Bringing pets
to Guam
R
egulations for taking a pet dog or cat
to Guam require that you must start
the process no less than 120 days prior
to arrival in order to enter Guam without
quarantine. All requirements also apply to
service and emotional support animals.
Pet dogs or cats entering Guam from the
United States should conform to Hawaii’s
five-day or less program and enter Guam
from Hawaii. The five-day or less program
is designed to allow pets that meet certain
qualifications to be released immediately
upon their arrival at the Honolulu airport
to travel on to Guam. There are five steps to
meeting these qualifications.
By Nadia Holm
Animals originating from the British
Isles, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and
Hawaii on direct flights to Guam may be
exempt from quarantine requirements after
and over, “Will you take Charlie with meeting shipping and veterinary examination
you?” Leaving him behind was never requirements.
a consideration and of all the things
Guam does require that your cat or dog
we needed to do, keeping our family
be microchipped unless the full 120 day
together was the most important and quarantine is to be served. The health
stressful task.
certificate from your veterinarian must state
the number of the microchip and it must
I contacted the Guam Department
contain the fact that the veterinarian was able
of Agriculture, Animal Health
to scan the chip successfully.
Division, who provided me with the
2019 Guam Animal Rabies Quarantine
Your dog or cat must be vaccinated for
Program Information Brochure.
rabies at least twice in its lifetime. The first
Fortunately, this brochure provides
rabies vaccination must be done after your
a great deal of information in an
dog or cat is over 3 months of age. The second
easy-to-read format and department
vaccination must be done more than 30 days
representatives provide quick
from the date of the first vaccination. The
responses via email for anything that is second vaccination must be administered no
unclear.
more than 12 months prior to arrival if a 1 year
vaccine was administered, or not more than
Guam requires an entry permit
36 months prior to arrival if a 3 year or longer
for each animal and the process
vaccine was administered.
can take two to three months
Dogs must be vaccinated between 10
s we were winding down on some
so advanced planning will help avoid
days and 1 year of entering Guam for the
pretty substantial renovations on a
quarantine requirements and potential
following diseases: Canine Distemper Virus,
house we bought a year ago in Hawaii, fines. Additionally, if the animal travels on
Canine Infectious Hepatitis Virus or Canine
my then-fiancé came home and asked me
United Airlines, you are required to use an
Adenovirus-2, Canine Leptospirosis, Canine
how I felt about moving back to Guam. I
International Pet and Animal Transporting
lived on Guam for 32 years before moving to
Association pet transporting company. While Parainfluenza, Canine Parvovirus and Canine
Hawaii five years ago and had met my future
this is a more costly option, if does significant Bordatella bronchiseptica (kennel cough).
husband there. A move back home wasn’t an
streamline and simplify the process. I am
Cats must be vaccinated between 10 days
unwelcomed development, but it was a pretty working with Island Pet Movers, a Hawaii
and 1 year of entering Guam for the following
steep curve ball from the direction we thought based company with a lot of experience
diseases: Feline Panleukopenia Virus (feline
we were going.
moving pets in the Pacific region, for Charlie’s viral enteritis), Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis
move to Guam in October.
(feline herpesvirus-1) and Feline Calicivirus.
Over the next couple of days, we started
Pets must be treated for ticks not more than
thinking about how to reprioritize our plans
Charlie’s move to Guam is coming along.
14 days prior to arrival in Guam.
to make this new and exciting opportunity
I am sure he will be terrified and confused
work. When we announced our news to
when his move happens and unfortunately,
Within 10 days of travel, the Veterinary
friends and colleagues a few weeks later, I
there’s no way to explain to him what is going Certificate for Guam must be completed by a
was presented with the same question over
on. Wish us luck.
licensed veterinarian.
(pettravel.com)
A
September 2019 I Furry Times I 3