All across Europe, folks on vacation easily cross borders with their beloved dogs and cats. The come-and-go trips are thanks to cooperating nations. The European Union Pet Passport scheme makes them a breeze. Now, as a no-deal Brexit looms, easy pet travel is under threat.
What’s the deal with “no-deal”? If the United Kingdom leaves the European Union (Britain’s exit is known as “Brexit”) on October 31 without an agreement worked out, Britain could be chucked out of the pet passport program. And that would hit pet owners on both sides of the English Channel.
Some 250,000 British cats and dogs are taken to EU countries by their owners every year. In 2017, the British government issued over 90,000 pet passports to veterinary practices in the United Kingdom.
Dave Kent has relied on guide dogs for 40 years. He says the prospect of more paperwork and long waits is alarming. “It’s not like you can leave your dog behind if you’ve got some business or a holiday . . . in Europe,” he says. “You can’t just suddenly go to those countries and rent a guide dog.”
In order to vacation in Europe now, British pets need a passport, a rabies vaccine, and a microchip. After three weeks, they are cleared to go. Before returning home, animals get a tapeworm tablet from a veterinarian. If pets’ vaccinations are kept up to date, passports are valid for three years.
The thought of returning to a more complicated system worries pet owner Mark Elsden too. He’s used to vacationing in France with his dog Alfie. “There’s no consistency, no information, no certainty about what’s going to happen,” he says.
Besides the microchip and rabies vaccine, no-deal Brexit will mean blood tests, health certificates, and long waits before pets can travel. On top of that, pet owners would be able to travel the EU from only a select few entry points.
British Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss says pet owners should prepare for a no-deal Brexit.
“It’s a real dog’s dinner (a muddled mess) in my opinion,” says Kent, “and one that I don’t think my dog would even want to eat.”
(Katherine Sofoluke’s miniature Daschund sits with his EU Pet Passport in Beckenham, Greater London. AP Photo/Natasha Livingstone)
