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I'm from Australia, and we have an adorable Bichon-Frise/Poodle cross. She is the light of our lives. We have willing friends who will take her while we are away for a couple of years in Dubai - but is it worth considering bringing her? It will be an incredibly long trip for her, but I am also concerned about re-entry here as Quarantine is a big deal (5mths) and she might not cope with that very well.

Any advice would be gratefully received!

You really have to weigh it up, and also bear in mind that if you take her back, with quarantine etc the costs will be far more than bringing her over here.

So many people bring their pets to the UAE, and then dump them when they go back to their home countries or move on elsewhere, because of the costs and hassle.

Is Australia part of the Pet Passport Scheme at all? As many countries now forego quarantine, so long as the animal is vaccinated, has all their paper work, chipped etc.

Hi Chocoholic

No I don't think we do the pet passport... Australia has incredibly strict quarantine rules. Thanks so much for your response. It will be hard to say goodbye as she is such a big part of our lives, but I think it would be fairer on her to leave her with our friends who love her as much as we do. I can't bear to put her through the ropes with the Quarantine (not to mention the expense as you say!), as it is just being selfish really.

Thanks. I'll stick with the plan of not taking her over.

PJ wrote:I am also concerned about re-entry here as Quarantine is a big deal (5mths) and she might not cope with that very well.

What about the poodle - what does she want?

Friends here had dogs they took back to Oz, quarantine was a drag and I think they got lost in Singapore on the the way back but they're all happy now.

also look where you will be staying, the heat in summer is terrible for animals. many people i know who have pets keep them indoors during summer. if you are going to stay in an appartment - most of them have rule prohibiting pets. think about the excersise factor for your dog in summer, some breeds need open space and plenty of place to run.

the other thing is you may move here and then hate dubai and want to leave aus has very strict quarentine regulations, not only the quarintine for dogs (as you pointed out), but a battery of innoculations followed up by blood tests as well.

my suggestion would be to come to dubai, leave the dog with friends, after a few months if you are comfortable with your environment and consider it being a "permanent" move then bring your dog out.

Very pracical, thanks so much.

As for what the poodle wants... well she loves us. We won't be abandoning her and I think she'll live forever if we don't drag her through the ordeal of Dubai which - going by the points DBX has kindly pointed out, may shorten her life somewhat!

She's an indoor dog anyway, but yes the heat bothers her terribly.