[NAGDU] International travel with a guide dog

[Alysha]

Hi Miranda,
I just returned from a 9 day trip to Portugal with my guide dog, Xylon.
Overall, it was a good experience, and I am glad I brought him with me. Most
countries in the EU have the same requirements for entry with a dog,
although a few of them have additional requirements. This is a great website
where you can look up the exact requirements for traveling with a dog to
specific countries:
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/pet-travel
For the Portugal trip, Xylon needed to have been given a Rabies vaccine
while he was also microchipped. Since his last Rabies vaccine was given
before he got his microchip, I had to give him his next Rabies vaccine
earlier than I otherwise would have in order for him to go on the trip.
Also, I had to get an international health certificate filled out by my vet
within 10 days of entering Portugal, and I had to FedEx it to a USDA office
to be endorsed. The USDA will waive the fee for endorsing health
certificates if you submit an ID card showing that it is for a service
animal. One quick word of warning is that if you have a layover in another
country, you may also have to meet their specific requirements in addition
to those of your final destination. I originally planned to connect in
Heathrow, but their requirements were kind of crazy, so I got different
flights connecting in the US instead.

When I arrived in Portugal, I met with the vet at the airport who reviewed
my documentation and signed off on the paperwork. There is also a fee to
enter Portugal with a dog, but it was waived for us since he is a guide dog.
I again showed my Seeing Eye ID card as documentation to have the fee
waived.

Overseas flights can be hard on dogs because they must spend a long time in
very cramped quarters without being able to relieve themselves and with
restricted access to water. The longest leg of my flight was 8 hours, and
I'm not sure I would be comfortable putting Xylon through anything too much
longer than that. Luckily I was able to take him out to relieve during my
layovers, and he is a great plane traveler.

I had very few access issues in Portugal, and on the 2 occasions where
businesses were reluctant to let us in, the situation was quickly and easily
resolved. They have laws in place allowing people with service animals the
right to enter any public place, similar to the US. Everyone seemed to be
familiar with guide dogs and was very welcoming to us. However, people often
tried to pet him in harness, and my language skills weren't always good
enough to politely tell them to stop because he was working. I notified
pretty much everyone (hotel, tours, meeting facility, etc.) in advance that
I was bringing a dog. I don't typically do this in the US but wasn't as
confident with the laws in Portugal.

There are a lot of considerations that I would take into account when
deciding whether or not to bring a dog on a trip overseas, e.g. length of
the flight, your dog's tolerance of travel/breaks in routine, how easily
available your dog's food and safe drinking water would be, whether or not
the country is known to have a large number of loose dogs in the streets,
access to veterinary care if needed, access laws, cultural attitudes toward
dogs, quarantine requirements, length of the trip, etc. I don't know if I
can give a specific age at which I think a dog would generally be ready for
a trip like this, but I do think it's valuable for you to have traveled
multiple times domestically with your dog before going abroad. I would
personally really try to minimize the amount of time away from your dog in
especially the first year or two of your partnership. A 1-week trip would
probably be fine, but taking several 1-week trips without your dog will
likely negatively impact your working relationship. The longest I have left
Xylon is 4 days, and he's now 3 years old.

Anyway, just my 2 cents. Hope it was helpful, and best of luck to you in
whatever you decide!

Alysha

-----Original Message-----
From: NAGDU [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Miranda via NAGDU
Sent: Tuesday, April 4, 2017 8:24 AM
To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
Cc: Miranda <knownoflove at gmail.com>
Subject: [NAGDU] International travel with a guidedog

Hi,
I am considering getting a guy dog, but I am also an undergraduate student
looking at internship opportunities overseas within the next couple years.
I'm wondering how practical it would be to get a guy dog prior to a semester
abroad, or if it would be better to wait until I graduate and would only be
traveling on a less frequent basis for more short-term opportunities (10
days-1 month). If traveling to a country that would pose undo hardship or
extreme complications, I have considered leaving the dog at home with my
husband for more of a short-term trip (10 days or less). In other words, the
practicality of taking a dog overseas would need to be considered on a
case-by-case basis.
If you've traveled overseas with your guidedog, where did you go and for how
long? What are some other factors to consider when traveling abroad with a
guy dog?
Thanks for your help, and have a wonderful week!

Best wishes, Miranda 

Sent from my iPhone
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