Generalities

French Polynesia is a French Overseas Country (POM) having its own political structures beneath the French Republic.
No rabie case have yet ever been officially recorded.

The overpopulation situation which continues since too many years render the context dreadfully dangerous towards rabies and all other diseases contagious to man. We thus must not be surprised that the current processes allowing to bring in a dog or a cat are extremely dissuasive.

Furthermore, some dogs breeds are now not allowed to enter:

Cages and Transport

• All Air Flight Compagnies don't allow the same way to take a pet on board, and, thus, not for the same price.
• Some require the Pet going with somebody, others allows lonesome travels.
• They will sell you THEIR cages if yours don't match THEIR dimensions. (freight in addition)
• WARNING: Some Air Flight Compagnies require some vaccines. Be careful BEFORE buying the ticket.
• There are Pet Quotas by flight: Be sure that the choosen flight will upload your Pet.
• Most of them won't carry Pets farer than Paris, where they can loose them.
• Air France accepts to serve to provincial cities under the condition that YOU manage connecting flight(s) on place.
• Be extremely suspicious at the airport, once the plane landed, let your compagnon as few as possible out of your direct overseeing.

From France

For the Pet, the trip toward French Polynesia is the one of all-dangers:

• There is no farer destination from Europe.
• Quarantine is mandatory, long and cannot be made in Polynesia.
Thus, a long stressing period (1 month)surrounded by two dangerous trips. A lot don't survive.
• The Pet arrives in a country he don't know, where are rifing tropical diseases and parasites, very abundant because of the settled Pet Overpopulation.
• Consequency of this overpopulation, reinforced by old cultural habits, humans are far from to be as respectful toward them as in Europe. He must expect bad experiences (nasty kicks, poisons) and/or very very bad ones: Dog meat, even if forbidden by the law, is still rather common. Its "cooking method" is of the most barbaric ones. The animal, often stolen, gets an agony passing by terrific and very long tortures. Cats are tortured and eaten too, even if rarer. (see The problematic )

We can only ask owners wishing to bring in their companion(s) to think twice about before going on and throwing their Pet in such an assault course: Fenua Animalia begs you to carefully consider all the other possible solutions, and to bring a Pet here

only if there is actually NO other viable solution for him.
 

For the owner, the travell is far less dangerous, but complex, daunting, disappointing and expensive. The trip management may turn to a true nightmare.
 

Dogs

From the administrative point of view, the following documents are required.

1. Certified photocopy of the Vaccination Certificate including at least:
   • La Rabies,,
   • La Distemper,,
   • L'Contagious hepatitis, (= Rubarth's),
   • La leptospirosis,
   • La parvovirosis.
2. Blood Analysis showing an antibodies anti-rabies proportion giving a seric concentration at least equal to 0,5 UI / ml and old from 3 months to 2 years after the primo-vaccination ;
3. Certified photocopy of the Tatoo Card ;
4. Veterinarian Attestation testifying the Pet resides since at least 6 months in France.
5. Certified photocopy of the quarantine booking.

Cats

The file is the same as in dogs, but:

• Required vaccines are:
  • Rabies,
  • Typhoid (= Panleucopenia),
  • Coryza (= Calicivirus/Rhinotracheitis).
  
   
• The vaccine against the leucosis is strongly recommended.

QUARANTAINE MANDATORY

We advice to try to get as much information as possible on the quarantine conditions truly given.
Usually people choose Hawaii or New-Caledonia because these are the closest destinations, which is not a warranty for the remainder.

Officially agreed countries receive Pets in quarantine toward Polynesia are, exclusively:

Australia

There are 4:

Hawaii

New-Caledonia

New-Zealand

There are 3:

JAPAN

Adress not given by the S.D.R.

ENGLAND

See also the site of the "Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food" of the Great Britain Government.

There are 4:
 

Islands tours

Our country is a constellation of specific cases:
Some Islands are still unhurted of plagues having reached the others.
To avoid to promote the dispersal of diseases, exchanges between Islands are under control.

The Pet must be shown to the SDR: Service du Développement Rural - BP 100 - Papeete - phone 42 81 44.
It is in Pirae, on Tahiti Island, near by the racecourse (=hippodrome), and is ranked as "DEVELOPPEMENT RURAL (SERVICE DU)" within the blue pages of our "brilliant" phonebook...

He will receive for free a treatment against ticks and will obtain its boarding certificate "certificat d'embarquement" - valid for 48 hours (72 hours if done on Friday).

Alternatively, owners may try to obtain the certificate from their veterinarian attesting that the Pet received the cure on the boarding day.

This certificate is compulsory to obtain the boarding pass.

Leaving

In the main, things are less complex than in the opposite way.

However, we can't give all the possible cases for all countries, because each destination wears its own requirements.

For France, are requested:

• A good health certificate established by a veterinarian 3 days before the departure.
• A identification tatoo following the French rules. Officially, tatoo is not required for cats who are going to a non rabies infected region. It remains required for all dogs in any case.
• If not vaccinated against rabies, a Residence Attestation testifying the pet resides since at least 6 month in French Polynesia (non rabies-contaminated country).
• The vaccine against rabies must be done at least a month before the departure.
• To carry out more than 3 pets a special pass is required from the Ministère de l'Agriculture et de la Pêche - Direction générale de l'Alimentation - Mission de coordination sanitaire internationale - 251 rue de Vaugirard - 75 732 Paris cedex 15.

No vaccine is required.
The Vaccine against RABIES is only recommended - over the elementary caution - to avoid to see the dog muzzeled during the travell to Paris and other annoyances.
WARNING: Some Air Flight Compagnies may refuse any animal non vaccinated against rabies.
If done at "the last moment", it must be old of at least one month before the departure.
 
Dog Vaccines Not required when departing from Polynesia:

• C = Distemper;
• H = Rubarth's Hepatitis
• P = Parvovirosis
• L = Leptospirosis
• R = Rabies