[*Pets Removal China]

Leaving China with a pet dog or cat? On one hand are the rules & regulations, on the other are my experiences (so far). In China it is highly likely every staff member you encounter will follow the rules to the letter. Bureaucracy is the right of officialdom.

At first, I was really confused. Almost everyone I asked mentioned this mystical Shenpu, so I hit Dr. Google up for information and found their website: a veterinary hospital in Shanghai. But… I’m 1508lm away in Dongguan, Guangdong province. So, then I found Joanne (Wechat: Joanne_Taylor) who added me to a Wechat group called UK Pet Travel Support. Through Joanne, I have shared and received information from a wider community. I’ve offered to collect cats and dogs for others (which was my original intention)… now completely focused on getting Panda back to his Anglo-Scottish origins. Following joining this group, confusion faded and has now fully been replaced by hope.

Duration	Requirement	Actual dates	Task
Immediately.	Register your pet (locally)
4 months before flying to the EU/UK; 1 month before flying to USA	Microchip.	8/3/22	Inserted by vet, Dongcheng, Dongguan (at a cost of 50RMB). Not recorded anywhere. Three stickers given. One affixed to pet passport. Scanned and checked. ISO chip purchased from ICVS, Beijing for 275RMB. Wechat: ICVSAsia
Same date as the microchip.	Rabies jab(s)	December 2021: Rabisin®; 8/3/22 NOBIVAC®; 8/4/22: Rabisin®.	Vaccinations given by local vets, Dalingshan, Dongguan.
Only for Europe. USA does not require this. Await results then add 3 months/90 days before date of flight.	Blood extraction & serum, for the Rabies titer antigen test. Send to the laboratory.	4/4/22-8/4/22; 12/5/22 – 23/5/22	Attempt one failed. 4/4/22: Serum extracted, Dalang, Dongguan. 8/4/22: Report received by post/Wechat message as passed. Cost: 800RMB. Serum extracted @ vets, Dalingshan, Dongguan: 12/5/22. Sent same day. Received at the lab/ 800RMB fee paid: 14/5/22. Tested: 21/5/22. 23/5/22: Report received by post/Wechat message as passed. E-mail: RabiesTest@163.com        Wechat contact at Guangzhou: YuAn-mEi-Mel
The sooner the better.	Crate. Get it on Taobao etc. Check your pet’s sizing for mobility. Get your cat & dog used to this enclosure. Remove the wheels at the airport. Petsfit, Petsmate etc are decent. e.g. copy this to Taobao: 【淘宝】https://m.tb.cn/h.frXmlmQ?tk=fg4i2Q3O7B0「禾其挂碗猫粮盆挂式狗饮水器固定宠物水杯狗盆架猫碗吃饭喝水碗」 点击链接直接打开	Ordered May. Arrived June 2022. Delayed by COVID-19 delivery problems.	Ordered via Taobao. Ordered a water bottle & a snack bowl that clips on the cage door. Grabbed a packet of cable ties.
Book as soon as you get the titer rabies antigen test results.	Flight. To quote comedian Jeff Green, “Book it. Pack it. F*** off.” eventually. Places aren’t easy to find. Get onto KLM, Air France, Finn Air, Etihad Airways, Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airlines, Lufthansa, etc. Flexibility and patience may be required. Pets cannot be flown directly into the UK, other than via highly expensive (30000RMB+) cargo plane routes. Using Turkish Airlines costs about 1053EUR for an 18kg dog with a large crate. Hold and cabin (cats/tiny dogs) prices differ.	Booked it in May 2022.	Ten phone calls, a few e-mails, a changed flight date, some worry and frustration spread over one week.
1 week before the flight @Shenpu (Shanghai) or your local Customs Export authority or quarantine bureau (e.g. 东莞海关. +86 769 2241 0751, asking for the “animal export department”). Pick up 2 days before departure @ the Customs Office (Bund if Shanghai).	Export certificates. Apply. Pick up.	August TBC	Yet to perform.
As each document becomes available.	Photocopy documents (twice). One for the crate. One for you.	As each document becomes available.	Started. It’s fun. Yay.
The date of your flight.	Departure. Due to COVID-19 restrictions it may be necessary to ignore the arrive 3 hours before departure and choose 5 hours or another amount. Keep an eye on these and check with the airport.	August 31st/September 1st	Yet to perform.
The date of your landing somewhere other than the P.R.C.	Sign of relief on landing in destination (or transit country before hopping on a ferry). Keep all documents handy.	September 1st	Yet to perform.

Last updated: June 7th, 2022.