dog and have never been asked about him when we cross the border.  Also are rabies jabs compulsory for Spain or Andorra if anyone knows, or any ideas where I could find out.  We are resident in France and always see dogs going in and out of Andorra in Franch cars.

 

[Quillan]

Part of your post was something I asked about yonks back but never got a straight answer so I went to the French vet and sorted it myself.

 

Firstly, if you have not already done so, you must register your dog in France. Mine was already ‘chipped’ so I presented the paperwork and the Vet scanned the dog to test the chip and confirm the number. I then paid a nominal fee (about 15€) and the dog was registered with the Ministère De L’Agriculture et de La Pêche, After a couple of weeks I got the Carte D’Identification la Chien, Sam was now a registered French dog.

 

The next step, the previous having been done first, is to get the official vaccination document. If you already have a Pets Passport (and it’s valid) and have the test certificate to say the vaccination worked from the UK lab then the booster vaccination is given and there is no need to have a test. If not then the full vaccination is given and 6 weeks later blood is taken for a test to see if it is working. The only difference is that to go and return to/from the UK you must wait 6 months to return to the UK as stated in the Pets Passport. If you go to another EU country then there’s no problem, there and back on the same day as you get the lab report (assuming it passed of course).

 

The French jab, which is the same vaccine as the UK one is good for 1 year and a booster must be given no later than 364 days after the first. If you go over the date by even 24hrs then you go back and start again. The bit that interested me was why do the French give the jab one year and the UK two, what do the French know that the UK does not?

 

This can run in tandem with the Pets scheme so if you went back to the UK for any reason you just have to do the tick thing.

 

The French system is part of the general EU system which is valid in all EU countries except…….. yep you got it, the UK, you need the French Vet to use UK forms as well as French/EU forms, it’s just more paperwork to carry round.

 

Good news is that France was declared free of rabies last year.

 

Hope this helps.

 

The above is what my French vet told me and carried out. In the unlikelihood of this being in-correct then take it up with my vet.

[Corinne]

France is 'officially' free of rabies but this does not mean that the odd case does not come into France.  One case being only a couple of weeks ago in the South West of France which travelled through Spain from Morocco.

http://tmb.exodus.ie/exodus/news.asp?id=40832

You would have to be very unlucky to be in the wrong place at the wrong time to met up with one of these infected dogs but it is better to be safe than sorry as far as getting your dog vaccinated.

[mutley]

err not quite! due to a recent case of rabies in france its likely that existing legislation in spain has been more rigorously enforced. This does require some breeds and large dogs to be muzzled.

However you don't need a blood test, new regs from oct require all dogs to have an EU passport issued through your vet minimum requirements are microchip or tattoo valid rabies all entered in the passport the requirement for a blood test is for entry to the UK.