Bringing a puppy dog into Germany

I will be moving to Munich soon (in a few weeks) and I have also recently decided that I absolutely have to have a puppy as soon as possible. I am under the impression it is hard to get a puppy in Germany or that they may be really expensive. Is this true?
Does anyone know about this? And if I decide to get one in America now and fly it with me is appears the dog needs proof rabbie shots. But I am afraid the puppy will be too young for that.

Has anyone gone through this or know if it is possible to bring a young puppy without the rabbie shots to Germany? Like if there are loop holes where they keep it until it can get the shots or something like that.

Let me know if you have any info on the subject.

Thanks,
Julee

You should wait until you get here. First of all, it's not always easy to find a flat that will allow pets if you are renting. Second of all, I don't think it would be easy on either of you to have a puppy to look after while trying to get used to a new city. Wait, settle in and then consider getting a dog. It might be expensive to get a dog here (although I don't know) but I imagine paying to ship a dog from the U.S. to Germany would make up the difference in price.

i'm with showem on this one. bringing a dog in is relatively easy if they have the proper paperwork, which is basically proof of shots. it is fairly cheap. cost me 100 USD to get my lab over on usairways, but the problem was that he had to fly in cargo and was completely anxiety ridden when he got here and had some serious separation problems that lasted a long time and caused me no small amount of grief. in fact, we are leaving for good next week and i have to put him through this whole trauma again, which is giving me anxiety! anyhow, each dog is different, but why even think about putting a dog through this if you have the choice?

and to reiterate showem's advice, give yourself a chance to become acclimated to your new life and then deal with a puppy. trust me on this one --- it was a nightmare dealing with a barking whining nervous dog and unhappy neighbors and my own adjustment problems to boot.

it's a no brainer, wait!

I'd say don't buy a dog, get one from an animal resuce.

Why are you under the impression that it is harder to get a puppy here in Germany than elsewhere? I guess its pretty much the same wherever you go. You will have to pay a lot for a well breed pedigree and of course certain breeds will always set up back a fair bit, but you can probably pick up a mongrel for free or next to nothing by checking in the petshops, magazines and on noticeboards.

I wouldn't bring a puppy with you if you can get one here.. you'd most likely be able to carry it on board with you in a small bag- I did this with my cat, but the puppy could:
1. Whine the whole time
2. Get sick from the airplane air (they're like babies)
3. Crap all over in the bag (cats hold it in until they get their litter box back)

The only reason you should bring a pet over is if you cannot part with it.. sínce you don't yet have one, I wouldn't suggest it.

I agree that you shouldn't bring one to the city because it's new you need to figure out how life works here first. You may find that with your new job and social activites you have no time for a dog. I am considerring bringing a puppy back with me when I return in Dec. My reasons are that I'd like to get a dog breeder from my family breeder. We've know her for over 15 years know and have had 4 dogs from her. Also the puppy from her would be less than half the price of a perdigree dog her. Puppies have to 3 months to get a rabbies shot and they have to have it before they enter Germany unless they are from the UK or Irlend (which are still considered to be rabbies free). If the puppy is small enough he can travel with you as carry-on luggage.

If you are not getting a dog from the pound there is no reason to buy it before hand. There are plenty of dogs over here to be rescued. If you want a pedigree dog there are also lots of breeders in Europe that you can reach by car.

As stated earlier housing is hard to find. It's hard to find a good place in general. And some landlordds are reluctant to rent to expats because they think we're only here for a short time.

not to split hairs here, but only certain airlines allow you to carry dogs on. the carrier i use, usair, which flies direct from my home in philly to munich, does not allow dogs of any size in the cabin. butterbean can tell you who see flies with as she brings her dog in the cabin all the time.

one more thing: the rabies shot has got to be older than 30 days when you enter germany or they will not allow your dog in.

Ah, thanks. I thought they did allow it. I think Am Airlines does???

Where is cookie with advice? She just brought her dog over. I know she carried her on but I'm not positive what airlines.

I agree with everyone else that you should wait till you get here. One other suggestion: if you think you might get a dog from the animal rescue (Munich has an excellent "Tierheim" in Riem), you should check with them for their standards for allowing you to adopt one as you're doing your apartment shopping. They will have minimal flat size standards, and you will have to prove you are allowed by your lease to have a pet (responsible breeders should also check these things.)

A friend of mine wanted to adopt a cat here, but she found out too late that her flat was too small and not having direct access to a garden (not living on the ground floor) disqualified her from consideration by the Tierheim. You might want to be aware of these kinds of considerations before you sign a lease, if you're determined to get a puppy.

On the bright side, Munich is a pretty good city in which to have a dog. They can travel with you on the public transport and accompany you to restaurants if they're well-behaved.

@Winegirl - Here I am!!

Add one more to the “you should wait� list. We brought our 8 year-old mini schnauzer over from Chicago in May. She was just small enough to fit under the seat. Although she is middle aged and calm, she got antsy about 7 hours into the trip – just in time for breakfast to be served! Also, although the Lufthansa cabin crew were friendly, they did “remind� me (in quite a serious tone) that she was not allowed out of the bag while she was on the airplane. I really don’t think a puppy could stay calm in that small of a space for that long.

Another issue is “bathroom breaks.� If I remember correctly, puppies need to go quite often. So, even if you use a doggy diaper (and the puppy doesn’t chew it off!), you’ll be doing a lot of clean-up during the flight.

Also, I have to ask why you want a puppy. As others have mentioned, there are many, many dogs that are young (and young at heart!) who need a home. You can train the vast majority of dogs to be great pets, regardless of age or previous history. My dog is a great example. She was a severely neglected (both mentally and physically) 6 year-old when we adopted her from a puppy mill. A year later, she was the star of all the training classes we enrolled her in.

Dogs require time, effort, love and patience - no matter how old they are!

OK that is really strange...a ton of people have indoor cats (us for one)...they force you to have an outdoor cat here? Seems a bit weird to me.

The Tierheim are quite the sticklers for good people with appropriate flats when it comes to pet adoption. I guess in the end it's likely to pay off by not having the poor things returned after a week.

@Blimeygirl

Yes, you are right, really weird. Specially because, nowadays, the vets try to educate people to keep cats indoor, where they have a better and controled enviroment. It is proved that indoor cats are healthier and lives longer than outdoor cats.

Yeah I am a bit surprised by that. I can understand wanting to check out the people and apartment first...but expecting access to a garden?! You have to live on the ground floor to become a cat owner? Strange.

Growing up in Toronto, we had outdoor cats until it became really dangerous to do so. My cat is 17 and has lead a happy life indoors (we used to take her in the backyard when we briefly lived in a house...but never on her own).

I think given the traffic here...and the fact that dogs run rampant off leashes...trams...I would not be so inclined to let my cat outside. Maybe if you live out in Riem where the Tierheim is... but I would be uncomfortable doing so in the city.

Antaresglow, even if the puppy was old enough to get the shot, if I recall correctly from bringing my cat over, it has to be at least a month before (and no longer than 12 months before) you leave, so you're already too late.

cats do like going outside though. Of course they may be healthier in terms of diseases inside (just as a person shut in a house all day is less likely to catch a nasty disease than someone who lives a normal life) and if they've never known 'outside' then they won't know what they are missing. Given the choice though, they do like a run around outside

I thought it was weird that the cat needed to be able to get outside, as well. I used to work as a veterinary assistant in the US, and we always encouraged people to keep their cats inside for many reasons, including fleas, diseases, fights with other animals, automobile hazards, songbird preservation, even cat-napping by animal labs. Of course, in the US lots of people de-claw their cats, also not good if the cat gets into a bad situation outside. I understand de-clawing is illegal here. Outdoor cats live about half as long as indoor-only cats.

you forgot to cite poisoning by plants, antifreeze and, unfortunately, cruel humans.

Thanks for all the info! That 30 day wait after the rabie shot was informative.
And I am looking at dog rescues, and pounds ect. I am looking everywhere for a small friend, puppy or adult, just small and have a connection. I am finding California to be more and more like Europe. Meaning the rescues are very picky about who they give the pets to. I guess the pound is the way to go.

How are the pounds in Germany? Are there any? A Pound is different from a Rescue organization.

I was living in Germany, Duesseldorf before and really would have been happier with a dog. I became a haus frau without realizing it and spent all my days alone. Ughh!

I did look for a dog, but found it to be oddly difficult and not successful. Not knowing German made it very difficult. And the Rescue shelters won't give you a dog unless you have a yard. How many people in Germany have a yard?

I went to the only Pet Store I could find in D-dorf and the women who ran the place looked at me as if I would use the pet for a satanic sacrifice or something and she would not let me pet the cat they had in a cage. Just said , "nein." Total nightmare. A true culture shock moment.

It seems from reading your posts it is hard to get a dog in Germany but is also a pain to fly one over.

I will have to do some more research and ask my German boyfriend to do some searching in Germany for me as that would be much easier.

I can understand the companionship thing, but it's unfair to get a dog bigger than toy size and not have a yard for them to run around in. Sounds like you are just trying to find a loophole so YOU don't have worry about a yard, nevermind the poor dog.

As many others have recommended, I would also wait until you are over here, and then look for a dog or puppy. I brought my two cats over with me, and although they did really great on the flights and adjusted easily, it was still stressful (for me, at least!), and I would think that flying over with a puppy would be much more challenging.

I'm a huge proponent of animal resuce, so I'd also recommend checking out the animal shelter: Tierheim-München. I've never been there myself, but I've heard good things about it.

Good luck with your move!

i just brought my dog [35kilo dalmation] over from the states yesterday. non-stop from boston is only 8 hours and he handled it like a champ. strangely, no one checked his paperwork... on either the u.s. or german side.

Seems like something terrorists could exploit then...dressing up as dogs.

@DeadManWalking

Well, not dressing up as dogs, but hiding stuff with the dog or the dog gear. Although they checked Cookie's paperwork (for all of 15 seconds) at customs, they did not look in her carrier bag. So, sure, we had a dog in there, but there was space for other stuff. Not that we would do that . . . .

@Cookie, Were you the person with the small dog in a basket at the TT drinks in Molly Malones 2 weeks ago?

@DeadManWalking

Why, yes it was!! Nice to be remembered for something other than being stupid drunk!

How could you take what I wrote earlier and come up with the idea that I am "unfair" and "selfish" and want to abuse a big dog by keeping him cramped up in an apartment?

Geeezzz!!! Any "loophole" I was looking for was how to get a young puppy who is too young for a rabbies shot into Germany.

The point I made about the dog rescue organizations only giving dogs to people with back yards is that I think it is sort of silly considering very few people in Germany have yards. I would think if they want the dog to be rescued then maybe they could consider the possibility that the person with no backyard who wants to recue the dog would have enough sense to take it for walks and give it the love and attention that it needs. It is possible that not all people are dog abusers. And only common sense to consider as oppossed to leaving the dog in cage in a shelter.

Or maybe the idea of expats fostering the dog while it is waiting for a permanent home would go over really well. Quite often wifes come with husbands to these 'short to long term' contract jobs and spend the days alone and would love to be walking a dog during the day. But, wait, no, they require that the foster home has a yard. Ok, so the cage at the shelter is better.

This crazy world.

I haven't been to the shelters, so I can't comment on the cages, chances for exercise and so on.

But if they give to someone with a yard, they are at least for certain giving to someone who has room for it. People can promise the moon (I swear, I'll walk the dog 3 times a day) but it's hard to know whether they will follow through or not. A yard isn't a promise, it's a fact.

Especially on those cold, wet, winter days and nights.

Just curious, are you German?

When it comes to adopting a pound dog, having a yard is irrelevant, particularly in a city/country with lots of parks. It's the person adopting. Lots of people leave their dogs in the yard and ignore them. Far worse than a loving person who is with the dog all the time and takes it for many walks during the day. Dogs need love more than they need a yard. A loved dog with a yard is of course ideal, but infrequently possible in a city.

Antaresglow, no, just because I have a different opinion from you, does not mean I am German.

Butterbean, yes, a loving person, but how can the pound see that? Or check it?

Actually, being curious enough to check this out, this is what I found out about the Tierheim in Munich. Here is their webpage for those who want to read about it themselves.

[img]http://www.tierheim-muenchen.com/rundgang/hundetrakte/Innenzwinger.jpg[/img] Each dog at the Tierheim has this as accommodation. It has blankets, their food and is heated. It's described as being cosy and warm. Each of these rooms has a door where they can head outside whenever they want to a little yard to lie in the sun, play or do their business.

They are fed every morning, then their rooms are cleaned and then they are taken out for a walk for a few hours where they can run around and play. They are then fed again in the evening and sleep in their baskets or on the blankets.

So I think understandably, the Tierheim isn't really keen to give dogs up to people who can't even offer the same level that they can. They have over 50 employees and goodness knows how many volunteers, so all the animals get attention.

It is better for the cat if you keep them inside, but I think they're happier if they can go outside. My Bailey always sits on the window sill with this sad, longing look on her face- but back in Colorado she used to be an outdoor cat. I never wanted her to be, but she'd escape all the time so I eventually just let her out.

If you never introduce them to the outside, they won't complain

Oh, I agree on that front - it has to be hard to gauge whether a stranger would treat their pet with the required love and respect. I just think the yard issue should not be such an issue. Someone who loves their dog will see that it gets the attention and exercise he or she needs.

That Tierheim accommodation does look better than average. Still, dogs are very social, emotional animals with a pack mentality. Interaction and alignment with an individual is key to their happiness. If the Tierheim wanted to be so anal about finding good homes for their animals and have countless volunteers, in an ideal world they would do post adoption home inspection. An unhappy dog is fairly easy to spot. It shows up in their eyes, nose, coat, attitude etc. fairly quickly.

IMHO

The Tierheim does check peoples houses randomly after giving them pets here. Plus the animal does not formally belong to you and you may have to return it to the Tierheim if they consider your care to be below par.

They also have foster families for some of the dogs until a final owner can be found.

Heh heh heh. My brother in laws cat has not ventured beyond his living room, behind a box, since friday when a massive German shepherd moved in.

Actually, I'm a bit miffed about it. I had got pretty used to the cat eating scraps of meat from my chopping board of an evening, but obviously a dog gets raw meat priority.

Anyone has any ideas about trying to get a mature alpha male dog to accept or ignore an overwieght hissing cat, I'd love to hear them - dog even growled at my brother in law yesterday, because he's the "cat man".

@don riina

As far as helping the dog and cat to get along, they need to be supervised and then hopefully time will do the rest. You should never leave them alone in the same room together at least until they are used to each other. My cats accepted my dog pretty well, but she was a puppy. At first they hissed and bat at the dog but now all three of them sleep on the back of the couch like three peas in a pod. Really cute actually. But it might take a long time for an adult dog to get used to this. But with time and help from you, i think it can be done.
Oh and feeding your dog or cat RAW meat... that's a no no.

I too used to think this. But I have read a lot recently...since more and more people have mentioned that they do this.

It is not as bad as once thought:
Feeding Pets Raw Meat

However, there are others that disagree:
Raw Food Concerns

Interesting to read both sides though.

@ Blimeygirl
Thanks for the info, seems like it could have some merit but somehow I couldn't see my cute little cocker spaniel eating raw meat. She just seems to prissy to revert back to her primal instincts.

Has somebody told the wolves ?

we had two dogs and three cats. Small dogs though. The cat was two years old when we got her and didn't really accept the dogs in her new home. We gave both of them Bachblüten and it worked. Later when she got kittens she even let the dog take care of them! So cute

I feed my dog loads of raw meat. Alot of what you'll read about the problems of raw meat diets come from internal injuries due to splinters of raw bone. I only feed him quality, fresh raw stuff, and certainly more as treats than as meals, but for alot of natural breed dogs, its really damn good for their coats.

Have you been "disposing of the competition" again, Don ?

I got a dog from a private shelter and decided to feed her in the way she was used to – only raw paunch (=first stomach of cow). She was the healthiest dog I ever had, never ever had problems with digestion, no illness, no overweight, and she loved the food.

Make sure to get it raw and not cleaned, the dog needs everything in it, but don’t ask how it smells!!!

Look, I'm trying to go straight, I promised my woman that our family would be 100% legitimate. Our first child probably won't be, but apart from that...

I am in the process of bringing my 14 month old mini schnauzer to Germany. I had to get a *special* micro chip and of course rabies shots that were within the year and a few other little things. You get a certificate and the information on the German Embassy's website. Give it to your vet to fill out. In the case of Canada - I had to get the certificates stamped for $20 by the Canadian food and Health Inspection Agency. The stamping took 5 minutes. It's not very difficult but beware - the puppy may be too young for all the shots. Pee breaks for a puppy are maybe every 2 hours. It will be difficult to feed them. The flight will be hard on the animal. Actually - all that is a mute point. If you can't get the rabies shots you can't bring the dog. End of subject. Good luck with your decision - when I got my dog it took me almost 2 years to make a final decision. He's a lot of work but I love him. Have a great day!

I have a question..so how do you do the flight? Did your puppy wear a diaper? How does that work? The shortest flight I've ever been on between my home and Munich was 11 hours...I just can't imagine how that would work. Did your puppy bark/howl a lot during the flight?