Moving Pets to the US - Is a blood test required?
Name: Kate Kizer
Number of Pets: 1
Pet Type: cat
Pet Breed: mix
From: Cairo, Egypt
To: Salt Lake City, UT
Hi, I adopted a stray kitten at the beginning of March that I found in Cairo and I am planning on taking him back with me to the US when I leave Egypt at the beginning of September. He is fully vaccinated, de-wormed, has been micro-chipped and will soon be neutered. What are the requirements to take him from Egypt (besides the obvious airline fees)? My vet here has told me that I need to pay for a blood test for rabies (which is to be sent to a lab in Germany?) and other paperwork from the Egyptian government costing over $400 USD. My friend recently took a cat home, and from his and other people's experiences that I have found online, it seems that the things my vet is requiring is not necessary. Please let me know what are the requirements to take my cat from Egypt to the US...help! Thank you! Kate
Number of Pets: 1
Pet Type: cat
Pet Breed: mix
From: Cairo, Egypt
To: Salt Lake City, UT
Hi, I adopted a stray kitten at the beginning of March that I found in Cairo and I am planning on taking him back with me to the US when I leave Egypt at the beginning of September. He is fully vaccinated, de-wormed, has been micro-chipped and will soon be neutered. What are the requirements to take him from Egypt (besides the obvious airline fees)? My vet here has told me that I need to pay for a blood test for rabies (which is to be sent to a lab in Germany?) and other paperwork from the Egyptian government costing over $400 USD. My friend recently took a cat home, and from his and other people's experiences that I have found online, it seems that the things my vet is requiring is not necessary. Please let me know what are the requirements to take my cat from Egypt to the US...help! Thank you! Kate
Hi Kate! It sounds like you might have gotten a bit of mis-information about moving pets to the US. Pets are only required to have a current rabies vaccination and a health certificate within 10 days of the pet flight to be imported into the US on most air carriers. Are you planning on stopping for an extended period of time in a European country, or do you switch planes somewhere with your cat? Your vet might think you need to fulfill the import requirements for the country you're transiting through. However if you're jus flying directly to Salt Lake with your cat, you won't need any blood tests or labwork done in order to bring him safely into the US! For more information, check out our list of US Pet Import Requirements.