Relocating With A Pet Bird
Polly wants a cracker. And Polly wants to travel too.
It isn’t just cats, dogs and horses that travel as beloved pets. Tweeters and chirpers and all sorts of birds are cherished companions, and when families travel, so do their feathered friends. It can be an expensive and involved process, but we are here to help.
The first obstacle we usually encounter is that many exotic pet birds are actually endangered species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of threatened species is regarded as the authority for tracking animal and plant life at risk of extinction. BirdLife International is the official Red List Authority for birds. You can check here to see if your pet is on the latest list. http://www.birdlife.org/action/science/species/global_species_programme/whats_new.html.
If your pet is indeed on the list, then we will have to obtain special export permits as well as arrange inspections on the day of travel. Also, we must usually obtain similar permits for import into the destination country.
Another hurdle is that quarantine is often involved in the destination country. Many countries are still formulating their policies surrounding pet birds; thus, reliable information can be difficult to obtain. Usually birds returning to the U.S. must be quarantined for 30 days. However, if you have the proper paperwork when you leave the States, it is sometimes possible to avoid quarantine upon re-entry.
To note: With the scare surrounding the avian flu a few years back, some countries instituted a complete ban on bird importation and exportation. Please check with us regarding your ultimate destination. You can also check here for the latest information from the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC): http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avianflu/avian-flu-summary.htm.
Our best suggestions for planning to travel with your pet bird are as follows:
1) Check first to see if they are considered an endangered species;
2) Keep and organize all paperwork regarding when and where you got your bird;
3) Do lots of research (we can help) on the regulations in your destination country.
Sources:
Animal Land blog site: http://petmovers.blogspot.com/2008/06/truth-about-relocating-birds.html
CDC Avian Flu information: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avianflu/avian-flu-summary.htm
Bird Life International: http://www.birdlife.org/action/science/species/global_species_programme/whats_new.html
Animal Land Pet Movers – Blog – Arianna Licet Ariza
