Thursday, February 24, 2011

Fetching Up Your Pets to Costa Rica

By Adam Evans


So you want to bring your pets along with you when you visit Costa Rica? Sure you can, but bringing your pets to Costa Rica means dealing with the legalities and having the correct paper work to do so. To avoid problems later, contact ARCR, the Association of Residents of Costa Rica. Since rules and regulations keep changing from time to time, you need to make sure that you are aware of the most up to date laws about bringing your pets to this country. The ARCR and Costa Rica relocation advisors should be able to help you out in this regard. However, to be on the safer side, contact them well ahead of your planned journey to avoid problems with customs and immigration.

Ed Mercer, "Co owner of Vantana Del Pacifico", an environmentalist and above all, a humanitarian, came to Costa Rica many years ago for a visit with his wife. Nevertheless, when he arrived there, Ed fell in love with the amazing beauty of the country. In Ed's own words: "I sat down at the bottom of the mountain and saw the most unbelievable amount of birds, butterflies, parrots, toucans and monkeys". I have been in eighty six countries, every state in the United States, every province in Canada and when I arrived in Costa Rica, I just knew that was where I wanted to live for the rest of my life."

Since he first came to Costa Rica in 1989, Ed Mercer has established his own real estate empire and became a millionaire by the age of 27. Not only this, Ed also passionately worked towards saving the endangered wildlife of Costa Rica and preserving its rainforests and environment. In his efforts to save the endangered species, namely the scarlet macaws, the white faced monkeys and the sea turtles, Ed planted thousands of almond trees, which not only preserved the natural habitat of these birds but also provided a natural source of food for them. Ed also provided safe nesting beaches to the sea turtles. Ed had all the strategic points sealed from where poachers carried out their activities by deployment of security guards. Ed Mercer's hard work not only increased the population of the endangered species but also got him inducted into the esteemed Environmental Hall of Fame in Los Angeles.

Taking into account the presence of endangered animals and birds in Costa Rica, it is no wonder that the country has strict immigration and emigration rules. Yet, with the correct documentation in the exact format, bringing your pets to the country should not be a problem. In particular, cats and dogs are not quarantined if you have just a complete paperwork. Customs and immigration should not be a problem as long as you have the right and complete documents, which includes your veterinarian's certification which must comply with the format of the US Department of Agriculture. Although currently it's not required, but your pets paperwork may need to be validated by the Costa Rica embassy in your country.

Moreover, your pet should also be vaccinated with the required shots. All vaccines besides the one for rabies must be in progress within 30 days of transporting the animals as well as Rabies shots ought to be over 30 days but less than one year. Your veterinarian should have all the necessary information regarding shipping pets internationally which should make a "not so complicated task" when bringing your pets with you to the country. No documents or improper documentation would conversely mean a long quarantine period for your pet or it may also denote no pets at all. Hence, always keep in mind to maintain a check up with the ARCR's current rules and regulations and stay everything up to date well ahead of time.




About the Author:



No comments: