Getting our dog Spot through Norwegian customs...

Do you think Ed was happy to finally have Spot here in Norway?

She came with Neal on Continental from New Jersey to Oslo, then SAS from Oslo to Bergen. She's a little too big to fit under a seat, so was in the luggage hold. Ed joined Neal in NJ for the flights, since he was in the US for a couple of weeks.

What a panic the last week was! We had spent the last 6 to 8 months getting all the shots and blood tests that Norway requires to bring a dog into the country. They have no rabies here and intend to keep it that way. As soon as I accepted the job here, we got her an ISO compatible microchip (not the normal US chip) and a rabies shot, even though it wasn't due. That started the 120-day waiting period before the blood test to make sure she was rabies-free. By then, she had moved across country with Neal and we were both already in Norway. The blood test had to be sent to the only approved place for evaluation - Kansas State U. They supposedly take 6 to 8 weeks to get the results to you. We delayed a long time before making flight reservations, but finally made them before actually getting those results. The results came back after 9 to 10 weeks, just the week before the flight. Geez!

The flight we picked, Continental 38, was the only one that flies directly from the US to Norway with no stops in another country. Continental has lots of help for pets and their owners that are traveling, too. The vet in NJ did the worming that has to be done within 10 days of the flight, and started filling out all the paperwork. She wanted to know whether the USDA had to approve the paperwork. This was on the weekend before the Wednesday night flight! I called the mattilsynet here in Norway, and yes, they don't accept paperwork from vets even though the vet is US government licensed. They do need the USDA stamp or signature. Bureacracy! The vet faxed the pet passport to the USDA on Monday, and they faxed it back with a cover letter but no stamp, since it was a fax. Tuesday was a holiday in the US, Veterans Day. Neal made an appointment for Wednesday morning with the USDA. Meanwhile, Continental said that they had to get approval from Norway before they would let Spot onboard. They wanted the USDA approval on the pet passport before faxing it to Norway to be faxed back with approval. Uh oh! Neal had them fax the USDA cover letter. Apparently, that worked.

Meanwhile, the kennel had to be properly labeled with one or more "Live Animal", two or more "This Way Up", Spot's name, contact information, and so on. Ed found some labels at PetSmart, and then the airline added more at the airport. It had to have absorbent material and accessible food and water dishes. A copy of the passport, some food, and her leash had to be attached to the kennel. Spot had to have food and water before the flight, but not within 2 hours. She had to check in 2 hours in advance of the flight. Ed and Neal negotiated that maze okay.

We had scheduled 5 hours in Oslo, not being sure how the whole customs thing would go. They needed it! Ed says they would not have made it if not for a helpful taxi driver who owned a dog. First, Ed and Neal were told to stand in a certain place to wait for Spot. Twenty minutes later, they asked someone else, who told them they had to go to "Roadfeeders", a company that takes the dog after she gets through customs. That is about 2 km from the terminal. Ed and Neal took a taxi there. The vet there said that customs had not stamped her paperwork, even though they let her through. So Ed and Neal were supposed to take a piece of paper back to customs for stamping, bring that back to Roadfeeders, then get Spot and bring her back to the airport for the next leg of the flight. Crazy! That's when they hooked up with the nice taxi driver. They asked him to stick with them through all that back-and-forth.

Spot apparently slept through the overseas journey, but had peed in her kennel. Ed and Neal had carried extra bedding with them, so they threw out the old and added the new. They fed and watered her in Oslo. Then they checked her in to the SAS flight to Bergen. I met them in the airport. It was so great to see them! In Bergen, Ed had been told we would pick her up at SAS Cargo, a building that is walkable from the terminal. We walked through the windy rain, only to have the folks there not be able to find her! My cell phone rang, and a lady said there was a dog here that had not been picked up. Where? Back in the terminal at baggage claim. So back we went, to find her sleeping in her kennel on the floor next to where the suitcases come out.

We took a maxi-taxi back home, took her out of the kennel, which needed maximum cleanup this time, and gave her a bath. Torture as a welcome to your new home! She is now learning her new place. We have to give her eyedrops since she has a cyst in her left eye, but it seems to be getting better rapidly. She has a great appetite, and loves the dry food samples I had picked up for her. We left her sleeping and walked to the Bergen Small Animal clinic to get her an appointment next Tuesday. Now that she's here, she needs another worming, according to the rules. Plus we need more heart medicine and to have her eyes examined. The Roadfeeder vet said a duct between her nose and eyes was getting stopped up, too. It's tough getting old. She's 17 years old, and has aged quite a bit in the transition time. But she is happy to have her humans again. We are pampering her as much as possible.