Moving a dog to Malaysia

Well, we did it!  We got Kova (our dog) to Malaysia! What a pain in the ass!

We had no idea how to transport a dog from one country to another so we did what every other person would do. We googled it!  We found out that buying a plane ticket and taking her to Malaysia wasn’t as easy as we thought.  Kova is an Anatolian Shepherd that weighs 101lbs she is not an “under the seat” kind of dog, she would have to fly in a crate and in cargo (poor thing).  With a lot of phone calls and research, Scott and I were able to pick out a pet transport company. We went with “Airpets International” based out of Texas.  We worked with a coordinator who guided us on what we had to do.  What has to be done for a dog to fly? Glad you asked..

Steps are 6 months to 1 day before travel

1. Figure out a “time frame” of when you want the dog to fly. Pick a month. 
2. Rabbies vaccination- at least 30 days prior to departure but not longer than 1 year.
3.  DHLPP vaccinations – at least 30 days prior to departure but not longer than 1 year.
4. Buy a crate that fits the dog standing up and laying down. Send pictures to your coordinator for proof that the crate is of correct size.  pictures below 
5. Get the dog comfortable with the crate.
6. 1 month prior to travel your coordinator will give you a list of dates for the dog to fly and airlines that travel with pet cargo.  We chose March 4th for travel and March 11th as a back-up date. Scott would also fly on March 4th and I would fly the following week March 11th. 
7. 2 weeks before flight, the travel is “booked.” Scott and I must also show proof of our flights along with our passport information. An address in the destination country is also given to show residence of the owners and dog.
8. 2 weeks before flight,  a vet appointment is made for 1 week before travel. The vet appointment has to be within 7 days of travel for the FDA health certification.
9. 2 weeks before flight, Kova’s reservation is made at Kuala Lumpur’s pet quarantine for 7 days. We chose Kuala Lumpur’s quarantine over Penang’s because they had A/C kennels for the dogs.
10. 2 weeks before flight, Kova must get an import permit from the Malaysian government. The Malaysian government must approve the breed to make sure it is not a restricted or banned list. This is all handled by an agent in Kuala Lumpur. We had a hiccup with this because Kova’s breed was not recognized on any list. Malaysia’s department of agriculture and master veterinarian had to “look over” her breed and approve it. That took longer and we worried about Kova making her flight. 
11. 5 days before the flight, Kova’s breed was approved by the Malaysian Government and not a restricted breed. We received the import permit with just enough time to keep the original flights on March 4th.
12. 4 days before the flight, Kova had her vet appointment that approves her for travel.  Her paperwork, approving her to travel, is sent to the FDA electronically.  
13. 3 days before the flight, the FDA certifies Kova as being healthy and sends the paperwork back to us via FedEx.
14. 2 days before the flight we receive the FDA paperwork.
15. 2 days before the flight, We make copies of all the paperwork she needs to fly and prep the crate for flying. Click here to see copies of all the paperwork we needed and the cost break down.