Study or living abroad: a question about pets

[phillipeb]

I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with study abroad or living abroad in regards to transporting pets with you. I would only sign up for the study abroad program if it was alright to bring my pets.

[Guest]

I would never put the stress of extreme travel on a pet even if it easy on myself. Driving with regular stops is one thing but the hull of a plane is a different story. The hull of a plane gets very cold...your dog/cat has no idea whats going on and I can imagine the change of altitude isn't very pleasant either(a lot of people don't like it but at least they know whats going on). Then there's normal turbulence...what you'd you think if you were thrown in the trunk of a car by strangers...then the driver started driving on miles of bumpy roads...I think you'd fear for your life and I bet thats what dogs and cats feel.

[sydneyvegan]

It depends a lot on where you go, but most countries have strict quarantine for animals.

This will mean you pet will be locked up in a quarantine station for a couple of months with all costs met by you (The time varies depending on blood tests, country of origin etc)

You also need to get a bunch of test and certificates before you even leave home.

[Guest]

I didn't even think about that...even going to Hawaii is tough. You've gotta quarantine dogs and cats for 6 months to make sure your pet doesn't have rabies(Hawaii has no rabies)...plus you have to pay a hefty fee if you want to do it.

[phillipeb]

Good to know guys thanks for the input. I thought about the stress vs travel acommidations but i did not think about the quarantine. During my studies i may be away from my animals for only 6 weeks tops but as i get into the actual working field of archeology i could be gone for up to 6months at peak season. I would hate to do that to my companions.