Taking dog on holiday to france

[beadyboo]

We’re wanting to take BeadyDog to visit family in France. She already has a passport as was a rescue from abroad. I’ve booked her in to the vet 3 weeks before we travel as per their advice and have been told she needs a tapeworm treatment in france 2-5 days before her return.
Has anyone done this recently and can offer any advice or tips. She’s a relatively new pet and I just want to make sure it all goes smoothly.

[AvocadosBeforeMortgages]

I haven't done it as I don't have a car and getting them across the channel as a foot passenger is nigh on impossible (eg a frankly ridiculous blanket ban on Eurostar, despite being able to take them on any train within the UK)

Were you planning to drive?

[dietstartsmonday]

We did last year. Drove over and they have a bit you go through with dogs.
When it was time to come home we had to see the vet for wormer 24 hours before. We were staying in a house with landlord on site and she helped us orginse vet. Was easy

[aglassofroseplease]

We have done it quite a few times. It can take longer to process the dog through at the ferry than us. Look up English speaking vets - we didn't have any trouble at all except one year we were ripped off by a vet - so it's a good idea to ask on forums such as motorhome and caravan ones as they're frequent travellers with their dogs to France. Watch the heat - our black lab really suffered in the sun.

[saucepot8]

There is a new type of tick in France that can cause death as it's carrying a disease. It was in the news this week.

[beadyboo]

Thanks all. We’re driving and going on the tunnel as I don’t think the dog would cope with being left in the car by herself on a ferry.
For those who have already done this, can you remember what treatment the dog needs in order to return to the U.K. and roughly what the cost was?
Thankfully dog friendly hotels seem relatively easy to find in france and then we’ll be staying with family.

[aglassofroseplease]

I think you need anti rabies - this is useful: www.gov.uk/take-pet-abroad

[QueenofLouisiana]

I did it lots of times with our DDog as she loved holidays so always came with us.

Check that your microchip or tattoo matches the passport and that the rabies jab is up to date. Don’t let the rabies jab run out, you need to start the process again if it lapses!

Eurotunnel are all set up for travelling with animals, follow the paw print signs to the reception. You’ll need to scan the chip in front of staff so they can check it’s the right dog. There might be loads of dogs around, which is tough if yours isn’t sociable.

On the way home, make sure you have seen a vet 5 days to 24h before you travel. They’ll sign the passport to say they’ve checked the dog for general health (no temperature, clear eyes etc) and given it tick and worming treatment. The vets I’ve dealt with in France like the dog to be muzzled if possible- but we had a border collie which they didn’t have much experience of.

[AgathaF]

It's fairly straightforward, just takes a little longer getting through customs because of the checks on the dog. Plan ahead and book a vet appointment before you go to save the bother of trying to locate a vet whilst there.
We used to take ours regularly, several times a year. From memory I think the vet charge is 25-30 euros. Just make sure they stamp and correctly date the passport. We had one put the wrong date on once, which was fun once we arrived at the ferry port!

[grannycake]

We take our dog regularly Better to find a vet local to wherever you're staying before travelling back to port/tunnel as it will be cheaper. Costs have varied from 20 to 30 euros. We have taken her to France, Spain, Belgium and Netherlands but we have a motorhome so she always feels at home

[Yokohamajojo]

You need worming before you go back, the french vets should know what they need. My only advice is to ring a few different vets to ask about cost. We were in quite a touristy area and the first vet wanted €120! We had time so drove a bit further and I think it cost €45 with checkup and the pill and stamp in passport.

France is incredibly dog friendly

[beadyboo]

Just wanted to thank you all again for your advice. Just returned from 2 lovely weeks in France with BeadyDog.
The crossings on the tunnel were a doddle. The U.K. terminal allowed dogs inside due to the exceptionally hot weather, and there was a great doggie playground which was totally enclosed so she could have a wander round without her lead.
The vets appointment was straight forward and cost the princely sum of €43. The tapeworm treatment was 2 tablets.
For the return crossing you follow the paw print signs to pet reception before you check in. You can get out, or do a drive through check. They just scanned her and checked the passport.
The whole experience was significantly easier than I’d expected and I’m so glad we did it.
She loved France and we’ll definitely take her again.

[fessmess]

We have a large dog and it was €42.