For those that have moved from another state to AZ w/ animals... (Gilbert: RV parks, for sale)

[greyhoundsrule]

We will be in AZ in a little over a week w/ our 3 cats and 1 dog. My father-in-law told me to check the AZ Dept. of Agriculture website for info. pertaining to our animals (don't ask me where he gets this stuff from - I would've never thought of it).

Well I checked their website and called them and suppossedly the animals need a certificate of health issued by my vet back here before entering AZ. So I asked the woman from Dept. of Ag. if I need to show these certificates upon arriving in the state and she said no. BUT within 30 days I would need to take my animals to a vet in AZ & show the health certificates.

So I had scheduled the appts. back here w/ my vets and through the advice of my husband and my mother, I cancelled them b/c we think this is ridiculous! I mean w/in 30 days I should take them to 2 vets & pay all that money???!!!! My cats are indoor ONLY and were just at the vet in Oct., are perfectly healthy & have their rabies shots. My dog will be due for her yearly exam in April but until then is also perfectly healthy & has all her shots, including rabies!

So I guess my question is have any of you that moved to AZ from elsewhere done this or not? The only thing I'm worried about is when I go to make them vet appts. in AZ for the 1st time, will it be a problem? I always think worst case scenario so what if I'd have to ship my animals back to PA to get them issued health certificates? I'd be devastated! My family said I could always act like I didn't know about the health certificates. They claim that many people probably don't know and bring domestic animals in all the time w/out going through this procedure!

[Ponderosa]

LOL. I have a mental image of armed Ag agents seizing the cockapoos and Frise's of the winter visitors as they cross the border. I don't know what the law is on this, but in practice thousands of people bring their pets out here with them to the RV parks. And thousands more more here every month - many with pets I presume. I think the law has more to do with import of dogs for sale than with pets accompanying their owners on vacation or a to a new home. Dogs must be vaccinated for rabies and you do need rabies cert to get a dog license, though. Lord, they can't even stop the illegals coming across the border much less deal with little Fifi's.

[sablebaby]

I don't think you have anything to worry about. Anytime I go to a vet (well, my animals of course), which is always a different one because I can never find a good one, they don't ask if I just brought them in from another state. It does sound very ridiculous.

[MaimounaKande]

I moved to AZ with a dog and a cat, and I had never heard of this, so I certainly didn't comply! It was certainly not a problem. I did register them annually at the town hall (that was the first time I'd ever had to do that), but that was all.

[shroom]

I recently moved to AZ from So. NV, w/3 dogs & 2 kitties. I didn't need a health cert, and none of the vet offices I've taken my kids to have asked for one. BUT, if you are flying in, instead of driving, the airlines will require health certs.

What you **should do**, is get complete copies of all your kids' vet records and, if your dog is not currently on heartworm prevention meds, get a heartworm test & meds for your dog. The incidence of heartworm is increasing here, although it's not as high as in other parts of the country.

[exlexisnexis]

I moved here with 3 cats a turtle and a bird and never went to a vet,my animals are indoor and they are my business. Once you get a health certificate they will make you pay every year for a new one.

[skitow]

Ponderosa. I am still laughing at your post. I am now picturing the border guards looking in car trunks for illegal dog smuggeling. Still LOL. Take care. skitow

[utsava]

Just don't worry about it.
Are you moving them in your car?
If so, why bother? I know, somethimes moving companies
say things like that. Or I heard, that someone couldn't move
their plants. But nobody controlls your truck at the border
I guess. I mean I have never heard of any problems.
I never heard of animals having to go through this crab.
I have worked as a vet assistant at several vets offices.
Guess what, the vets never vaccinated their pets, why?
It is a scam. There are so many illnesses they can get
you cannot vaccine. It is a big busines.
It gives you a wrong scense of security. Just don't worry about it.
maybe it is a general rule there is, but nobody enforces it.
Just listen to your instinct, your gut feeling, and don't listen
to that crab people try to sell you.

[ORexpat]

I am constantly amazed at the way government agencies try to extract money from people, and give them a hard time. Four years ago I brought six cats in via private plane. I didn't do anything. They had their shots, and went directly into boarding. They are inside cats.
Also, to reply to two other posts: I have had great difficulty finding a vet in the Gilbert area. They have been terrible, and terribly expensive. The best I've found is a holistic vet who makes house calls.
Also, yearly shots, as utsava stated, are a scam. They are the recommendation of the drug companies!

[Kirmize]

Health Certificates are like dog licenses. There's a law that says when you have to have them. In the US the law is you are supposed to have them when travelling between states. They CAN stop you and ask you for your health cert at the borders, but I haven't ever had it done despite travelling back and forth across the US for 25 years with the military. However, as with any law, you are taking a chance. And when that chance is you may have to turn back in your travels, it's up to you to decide. I probably would wait for shift change and then drive through...
I went to Mexico a couple of years ago with my new puppy. I didn't get a Health Certificate, but I was extremely nervous. They looked at me funny coming back to the States, but let me go when I mentioned my dog was born in the US. It might have been for a Health Cert or for an import tax? who knows.
It is NOT true that once you get a Health Certificate you are required to get one every year. There is no central recordkeeping for this, anywhere.
You do have to get a health certificate for travelling on airlines. Overseas destinations require different vaccinations as well as your Health Certificate. Some countries require you to have your dog examined by their counsulate BEFORE you travel to their country. You just have to cover your bases and check before you go...