My dog ​​or New Zealand?

Hello travelers!

I was hesitating whether to tell you this story but I think it is necessary to make these types of stories visible, because during these months, I have known many stories like mine and it breaks me that we have to have decided something like this.

How many of us have had to choose something like that?

A week before the pandemic hit, I received some life-changing news.

I had been chosen to travel to the country of my dreams (New Zealand) with a work visa for one year.

This news changed my life in an instant, because New Zealand has always been the place I wanted to live.

When the pandemic arrived, I was very afraid of losing the opportunity to go to that wonderful country, the news considered my opportunity to enter that country before the expiration of my visa was lost, but after a long wait of 2 years, the answer of the New Zealand government, he opened the doors to his country for me again.

But I didn’t know that in order to have to go to New Zealand, I would have to make a decision that would divide me between New Zealand and my dog.

Some time ago I began the investigation about the procedures that are needed to enter the country of NZ with pets.

Which I find absurd. There are around 40 pages full of requirements, which I accepted, and I was willing to pay for the corresponding studies to meet the requirements of that country.

New Zealand and Australia are the strictest countries for traveling with pets. Among the most important requirements is the 10-day quarantine that is totally mandatory and must be in centers approved by NZ. You have to pay around 1700 – 2000 NZD dollars.

As well as blood studies and vaccinations required by the NZ government.

Up to this point, I was determined to comply with everything they asked of me, but I am missing the last step and the most difficult of all: THE FLIGHT.

I researched the airlines that travel to New Zealand and there are really very few, also not all airlines are approved to transport pets.

The approved ones do not allow dogs as luggage, a private company must be in charge of the necessary procedure.

When quoting with the 4 approved companies that carry out the transportation process, they quoted me around 7 thousand USD, to carry out the entire process.

Which consists of leaving my dog ​​days before the flight for blood studies, vaccinations and the supervision of a USDA agent, for my pet’s health certificate. Adding the 10 day quarantine in NZ

That is to say: I would have to abandon my dog ​​for around 15 days, to meet all the requirements of NZ

Does this seem normal to you?

My beautiful Paco, he is 11 years old, he depends too much on me, on my love and care. She could never leave him alone for so long. Between cages and unknown people.

I contacted the NZ Department of Animal Exports to ask for more options to discuss my 11 year old pet’s situation and unfortunately there was no pleasant response.

Paying USD 7,000 and 15 days of processing to import my pet were the only option I had to travel with my pet to that country.

Is it really necessary?

Is it really a process to ensure public health safety? Or it is nothing more than a process to generate wealth for private companies such as those that carry out this type of process.

For me it is discrimination towards those of us who love our pets, those of us who defend their rights, those of us who make them a special part of our family.

Paco is my support after losing my parents, my great unconditional friend. And I will have to abandon this dream due to the inability of a system that destroys us every day at all levels of life.

This is how a dream ends. I will never put my pet’s life at risk and I would not abandon it to live in any country.

The call is (once again) for our rulers to create fairer policies for such important processes. The world moves, there are more and more people who migrate, and the way in which opportunities are snatched from us is not fair.

Dogs are family.