Quarantine for Pets in Singapore

[ashtag06]

You would probably have to board the cat at a boarding facility and arrange for the staff to pick the cat up from the airport since you won’t be able to transport him there yourself.

I see.. unfortunately the air line staff don't seem to understand how it all works either!

Not surprised. We tried importing a puppy from the US last year- was such a nightmare that we ended up just getting one from a local pet shop that they had imported in.

Hi Lisa - I actually arrived in Singapore yesterday, we managed to take out cat inside the cabin of a Lufthansa flight which went connected via Frankfurt from London, and it was actually very smooth and our cat was much more comfortable then I would image she would be in the cargo.

We picked her up from the quarantine facility today at Changi airport and the poor thing is panting and in complete distress. I do wonder how she was kept over night. She was wearing a cat diaper which we asked the officers to remove, as she refused to go to toilet in it during the transit, but they didn't and in the end it had been 2-3 days since she had been to the toilet. I'm really quite upset at the trauma that she's been through in her overnight stay, I just hope she recovers.

[MOCHS]

^ That’s why you should have used a pet relocation company. They would advise you that you should avoid having your flight landing outside CAPQ office hours 8am to 10.30pm (Monday to Saturday) and on Sundays/public holidays or else the pet is kept overnight in an air-conditioned holding room until the next available working day.

My husband’s cat was transported via manifest cargo in a temperature controlled cargo area of the plane. It is different than being transported as excess baggage.

Excess baggage means it is tied to the human owner’s plane ticket. If your flight is delayed or heaven forbid the baggage/pet kennel goes missing, that’s a cluster****.

Manifest cargo means the ticket is tied to the pet itself and the pet can be tracked from one location to another. The pet relocation company says this option is much better.

Yes, there’s the third option of the pet travelling in the cabin with you but not all airlines allow that…

This was the cat’s close to 48h itinerary:
- US pet relocation company staff picked up husband’s cat from my in-laws house in the US early in the morning.

- At least 4h drive to the next state that has an international airport.

- Pet was checked in and security checked by TSA, the relocation staff was there during the process and took pics.

- Flight departed late at night and it was an 8h flight to Amsterdam.

- Flight landed around noon in Amsterdam. There was at least 6h transit in the animal hotel in Amsterdam where they changed out any soiled absorbent material and replaced it with clean shredded newspaper. They also fed, watered, and let the cat roam outside her kennel in a safe holding spot. They taped a bag of food to her kennel too.

- Flight departed at night for a 13h flight to Singapore.

- After the fight landed around late afternoon in SG, cat needs to be checked by CAPQ & AVS staff which takes about 2-3 hours. The Singapore pet relocation company staff oversaw that process and took pics.

- Company staff drove the cat to the home address for home quarantine. We were reunited with the cat 4h after the cat landed in Singapore.

- Cat was healthy and happy. Kennel was completely clean too. The blankets and mouse toy my in-laws placed in the kennel made it all the way to SG. She was very well taken care of from start to finish.

Sure, it is pricier than DIY but having a peace of mind was better for me and my husband as these companies have relocated hundreds of pets for years with stellar track record. The US & SG pet relocation companies have worked together before and that’s why I went with them. US side handles export, SG side handles import.

Side note: Home quarantine option has ended after 31 Oct 2021. When the cat’s bloodwork & vaccinations were completed in August this year, the official quarantine space in Sembawang was fully booked until Feb 2022 (blame the pandemic). The company encouraged me to opt for home quarantine to be reunited with the cat in Oct 2021 as the option was being phased out soon.

[ashtag06]

^ That’s why you should have used a pet relocation company. They would advise you that you should avoid having your flight landing outside CAPQ office hours 8am to 10.30pm (Monday to Saturday) and on Sundays/public holidays or else the pet is kept overnight in an air-conditioned holding room until the next available working day.

My husband’s cat was transported via manifest cargo in a temperature controlled cargo area of the plane. It is different than being transported as excess baggage.

Excess baggage means it is tied to the human owner’s plane ticket. If your flight is delayed or heaven forbid the baggage/pet kennel goes missing, that’s a cluster****.

Manifest cargo means the ticket is tied to the pet itself and the pet can be tracked from one location to another. The pet relocation company says this option is much better.

Yes, there’s the third option of the pet travelling in the cabin with you but not all airlines allow that…

This was the cat’s close to 48h itinerary:
- US pet relocation company staff picked up husband’s cat from my in-laws house in the US early in the morning.

- At least 4h drive to the next state that has an international airport.

- Pet was checked in and security checked by TSA, the relocation staff was there during the process and took pics.

- Flight departed late at night and it was an 8h flight to Amsterdam.

- Flight landed around noon in Amsterdam. There was at least 6h transit in the animal hotel in Amsterdam where they changed out any soiled absorbent material and replaced it with clean shredded newspaper. They also fed, watered, and let the cat roam outside her kennel in a safe holding spot. They taped a bag of food to her kennel too.

- Flight departed at night for a 13h flight to Singapore.

- After the fight landed around late afternoon in SG, cat needs to be checked by CAPQ & AVS staff which takes about 2-3 hours. The Singapore pet relocation company staff oversaw that process and took pics.

- Company staff drove the cat to the home address for home quarantine. We were reunited with the cat 4h after the cat landed in Singapore.

- Cat was healthy and happy. Kennel was completely clean too. The blankets and mouse toy my in-laws placed in the kennel made it all the way to SG. She was very well taken care of from start to finish.

Sure, it is pricier than DIY but having a peace of mind was better for me and my husband as these companies have relocated hundreds of pets for years with stellar track record. The US & SG pet relocation companies have worked together before and that’s why I went with them. US side handles export, SG side handles import.

Side note: Home quarantine option has ended after 31 Oct 2021. When the cat’s bloodwork & vaccinations were completed in August this year, the official quarantine space in Sembawang was fully booked until Feb 2022 (blame the pandemic). The company encouraged me to opt for home quarantine to be reunited with the cat in Oct 2021 as the option was being phased out soon.

Unfortunately, we had little choice. We were originally booked onto a flight coming in on Saturday, we were aware of that issue, however, due to the VTL route we had very little choice and we had to ensure our cat was on board with us due to having a previous heart condition - our flight was cancelled twice and the only option was to land on the Sunday.

Glad the service you got was good, and the cat arrived well.

[hewtin]

Hello there. First time sending an inquiry so I am not sure if this is correct. User name MOCHS, would you mind providing the relocating company you used to transport your pet from the US to Singapore? Or if this is not going to MOCHS anyone we would welcome any advice or suggestions. Thank you much.

[MOCHS]

Hello there. First time sending an inquiry so I am not sure if this is correct. User name MOCHS, would you mind providing the relocating company you used to transport your pet from the US to Singapore? Or if this is not going to MOCHS anyone we would welcome any advice or suggestions. Thank you much.

I used Jason’s Pet Relocation.

[Lisafuller]

I see.. unfortunately the air line staff don't seem to understand how it all works either!

Not surprised. We tried importing a puppy from the US last year- was such a nightmare that we ended up just getting one from a local pet shop that they had imported in.

Hi Lisa - I actually arrived in Singapore yesterday, we managed to take out cat inside the cabin of a Lufthansa flight which went connected via Frankfurt from London, and it was actually very smooth and our cat was much more comfortable then I would image she would be in the cargo.

We picked her up from the quarantine facility today at Changi airport and the poor thing is panting and in complete distress. I do wonder how she was kept over night. She was wearing a cat diaper which we asked the officers to remove, as she refused to go to toilet in it during the transit, but they didn't and in the end it had been 2-3 days since she had been to the toilet. I'm really quite upset at the trauma that she's been through in her overnight stay, I just hope she recovers.

Hi Ashtag, sorry for the late response I think this topic got buried. This is really upsetting! If she was panting chances are she was very stressed for the holding area was too warm for her. You would think that they would have climate controlled rooms but I guess not?

[Lisafuller]

^ That’s why you should have used a pet relocation company. They would advise you that you should avoid having your flight landing outside CAPQ office hours 8am to 10.30pm (Monday to Saturday) and on Sundays/public holidays or else the pet is kept overnight in an air-conditioned holding room until the next available working day.

My husband’s cat was transported via manifest cargo in a temperature controlled cargo area of the plane. It is different than being transported as excess baggage.

Excess baggage means it is tied to the human owner’s plane ticket. If your flight is delayed or heaven forbid the baggage/pet kennel goes missing, that’s a cluster****.

Manifest cargo means the ticket is tied to the pet itself and the pet can be tracked from one location to another. The pet relocation company says this option is much better.

Yes, there’s the third option of the pet travelling in the cabin with you but not all airlines allow that…

This was the cat’s close to 48h itinerary:
- US pet relocation company staff picked up husband’s cat from my in-laws house in the US early in the morning.

- At least 4h drive to the next state that has an international airport.

- Pet was checked in and security checked by TSA, the relocation staff was there during the process and took pics.

- Flight departed late at night and it was an 8h flight to Amsterdam.

- Flight landed around noon in Amsterdam. There was at least 6h transit in the animal hotel in Amsterdam where they changed out any soiled absorbent material and replaced it with clean shredded newspaper. They also fed, watered, and let the cat roam outside her kennel in a safe holding spot. They taped a bag of food to her kennel too.

- Flight departed at night for a 13h flight to Singapore.

- After the fight landed around late afternoon in SG, cat needs to be checked by CAPQ & AVS staff which takes about 2-3 hours. The Singapore pet relocation company staff oversaw that process and took pics.

- Company staff drove the cat to the home address for home quarantine. We were reunited with the cat 4h after the cat landed in Singapore.

- Cat was healthy and happy. Kennel was completely clean too. The blankets and mouse toy my in-laws placed in the kennel made it all the way to SG. She was very well taken care of from start to finish.

Sure, it is pricier than DIY but having a peace of mind was better for me and my husband as these companies have relocated hundreds of pets for years with stellar track record. The US & SG pet relocation companies have worked together before and that’s why I went with them. US side handles export, SG side handles import.

Side note: Home quarantine option has ended after 31 Oct 2021. When the cat’s bloodwork & vaccinations were completed in August this year, the official quarantine space in Sembawang was fully booked until Feb 2022 (blame the pandemic). The company encouraged me to opt for home quarantine to be reunited with the cat in Oct 2021 as the option was being phased out soon.

When we were looking to get a dog from the US in early 2020, I don’t recall having that option at all. If they did, it would’ve made things a lot easier for us to go through with the process. In the end, it was far too complex and we didn’t want to stress out the animal so we decided to just buy an imported pet from a pet store here. At least you know the dog has arrived and is healthy and good to go.

[Lisafuller]

Hello there. First time sending an inquiry so I am not sure if this is correct. User name MOCHS, would you mind providing the relocating company you used to transport your pet from the US to Singapore? Or if this is not going to MOCHS anyone we would welcome any advice or suggestions. Thank you much.

I used Jason’s Pet Relocation.

This is actually the company we inquired with when we were considering bringing a pet into singapore. They were great and very responsive throughout the inquiry process, but quite expensive, around $2000 if I remember correctly. Was that around what you paid? We wanted to bring in a mini Australian Shepherd from Utah, where the breeder was located. Unfortunately this breed is not really popular outside of the US so we weren’t able to bring one in from closer. When inquiring with the breeders they also couldn’t give us very much information about the relocation process as this was also something they were not very used to doing. In the end it just wasn’t meant to be but we’re very happy with our dog now, he’s a mini poodle that we got from a lovely pet shop in AMK.

[hewtin]

Thank you so very much for the suggestion! I shall check out Jason's. Most appreciated

[MOCHS]

The price of pet relocation depends on:
- Species (Dog, cat, rabbit, bird, etc. Dogs are usually more expensive ‘cos they are bigger)
- Weight of animal (The heavier it is, the more expensive it is)
- How many pets (Cost adds up with more animals)
- Where you’re relocating from (Don’t quote me on this but I would imagine relocating within South-East Asia might be cheaper than relocating from across the Pacific Ocean?)

@Lisa, $2000 to import only, I assume? You’ve not counted in the export charges?

In my experience, the cost of importing a cat into SG was much cheaper than exporting a cat out of the US. I paid more for exporting (plane tickets are usually pricey) ‘cos of the USD to SGD exchange rate. With the cost of oil going up, I won’t be surprised if the price of a plane ticket goes up too.

Jason’s recommended the US relocation company based on where the cat was based, it was a Georgia company called Animal Land Pet Movers, extremely thorough & lovely staff. Georgia has an international airport while husband’s home state did not.

If you’re located in California or New York, then Jason’s will recommend different US relocation companies altogether. Regardless of what company Jason recommends, both companies will be in contact with each other to provide a seamless relocation for you.

Total cost of import and export for the cat was around SGD$5000 and I have acquaintances who relocated cats saying the price is the same as buying a pedigree cat.

Husband’s cat is just an ordinary cat (not a pedigree at all) adopted from a US shelter and he raised it since it was a kitten so he wanted the cat with him here.

Also as of Nov 2021 from what I saw in the news, they reinstated the home quarantine option again. That can be chosen if you don’t wanna be separated from your pet for too long.

[Lisafuller]

Thank you so very much for the suggestion! I shall check out Jason's. Most appreciated

Are you bringing a dog in?

[Lisafuller]

The price of pet relocation depends on:
- Species (Dog, cat, rabbit, bird, etc. Dogs are usually more expensive ‘cos they are bigger)
- Weight of animal (The heavier it is, the more expensive it is)
- How many pets (Cost adds up with more animals)
- Where you’re relocating from (Don’t quote me on this but I would imagine relocating within South-East Asia might be cheaper than relocating from across the Pacific Ocean?)

@Lisa, $2000 to import only, I assume? You’ve not counted in the export charges?

In my experience, the cost of importing a cat into SG was much cheaper than exporting a cat out of the US. I paid more for exporting (plane tickets are usually pricey) ‘cos of the USD to SGD exchange rate. With the cost of oil going up, I won’t be surprised if the price of a plane ticket goes up too.

Jason’s recommended the US relocation company based on where the cat was based, it was a Georgia company called Animal Land Pet Movers, extremely thorough & lovely staff. Georgia has an international airport while husband’s home state did not.

If you’re located in California or New York, then Jason’s will recommend different US relocation companies altogether. Regardless of what company Jason recommends, both companies will be in contact with each other to provide a seamless relocation for you.

Total cost of import and export for the cat was around SGD$5000 and I have acquaintances who relocated cats saying the price is the same as buying a pedigree cat.

Husband’s cat is just an ordinary cat (not a pedigree at all) adopted from a US shelter and he raised it since it was a kitten so he wanted the cat with him here.

Also as of Nov 2021 from what I saw in the news, they reinstated the home quarantine option again. That can be chosen if you don’t wanna be separated from your pet for too long.

Yup, just the import costs. $5000? You must really love that cat, I probably do the same though. And yes, I’d imagine that if you were importing from closer it would be much cheaper, not just because of the lower cost of transport but also because there’d probably be less logistics involved.

[MOCHS]

Pets are for life and a lot of expats in SG give themselves a bad name for adopting a pet and then leaving them in SG ‘cos it’s too expensive to relocate a pet or their place back home doesn’t allow pets. This has caused plenty of rescue groups here to be very cautious of expats who want to adopt a pet. You wouldn’t just leave a human child behind ‘cos the plane ticket is “too expensive”.

From what my dog owner friends told me, one big dog can easily cost up to $10K to relocate.

A portion of the relocation cost went into “administrative handling” on the US side and I am grateful for the staff’s help as they knew everything.

If I were to DIY the relocation, I wouldn’t have known the cat’s blood sample could not be tested for rabies antibodies in husband’s home state and it had to be shipped to a university in the middle-of-nowhere Kansas to be tested.

Likewise, there was paperwork that had to be endorsed by a “government certified veterinarian”. Forgot what was the government agency’s name but it’s the US equivalent of SG’s AVA, I think. Hubby’s home state did not have one either and the relocation staff told us where the paperwork could be shipped to and back within 3 days.

[JWNYsg]

I am desperate. Someone help me please on this topic

[MOCHS]

I am desperate. Someone help me please on this topic

I already replied in the other post you made… The past two pages in this thread has quite a lot of information too, and quite recent from last year. What are you missing?