Exporting dog from Oman to UK

Hi guys,

This is not a question, but some tips on how to export your dog when it is time to leave Oman. While exporting your pet to most European countries isn't too difficult (i.e. you need the vaccinations, bloodtest and paperwork which most vets in Muscat can help you with and then you need to choose a good airline like KLM that allows you to ship your pet as luggage), moving your pet to the UK is a different story as regulations are much stricter. I have just gone through the process and Gypsy and I have arrived in the UK only some days ago, so all my explanations refer to the summer 2015 and may change at one point.

Basically you have two options:
Option A: Use British Airways where your pet will be shipped as Cargo. This comes at a high cost and isn't the nicest way to export your dog as it is basically treated like an oversized object and not so much as a pet. Costs for this include all the paperwork (ca. 160 OMR), vaccinations and microchipping, crate (ca. 100 OMR) and blood test (ca. 100 OMR) which again can be done by your vet, and of course the shipping costs which we were quoted 1000 OMR for.
This option is expensive but easy for you as the vet will do most and will even bring the dog to the airport. You only need to pick it up in Heathrow which is the only airport you can go through.

For us this was simply too expensive and we chose
Option B: Use KLM (or another pet-friendly airline) and your dog will be put on the plane you are flying with as excess luggage. This is much cheaper and everyone I have talked to so far shares my opinion that KLM are a brilliant airline to ship your dog with. Gypsy's water bowl was full when I picked her up and the staff were happy to see her and told me during the flight that she was okay!
Now with this option you can't fly to the UK, but to a European country. Since Amsterdam is a very pet-friendly airport, I chose to fly there. At the airport I rented a car and drove to Calais where I took the ferry to Dover. (Mind you, of course you can also take the ferry from Rotterdam that goes further north. I chose Calais, because my destination was the south of England and because I didn't want my dog to be in another kennel which is a must on board of the Rotterdam ferry.
The trip to Calais was hard and I wouldn't do it again on my own. If you are two drivers however, it is a very easy trip. On the P&O ferry Gypsy had to stay in the car (with windows slightly open) and halfway through the trip I was escorted to the car to check on her. It was very easy and my paperwork only got checked in Calais. I had to drive the car back to Amsterdam some days later which again is not a good idea to do on your own, but can be a fun road trip with someone else, and I then flew back to the UK. Now it sounds complicated, but it was much cheaper.
Of course the same basic costs for tests, vaccinations, microchipping and crate applied, but Gypsy's flight cost 80 OMR and renting the car plus ferry charges plus flight back were together roughly 400 OMR. So yes, we did it for 500 OMR which is half of what BA wants and Gypsy seemed to enjoy the road trip. (Not a good idea if your dog doesn't like driving, obviously.)

In Amsterdam I found out about a third option which involves getting a train from Amsterdam to Rotterdam and then going on the ferry to the UK as a pedestrian with your dog. However, I was only told about it by a fellow "dog-exporter" from Qatar and I cannot give you much details apart from the fact that the train and ferry trip together cost ca. 80 OMR, which of course beats both other options and sounds so much easier than what I went through. Tickets for train and ferry need to be reserved in advance and the only problem I can see with this is if your dog is unsure about train rides..

Whatever you do, I hope you will arrive safely. All I can say is, it is worth the stress you will have and your dog will love Europe!!

All the best,
Desi