The good news is that your animal doesn’t have to stay in quarantine for 1-6 months if you want to bring it to most European countries. But, you do have to do a lot of leg-work to make sure you follow all the rules.
First thing you have to do is make sure all your animals shots are up to date and get a certificate of Health and Vaccines.
Book the animals plane ticket and confirm the size of the cage. Try to get the largest size that the airline will accept. Many airlines do a lot to accommodate pets – offering rest stops and almost all have climate controlled cargo cabins. Each airline may have its own rules for transporting your animals – so check each one.
Book a veterinarian appointment at least 6 months before you plan to travel with your pet. Let them know you plans. They should administer any shots required, insert a microchip (required) and they will have to fill out the Animal Health Certificate (Annex IV Parts 1 – 3), which is required under EU regulations.
You will have to present this stamped health certificate together with the documents relating to vaccination and the antibody test to the customs authorities carrying out the inspection.
Book an appointment 10 days prior to your departure with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency they will give the official stamp. This stamp validates the information for travel within 10 days. If the travel is by sea, they will extend the validity of the certificate for the duration of the voyage.
A friend of mine also gave me the tip to organize everything in a binder, including receipts etc. – you never know what the customs officers are going to ask for.
Finally, you don’t need the Pet Passport to travel from Canada to France with a pet. The Pet passport required if you plan to travel within the EU.
Big Shout out to Dr. Wilma de Graaf @ VCA Canada Secord Animal Hospital for helping me out with all of this!
And – a little video of us on flight #2 – we could actually hear our cat Chester meowing from the cargo hold. We may seems pretty nonchalant about it, only because Chester always meows, doesn’t shut up really, so hearing her meant all was good.
Cat in Cargo
To Rent or not to Rent Shipping
France Escape 
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