Advice on dogs travelling to Europe please

[peter21]

Hi

 

We are setting off to France and maybe also Spain, time permitting, in late March this year. We will be taking our border terriers. We have got the rabies vaccinations and passports. We will get the tick etc treatment in the UK 24-48 hours before travel but can anyone recommend a good vet near Le Havre for the return trip? Apparently some can charge up to £100 per pooch, which would make quite a dent in the Missus' spending money.

Also, if we cross from France to Spain, do we have to repeat the exercise?

 

Thanks in advance

 

Peter

[AndrewJo]

Don’t know anything about France into Spain

However when we took our 2 Pugs last year nothing could be simpler

My wife took the flee and worming tablets with us booked into the local vets where we were staying and they administered the treatments and duly stamped & signed the book FOR NOTHING We stayed around Leucate so my wife visited the vets with the dogs during our stay

Leucate is right down the south of France so then we travelled up through France during the 24 to 48 hr window this meant we reached the Tunnel ready to cross So no waiting about kicking our heels

You don’t have to use the vets sited around the ports that may charge for treating your dogs Just pop into the vet locally if you can then do the travelling

 

[JENIAN]

Learnt the hard way re vets around the ports. Avg price we have paid in Calais is £35. Went to Germany for Xmas to relatives and was charged £15 in Germany for the dog to be vacinated for worms and took our own papet of flee medicine for the vet to administor and stamping the pet passport. Calais vets seem to be expensive.

 

ian

 

 

[Patricia]

Some things to help:

 

Check the date in the passports when you can actually enter the UK - this will be 6 mths after the passport was issued.

 

You do not need to take the dogs to the vet in England before leaving unless you want to. I always treat for ticks all the time away and for other problems if going to the Med (see below).

 

Try not to use a vet too close to the Channel ports as they charge more.

There have been lots of threads on here suggesting vets. I usually use one in the town of Pont de l'Arche (close to Rouen), 2 mins walk from municipal campsite, I take my own Frontline and pay about 36€ for the visit and the Drontal injection. My dog also gets a good health checik too.

 

If you are going near the Med other precautions need to be taken against heartworm, diseases from sandflies and processional caterpillars. There are several threads about these too.

 

I had broken off for lunch so someone else has probably already posted these ideas so apologies in advance if so.

 

Send me a PM if I can help more specifically.

 

PS I have never had any problem going intp Spain but technically they only allow the rabies vaccine for one year (even for UK residents) whereas the French respect our 3-year duration. Strangely it is the same vaccine as far as I know.

[peter21]

Thanks for all your comments. I had assumed that the tick/worm treatment was whenever any border was crossed.....is it only necessary when returning to the UK?

 

Peter

[david lloyd]

peter21 - 2010-02-21 7:02 PM

 

Thanks for all your comments. I had assumed that the tick/worm treatment was whenever any border was crossed.....is it only necessary when returning to the UK?

 

Peter

 

As Patricia says you can do your own treatment whenever you want or when you normally do it but, as part of the Pets Passport Scheme, you have to have a french (spanish if you are leaving from a spanish port of course) vet administer the tick/worm treatments no sooner than 48 hours before your departure time and later than 24 hours before.

 

This treatment has to be entered into the passport and signed/stamped by the administering vet.

 

As the scheme is for the protection of the UK against rabies it is not a requirement to do the treatments on the outward journey or across european borders. - only coming back into Britain.

 

David

[Guest Tracker]

The DEFRA website explains it all.

 

http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/travel/

[Mel B]

Managed to get the search to work for you, have a read of the below threads:

 

Pet passport threads

[W3526602]

Hi,

 

Avoid returning to UK on a Monday ..... vets charge extra for weekenf appointments.

 

602

[Rainbow-Chasers]

Spanish are not keen on dogs - so don't expect any special treatment! :-D

[Mr. Grumpy]

Peter21 I have sent you a PM about your dogs.

[takeaflight]

If anyone would like to use or add to French Vet Map that would be great.

 

Roy

 

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=114105716909631660500.0004774b0e0d2d4d09429&ll=47.249407,2.197266&spn=13.488343,27.905273&z=5

[handyman]

W3526602 - 2010-02-22 5:27 AM

 

Hi,

 

Avoid returning to UK on a Monday ..... vets charge extra for weekenf appointments.

 

602

 

This is very important. We found that trying to get a vet on a saturday was sometimes a problem. Didnt know that they charged more for a saturday appointment...........

[Mel B]

It must depend on the vet as to whether they charge more for a Saturday, in our experience it hasn't made a difference whether it's a Friday or a Saturday, unless of course it's outside of their normal opening hours.

[peter21]

Thanks for all your helpful comments. I think we will take out some medication for a french vet to administer (in the allotted time slot). We can get Drontal for the worm treatment.....are there any suggestions for the tick treatments? The defra pages aren't very specific on this.

 

Colin....one of our our border terriers...is not very brave and would much rather not have an injection, or be asked to swallow anything that wasn't food.... if possible.

 

Peter

 

 

[Patricia]

peter21 - 2010-02-23 10:27 PM

 

Thanks for all your helpful comments. I think we will take out some medication for a french vet to administer (in the allotted time slot). We can get Drontal for the worm treatment.....are there any suggestions for the tick treatments? The defra pages aren't very specific on this.

 

Colin....one of our our border terriers...is not very brave and would much rather not have an injection, or be asked to swallow anything that wasn't food.... if possible.

 

Peter

 

 

Over the years I have visited several French vets and all but one insisted on administering the Drontal by injection which my dog never appears to feel. They are not happy with the tablets as sneaky dogs spit them out again! The usual treatment for ticks is Frontline which is very expensive in France now so this is the one that I supply to the vet. I administer it every month anyway whilst abroad because some years there are huge numbers of ticks and you have to clear the dog's coat (not easy in my case) after each walk. They can get a terrible disease from ticks (I forget the name but it is usually fatal) and I have spoken to many people who have had ticks on their own bodies.

[Patricia]

takeaflight - 2010-02-23 2:12 PM

 

If anyone would like to use or add to French Vet Map that would be great.

 

Roy

 

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=114105716909631660500.0004774b0e0d2d4d09429&ll=47.249407,2.197266&spn=13.488343,27.905273&z=5

 

I would be happy to contribute to the map if I could work out how to do it! I think this is a good idea but is there any way that you can print the town first rather than the name of the vet?

 

Another useful way of finding a vet is to look in the French phone book (annuaire) - www.pagesjaunes.fr. Enter "veterinaire" in the "qui" and the name of the town in the "ou". Don't worry about accents. The name, address, telephone number and a small map will come up. Most vets will understand at least a few words of English or with the map you could visit and the opening hours will probably be on a plate outside. Incidentally you address a French vet as "docteur" rather than "monsieur".

[takeaflight]

Hi patrica

 

"but is there any way that you can print the town first rather than the name of the vet? "

 

If you zoom in on the map, towns will appear. But really the idea is to add comments from users, eg parking, English spoken, maybe their fee, anything that may be useful , like a mini review.

 

if you follow through the French Vet map Thread this may help you post. But you do have to login to Google maps first, then you can add to the map.

 

Thanks Roy

[maggyd]

I start using Frontline in Feb; and if need be I give worm treatment, then 8 weeks later I do it again, I take no chances with flea,s or ticks! I try to work it out so that when we come back it is between 6 to eight weeks of the last treatment. I take Frontline and a drontal tab with me but if I have used them up the Vet gives the same treatment in France. Last year they didnt have the Frontline at the French Vet but gave him Advan!! something or other but it is just the same as Frontline I prefer the Drontal tab to the injection as mine is only a 5kg dog but lots of people get the injection in bigger dogs with no problem.

 

If you get stuck, we use a Vet at Marquis which is very reasonable I think I paid 21Euro for them to administer and stamp the passport and about 35 or 6 when they used theirs.

[Guest Tracker]

 

 

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=114105716909631660500.0004774b0e0d2d4d09429&ll=47.249407,2.197266&spn=13.488343,27.905273&z=5

 

If you zoom in on Calais port from this Vet map link you can see where the vans park up overnight!

[Patricia]

Maggyd, I always believed that Frontline should be administered every 4 weeks to guard against ticks, every 8 weeks against fleas.

 

With regard to vet fees I think they charge with regard to the size of the dog because the medication price rises correspondingly.

 

I have just look through all my "dog disease prevention" box and found the following:

 

Frontline for ticks and fleas (have never seen these on her). Also for ticks I carry the little "crochet tools" to remove them and examine her after every walk. Ticks are worse in damp springs and autumns and vary in number according to the French department (vets can supply a map showing the intensity of "piroplasmose du chien".

 

Scalibot collar - to try to guard against sandflies, ticks and possibly processional caterpillars

 

Advocate - against heartworm

 

Advantix - ticks, fleas, sandflies and mosquitoes (so as Maggyd says similar to Frontline but guards against more diseases.

 

I rely on the advice of my vet as to what to take depending on the area to be visited.

 

[Mel B]

Frontline is the tick and flea treatment we use and take it with us, along with worming tablets which cover heartworm too, they're not cheap compared to normal worming tablets but better safe than sorry as I understand it is much more prolific in mainland Europe. As for getting the dogs to take the tablets, take in some soft dog chewey treats (chunks) or some soft food that you can hide the tablet in, and they won' teven notice!

 

You can get both lots from the internet, much cheaper than you can from a vet, and you don't need a prescription either. We tend to use this one, although there are plenty of other pet suppliers out there:

 

http://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk/myaccount.asp

[Patricia]

Thanks for that link Mel, definitely cheaper than the vet. However, some confusion again because my packet of Frontline says monthly application but this link is selling a six-month supply with only 3 pipettes!

[Tomo3090]

Take a small piece of pate or chicken into the vets with you then when it comes time for the tablet, add it to the meat. The vet we went to did this himself and said he did this everytime because it made the dog his friend!

[TonyHilary]

Work out where you will be the day before the ferry, and visit the vet then since you need to wait 24 hours before the crossing.Find a nice town perhaps middle of France and that way you dont spend the time around the port and you'll get a better price. Bon Voyage