Pet Travel from State to State: Are health certificates required?

Thursday, March 18, 2010 by Rachel Farris

We received a  question from a reader named Rauni regarding her upcoming move from California to Arizona.  She was having trouble finding out information regarding whether she needed a health certificate to enter Arizona with her two cats.

The reason it can sometimes be difficult to find this information isn't always because not every state has specific regulations for new pets coming into the state's borders.  However, it is technically a requirement that any pet moving accross state lines have a pet health certificate issued prior to travel.  This is a document that can be issed by your veterinarian stating that your pets are healthy to travel from state to state.  Usually it can cost anywhere from $25 to $100, depending on your veterinarian.

Looking for information on obtaining the APHIS 7001 health certificate for international pet travel?  Check out our blog.



Comments for Pet Travel from State to State: Are health certificates required?

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Sunday, July 11, 2010 by Eric:
I was looking to move from Arizona to Puerto Rico. My vet wanted me to do a health cert for both my cat and dog at a cost of $450 each. I said hell to the NAH. I looked up and printed all of the guidelines and laws for my origin, destination, and also airline. Come to find out I only needed a letter from my doctor stating my pets needed to fly with me for emotional support (didn't pay any extra fees or seats). And the only thing PR wanted was a certificate stating that all shots, including Rabies, have been given 2weeks prior to arrival signed by a vet. That's it. I sawed hundreds of dollars by just reading and had every agency that might have an issue, a copy of their guiedlines in case they tried to stop me, such as TSA (they have nothing to stop, just put them in the screener and move along.) Much easier to go along with what the actual laws are, and there are work arounds as well such as flying do a different location to enter from a different area to bypass certain costly procedures. (Mind you, this should not be done if your pet is actually ill at risk for this exposure.