Moving to Ecuador with Dogs ~ FurBabies Sasha & Zoey Bears ~ LATEST NEWS

OMGosh, moving Internationally with Dogs is complicated and it can be so expensive.

I was at my wits end trying to figure out all the USDA Guidelines, Ecuador Guidelines, what shots, when to get shots, rabies shots, Microchip or not, Parasite checks, flea medications, and the list goes on and on.  Then I got on the phone with our new friends Brenda & Bard.  They had recently moved down to Ecuador from a nearby town back in November, with their two FurBabies.  Brenda called me up after I left her a frantic message...I told her how stressed out I am with the whole PupProcess.  I filled her in on the process we have dealt with so far and she suggested that I make an appointment with the Dade City Animal Clinic in Dade City, Florida.

   Dade City Animal Clinic in Dade City, Florida

Well, I did make an appointment after our local veterinarian starting doing things really wrong.  Oh and they wanted $440 for each dog for a total of $880 and that didn't included the USDA fees plus we were told that we would have to take the dogs to the USDA office in Gainesville, FL in person for their inspection.  At this point, I was truly going Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.

After talking to Dade City Animal Clinic for only a few minutes our coordinator had a plan in place for us.  This was the BEST phone call I could have made during this nutty process.  Well except calling Brenda :-) 

Sasha

Zoey Bear

Here is our FurBabies plan (see your own Veterinarian for your Pets Personal Plan):

1. Microchip (more than 60 days and before Rabies or anything else) *Not Required, for Ecuador Customs*
2. Rabies Shot (at least 60 prior, 1-3 years Rabies Injection is fine)
3. Da2ppcv+L Injections (at least 21 days prior to leaving)
4. Parasite Check if not on HeartWorm medicine (within 21 days of leaving)
5. Flea Treatment (within 21 days of leaving)
6. Dade City will then sign the Health Certificate, fill out the proper forms, translate into Spanish, and overnight all of the paperwork to the USDA.
7. When the USDA is finished and they have sent back the completed documents to Dade City we can go down and pick up the original documents.  According to Dade City, the USDA response time is super fast.
8. Then we will make 3 full sets of copies of all the documents.  We will show the original to customs and the airlines.  If they need a copy of the paperwork I will already have copies made for them (Thanks, Brenda for that advice.)
9. At least 48 hours before our flight we have to fax American Airlines their Documents for the airlines records.
10. In the end, the process will cost less than $450 total for both Furbabies and the USDA.
11. NEW TO DO....Hey! You are also supposed to send AGROCALIDAD in Ecuador an email 48 hours before arrival with the flight info so they know you are bringing dogs, this way you make sure there is somebody there, if you are arriving after 6pm (they told me, I'm not sure if it happens) there won't be anyone unless they are waiting for somebody else with pets, and you'll end up waiting a LONG time, considering there are no pet relief areas in the airports, your babies might suffer a bit.  Thanks, Patricia

Note:  This information is for OUR dogs, as of February 3, 2015

I hope this helps others attempting to figure this all out.  If you are confused or if I wrote this blog post in a confusing way please please please leave me a comment with the suggested fix and I'll work to write it more clearly. Share you experience and problems below.  Let's all work together to show that this process can be less painful, easier, and faster.

Good Night, Heather