Bo Obama does not have rabies, but that hardly matters to the law, which is why he is back at the White House this Christmas vacation, even as Barack, Michelle and the kids jet off to the land of sun, beach, volcanoes and "Dog the Bounty Hunter."
It seems Hawaii has a strict canine quarantine policy, requiring a 5-day isolation and a current blood test (done within the last 120 days) or else there is a 120-day isolation in order to avoid an incidence of rabies ever coming to the island.
Who knew?
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7 comments:
Hmmm - not exactly. If adequate planning is done, a dog/cat can be released from quarantine in less than 5 days. The 120 day requirement has to do with a blood test that can't be less than 120 days old when the dog/cat arrives in Hawaii. http://hawaii.gov/hdoa/ai/aqs/aqs-checklist-5.pdf
This program might seem like a hassle but it used to be far worse - 6 months, no exceptions. I know because I shipped a dog and cat from Korea to Hawaii in 1977. The kennel grounds and visiting hours were quite nice, but it was still hard on all of us.
It's so weird in Hawaii.
If a dog is imported from a rabies free country--like Australia, New Zealand, and the UK-- it can avoid the quarantine.
That's why the only golden retrievers I've seen on my trips to Hawaii have been of the FCI/UK show type.
Okay, call me stupid, but what is everyone vaccinating their dogs on the mainland for?
Sounds more a like an outdated law from the UK.
I think these strict quarantine laws have been in place a long time. When I was a child we were stationed on Guam and adopted a cat. Though he was a beloved family pet, we were forced to leave him or suffer a 6 month quarantine to repatriate him, coming through Hawaii back to the States. That I am aware, perhaps only the UK has as strict time frames for quarantine, though Oz might be equally tough.
Seahorse
Rabies is such a dire disease that draconian rules are often in place. People who have never seen a case shrug if off. England has been relentless about their quarantine laws and not even Elizabeth Taylor could sneak her beloved dogs past them. When I was educating animal control officer, I had a movie of actual cases in Chicago in the Thirties -- little kids from the ghetto. Once they had seen that movie, they never took rabies lightly again. Hawaii's islands have been much damaged by "harmless" imports. They don't need a brain disease.
Prairie Mary
Thanks for that clarification Miki -- I corrected the original post by adding the blood test and the possible 5-day wait.
P
I did - but only because my wife considered a move there some time ago. That was a deal breaker...
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