Moving overseas... Any way to take my gerbils with me?

[gerbiltopia]

Hi all,

So me and my wife are moving from the US to Switzerland in a few months. Switzerland allows gerbils to be imported as long as they have a certificate from an accredited vet showing that they don't carry diseases. So far so good... But every single carrier I've contacted refuses to take gerbils! I've tried airlines, freight and cruise ship companies, a couple of animal shipping companies and even UPS/FedEx. We would of course prefer to carry them with us. Has anyone gone through this? Any information about a way to carry or ship these animals to Europe?

Thanks for any insight.

[betty]

I would contact the American Gerbil Society (AGS) - if you haven't already gerbiltopia. Not that they do couriering themselves, but they would have contacts I am sure for transferring animals between the US and Europe.

Shooting Star may also be able to help - if they aren't one and the same thing anyway?


Good luck by the way - what an adventure!

[gerbiltopia]

Thank you for your reply Betty. We hadn't contacted AGS, that might be helpful.

We have actually found an airline that's willing to carry the gerbils overseas though (Finnair). For some reason, there are major restrictions that are being imposed on animals right now supposedly because of COVID (never mind the fact that it's the people that are transmitting it) but after confirming with the airline, they can at least travel in the cargo hold of the plane on Finnair. It'll make our trip a lot longer but it'll be worth it.

Do you think it'll be safe for gerbils to travel in the hold? Also, is it OK to split cage Digger and Wiggly (a boy and a girl) during the trip? It would save us a lot of money if we could fit them into a single cage with a divider.

[betty]

I would speak to the AGS about the hold - as I have never done it myself before so wouldn't want to say. But it that is where dogs travel AND they are super securely held inside an approved carrier AND you know the timings of their care (animals often take longer out of your care than the simple flight as they need additional checks either side sometimes).


And yes, if the divide is as secure as the outside - and is solid perspex or similar - and this dividing of the carrier is legally (whatever the airline and handling rules AND the countries you are travelling from, to and through are) allowed then there is no reason why they can't travel witin the same single unit.

I do it when using couriers as I like to have my animals in an enclosure WITHIN another enclosure (as the chances of them chewing out of one carrier AND another would be very unlikely).

[Markpd]

In the hold? I take it then they have separate area from the cargo purposely for animals which is pressurised and heated?

What part of France are you going to? (I have family in the Loir valley, which is a lovely area).
Bonne chance!

[gerbiltopia]

Just an update here (sorry for the long absence) - The problem is, I can't find a solid enough divider. The current idea is to put two small containers into a big container. Preventing them from tumbling inside the bigger container will be a problem, but it should be solvable. betty, thanks for the ideas.

Yes, they have a heated and pressurized hold. Hopefully they'll make it over the Atlantic alive and well.

Markpd - We had planned for Paris, where my in-laws live, but unfortunately the job market thought differently. We'll be heading to the Triangle instead.

[Markpd]

Your gerbils normally live apart then?
And yea they should be fine in a heated and pressurised hold .

Not heard of the triangle in France (my French geography isn't great), is this the area you mean?

Unfortunate timing on moving there at the beginning of a 3rd wave of C19. That aside, I hope you enjoy your new life there .

[gerbiltopia]

Yes, they live apart because I have a boy and a girl. Wiggly is alone because his brother Jumpy suffered from heart disease (unknown at the time of adoption) and died very young at 1 year and 4 months old. Digger was the only female of her litter and was thus alone from the beginning.

The Triangle is called such because it's a single point where three countries' borders meet-France, Germany and Switzerland. On the French side, that would be in the Alsace region (that's quite far away from Yvelines). We'll actually be living on the Swiss side. Thanks for the good wishes. As much fun as the US has been, we hope Europe will offer a more balanced and healthy life.

[betty]

Yes, I spent ages (searching for measurements online) finding two carriers that fitted very snugly into the one secondary one - and I would imagine that something like tissue padding, crickle card, hay, straw or something eco-friendly like that would be great for keeping them apart. Full of air gaps but bulky; safe if chewed and lightweight. Throw in some food there too.

That way if a gerbil DOES get out of the primary carrier - they are totally safe in the outer carrier and shouldn't get bored (chewing up all that card/paper/straw to make a new bed) and navigating around all that padding will keep the occupied and potentially able to safely and easily move back INTO their original carrier if they need to. I always feel sorry for gerbils who fall out of an enclosure and couldn't get back in even if they wanted to. But with your artifically raised ground level, they have options.

I love a move somewhere new - good luck!

[gerbiltopia]

Quick and sad update-Digger was diagnosed with an aggressively growing abdominal tumor and passed away days before our move. We laid her to rest next to her brothers and sisters. This tall, inquisitive and exceptionally smart lady will never be forgotten.

Of course, this changed the requirements immensely, so we got a larger secondary carrier to keep Wiggly more comfortable. Finnair went back on their promise to carry gerbils in the hold and I had to hire a pet carrier to arrange Wiggly's move with Lufthansa Cargo, which apparently refuses to work with individuals and forces you to hire a professional company. The airline, the vet and the carrier milked us for every last dollar possible. It is shameful to force such a little animal to fly on a cargo plane and spend several days away from its family, plus paying more for this torture than it would cost to move a dog or cat was the cherry on top.

I just hope we don't get into any trouble with the Swiss authorities, whose laws do not allow keeping social animals solo. We simply do not have enough time to introduce new gerbils to Wiggly before the move.

[betty]

Oh no - what an absolute sham. I really hate all these seemingly-ridiculous hoops people have to go through to travel with a family member.

Bless little Digger - great name and epitath for a much-loved gerbil.


Fingers crossed that nothing else goes wrong for you - this is such devotion...

[Markpd]

Sorry to hear about digger

In the unlikely event you do get questioned for having a single gerbil, I'm sure they'll understand if you tell them digger passed just before you came over (I'm not sure what you could use to corroborate that though, a vets report? Or an invoice?).

[gerbiltopia]

Betty and markpd,thanks for your replies. We made it OK. Customs almost didn't let us take Wiggly because of a missing certificate (which turned out to be one floor up in the same building!),but he is with us now at least. He lost a lot of weight and was very skittish after the cargo plane ride, but he is eating well again and he should be fine. We did not get into any difficulties with him being alone.

Thanks for your advice along the way!

Here's to the hope that someday people will stop seeing animals as commodities and goods to be traded.

[yeti218]

That sounds so stressful but I’m glad you all made it!

[betty]

Thank goodness it all turned out well after that - and he has a good appetite.

Reducing his capacity to over-exercise and keeping him warm or cool when needed (go by your own clothes status) will greatly help weight gain too.


Hope your new life is as good as - better than you hoped it would be.