Amid pushback, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is easing new regulations on dog importation taking effect in August.
On Monday, July 22, the CDC announced it had “simplified” the impending regulations for dogs entering the United States from countries that are dog rabies-free or low-risk. Under the modified rules, dogs crossing the border from those countries will be required only to “appear healthy” and to be accompanied by a CDC Dog Import Form receipt.
Those changes do away with some of the requirements announced by the agency in May. Under the original proposal, all dogs entering the U.S. from other countries would need to be at least 6 months old and have a microchip, in addition to having the completed import form.
“CDC values the feedback received from various countries, industry partners and the public,” the agency said.
Some of that feedback came from the Canadian Trucking Alliance, which said the new regulations could cause a “logjam” at the border and called upon the agency to delay the rollout of the requirements until January 2025.
“CTA continues to work with Government of Canada officials, including the Canadian Embassy and Canadian Food Inspection Agency, to verify the impacts of these changes and to help ensure that travelers and truck drivers impacted by this policy will be compliant once the policy comes into effect,” the trucking group said in a statement following the CDC’s announcement.
The CDC Dog Import Form required for all dogs crossing the U.S. border can be filled out online.
The agency provides instructions for how to complete the document. Those bringing more than one dog into the U.S. will need to complete a separate form for each dog.
Once completed, the receipt is valid for six months unless the dog visits a high-risk country during that time. A list of countries deemed high-risk for dog rabies can be found here.
The agency said the form receipt can be “printed or shown on a phone screen to U.S. customs officials.”
According to the CDC, the rabies virus variant carried by dogs was eliminated in the U.S. in 2007. The new regulations aim to prevent the re-introduction of dog rabies into the country. Currently, there is a temporary suspension on importing dogs from high-risk countries. That temporary ban is set to expire when the updated rules go into effect on Aug. 1. LL
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