Dog passport & France.. "dangerous dogs"

[battybird]

Have just taken our staffordshire terrier to the vet and had the rabies vaccination as a start to the pet passport. AFTER the vet had given it she told me that she did not think Staffies were allowed into France, and to check with the french embassy or DEFRA. Have just checked (DEFRA did not know) and the Embassy site is very clear that if the dog has no pedigree certificate it cannot travel through or enter France at all. If it is pedigree there are lots of extra documents that have to be taken. Waste of £36 and problem getting to Portugal in Novemebr now!! So thought I would tell others as have not seen this mentioned on the forum.

[giz]

That is Awful isnt it.... illl remember that incase any of my friends need to know..

[niknik]

I dont exactly know what the score ids for Spain, but they are considered as "dangerous" dogs, and have to be muzzled.

Have you checked the dog will be allowed into Portugal?

[sarahkeast]

I shipped my dogs, border collies, back from America [twice, dont ask !] and it is really hard work. We had loads of paperwork, took over a year to prepare, cost a small fortune, and vet still screwed up ! Didnt know about pedigree, they didnt have any, but maybe different for UK entry. Passports for Pets is a great thing, would never have quarantined an animal, but still a nightmare. Dogs' passports are no longer current and no plans to re-do them. But then no plans to go overseas, plenty to do in UK for now.

[pelmetman]

We have a passport for Troy and have taken him to France, Spain and Gibraltar on holiday with absolutely no problems at all.

As long as all the paperwork, chipping, blood tests etc are in place I would recommend anyone to take their animals with them if at all possible.

We travel extensively in our old campervan and he loves it, indeed we meet loads of people from England who regularly take their dogs with them and have never heard anyone having problems.

Obviously though from Battybirds post it would be worthwhile checking if certain breeds are not allowed in certain countries.

Sue

[giz]

there is Very strict rules on dogs atm, for me, i have a rotty whom, is famous, BUT still if i need to take him to certain countrys, he needs to be muzzled n everything, its stupid.. it depends on what dogs you have, so always research... I have 9 soon to be 11 dogs, so, i wont be going to any country any time soon.. lol.

[battybird]

We have a passport for Troy and have taken him to France, Spain and Gibraltar on holiday with absolutely no problems at all.

As long as all the paperwork, chipping, blood tests etc are in place I would recommend anyone to take their animals with them if at all possible.

We travel extensively in our old campervan and he loves it, indeed we meet loads of people from England who regularly take their dogs with them and have never heard anyone having problems.

Obviously though from Battybirds post it would be worthwhile checking if certain breeds are not allowed in certain countries.

Sue

what sort of dog is Troy? I really wanted to take chloe with us and it is really hard that we cannot...would be ok if we had to use a muzzle even if she did not need it..there are some staffies which are dangerous I suppose (tho I still think its the owners who should be muzzled!) so as its hard to prove she isn't, a muzzle is a precaution I can understand.

Having trouble tracking down info on Portugal and "dangerous breeds" . Will keep searching but If anyone finds out maybe post it here? A muzzle would be ok I suppose, just have to rearrange how we get to Portugal and miss France!

[RuthG]

Looks like staffies are not welcome in Portugal:

http://gowen.org/portugal-bans-dangerous-dogs/

and

"Dangerous Dogs
Some breeds have been identified by the Portuguese authorities as potentially dangerous. This relates to their size and jaw strength and a natural inclination to be aggressive. To ensure public safety, legislation was introduced in 2003 (Decree 312/2003) to reduce the risk these animals may pose.

For the purposes of this law, potentially dangerous dogs are:

Those which have bitten, attacked or injured a person
Those which have seriously injured or killed another animal
Those of specific breeds (or cross-bred with one of the specified breeds)
Dangerous dog breeds include:

Fila Brasileiro
Dogo Argentino
Tosa Inu
Rottweiller
American Staffordshire Terrier
Pit Bull Terrier
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Further information from the Attorney General, District of Lisbon website: Click here (in Portuguese) "
http://lisbon.angloinfo.com/information ... #dangerous

[pelmetman]

Hi Battybird

Sorry you are having problems in taking your dog to Portugal.

I have had a quick look on google but finding it all quite confusing as if I am reading it correctly you cannot take a Staffordshire Terrier to stay or pass through France! Yet Portugal may let them in if they are muzzled!!

I know when we were in Spain in January (with Troy who is a Chocolate Labrador) some of the camp sites won't take certain breeds of dogs and also came across some that will only accept dogs under a certain weight

Wondering if some of our forum members who live in France/Spain/Portugal could throw some light on this for you.

Sorry can't be of more help.

Sue

[Millymollymandy]

Don't know anything about the dog side of it but you can take Brittany Ferries from England to Santander bypassing France completely. Will probably cost and arm and a leg though and of course I don't know about any dog restrictions in Spain either.

[battybird]

Hi looks like we could take her on ferry to spain (costs £69 return from my search)and she would have to be muzzled while in spain...seems as though might need a licence although thats for residents , cannot find info for those passing through!! and as for portugal..muzzle? or not at all, still seems a bit unclear! will carry on searching but think we will have to abandon the plan cost an arm and a leg and distress her in kennels instead!

[trinder]

so sorry you seem destined to not taking her. However to minimise her distress is there no one you trust to house sit? I always do that I have cats horses and GSD but can always find friends or friends of friends who are willing to move in. They say operating from a different house feels like a holiday. good luck.

[battybird]

Hi
Main problem is that we want to go for a couple of months minimum and our friends who would look after her are coming too! Had a hopeful message from a website (Petaway) who told me that they have transported staffies through and to France with no problems. Never been checked at the border! As they do it regularly I am thinking of risking it as we will be in the car except for comfort stops and we will muzzle and keep on the lead in rest areas. Also the french ones are so big that you can usually find a deserted corner to park on. Still investigating though, so if anyone else can remember being checked at the french border for pets, I would be interested to hear!

[pelmetman]

Hi Battybird

Please do not take your dog to Portual unless you are 100% sure that he is legal to enter the countries you will be passing through. How would you feel if you were caught out and he was taken away from you.

Besides on leaving France to come back to England the dog will definitely be checked to ensure paperwork is all correct.

Sue

[battybird]

Hi all
I think I have found a definitive answer! the confusion seems to be with American Stafford bull terriers and the french embassy site specifically says that staffordshire bull terriers are NOT dangerous dogs. The concensus on other sites also is that it saves confusion if the dog is a cross bred not to mention staffie but just get the vet to put cross breed. Chloe does have the right facial characteristics of a staffie although she is not pure bred (at least not that we can prove...rescue dog!) much smaller, so she may have to be put as a staffie X but a letter from the vet saying she is not an american staffie should help the french enforce their own rules. The link below is where I found the french info:
http://www.ambafrance-uk.org/Importatio ... sommaire_2

Several forums threads have mentioned that owners who were stopped, showed the police emails or info from the french embassy site proving the current rules and this seems to work! So I will print off the page , take a letter from the vet, along with her pet passport and take her with us. In Portugal she will not be going anywhere except our home where there is plenty of space for her. We will have a muzzle also. Shame that DEFRA are not clear on the rules and that there is so much confusion! The 2007 thread which RuthG posted shows how many people were put off from going to France. Apparently Staffies are still bred in France!