Polar Bear

Frontline is pretty much useless these days. There is too much resistance around. I was using Spectra Nexguard here and my dog still got ehrlichiosis from a tick bite. I switched back to Bravecto because it's slightly faster acting than Nexguard, but the problem with both of them is that the tick has to bite before it is killed, and the parasite can already have been passed on by then. Now I am giving him Bravecto (tablet, systemic), and I am using Vectra 3D as well (spot on, surface). K9 Advantix II and Seresto collars can also be used at the same time as Bravecto or Nexguard, but be careful if you have cats as well because some of them are dangerous to cats. Vectra 3D, K9 Advantix II and Seresto all repel ticks and kill them (slowly) but without them having to bite. They aren't as effective though, maybe 80%-ish and slower acting, so they aren't as good on their own, but combined with Bravecto or Nexguard, you cover all bases. I cleared it with my vet, and with a vet in the UK, and they confirmed they can be used together. But I had to get the Vectra 3D shipped from the UK. The only one I could find here was Seresto, and the larger collar size was out of stock in the reputable pet shops, and the ones on Lazada were obvious fakes. (Seresto fakes are a problem everywhere.) Doubling up treatment might seem excessive, but he was so sick with ehrlichiosis, I thought I was going to lose him, and I can't risk it happening again. The vet here told me that blood parasites are so endemic here, the local dogs have some resistance to them and don't get nearly as sick. I brought my dog from an area that has virtually no tick borne diseases because of the cold weather, so I guess dogs there haven't developed any kind of resistance.

Wow, well done. Did you have any issues arriving outside the official open hours for animal inspection?

Yes it is required. Otherwise, the pet has to travel as cargo and go to quarantine, even if you are on the same flight. You cannot bring a pet as hand luggage or checked baggage without an import certificate. (Related to that, if you are traveling on the same flight as your pet, but they are in the hold, make sure they are going as checked baggage and not cargo, otherwise it's a lot more complicated.) Glad to hear you are on your way!

All of the vaccines help to prevent people getting infected in the first place. Some better than others. If someone who has been vaccinated has a breakthrough infection, they are more likely to be asymptomatic and highly unlikely to get seriously ill. Asymptomatic people can still spread the virus, but at lower rate than those with symptoms. So people who have been vaccinated (or have already had it) can still catch it and spread it, but to a much lesser extent than someone who hasn't. Testing does help to pick up asymptomatic cases, and if people then isolate, that also helps reduce further transmission. However, people are infectious for several days before they test positive and before they develop symptoms, so it still won't prevent it entirely. Every one of these reduced risks reduces transmission. Every time someone catches COVID, there in an opportunity for a new, more deadly variant to develop. So even if we can't completely stop transmission yet, the more we can do to limit it, the better for everyone.

You need an import permit. It's all done by email, and they are very responsive (but it's a holiday today, so you might not get a reply now.) If you don't have an import permit and a health certificate, they will quarantine your pet on arrival. All the requirements, the form, and the email address you need to write to are here

I brought a dog in a few months ago. At the time, there was a specific rule saying ASQ hotels could not allow pets. I can't find the official document now, but it was on a gov website. The rules do change frequently though. Personally, I would look at Phuket instead of Bangkok. That wasn't an option when I came, but there may be somewhere you can take a pet there. Otherwise, wait and see what happens in November if you can. I posted about the procedure for the airport pickup here. I'd imagine it would be the same for a cat.

2 x Az - my arm was a bit sore and stiff for 24 hrs both times, and I was tired, but that might have been nothing to do with the vaccine. My husband had 2 x Sinovac, 1 x Pfizer. He felt a bit rough after one of the Sinovac, but I can't remember which one. Slight fever, sore arm and very tired. He slept it off over night. (Re: allergic reactions. I am allergic to tetanus shots. I still get them when I am due, but I have to stay at the doctor's office until the swelling goes down, and I get the jab in my thigh so the swelling doesn't affect my breathing. It's not pleasant, but it's once every 10 years and it's still better than getting tetanus.)

As far as I know, your dog will go to the cargo area and be held there until the morning. You'll need an animal broker to sort it out for you, as you will have to go straight to ASQ (unless that has changed by the time you get here.) The cargo area doesn't have a specialist animal transit area (like some airports in Europe for example), so animals just get left in their crates while they are there.

"If it was a normal flu in a western country, then I think probably about two weeks." How are you defining recovery? With flu (actual influenza, not a simple cold) symptoms usually last about one week, though you may feel tired for a while after that, as with any illness, but it can still leave you with long term or even permanent organ damage. It's also implicated as an eventual factor in Alzheimer's. Are people who are suffering no immediate symptoms recovered if, 10 years down the line, it causes a heart attack that they wouldn't have had otherwise? There was a study in Nature a few years ago that tracked people who had had H7N9 flu. The majority had returned to work by the 6 month check, but after 2 years, 65% of them still had lung damage that was likely to be permanent at that point. Had they recovered? We know COVID is doing more short term damage to more organs than the flu does. We know it causes more neurological symptoms than flu does. We know more people are struggling with medium term effects (long COVID) than we see with the flu. But we have no idea what the long term effects will be yet.

If you have a 3rd jab here, you get a new certificate with all 3 on it. It's exactly like the initial certificate, QR Code etc., but with 3 entries, and it's the same in the App. This is the central section. If you had Sinovac, then Az and then another Az, you would still have had 2 x Az, so anywhere that accepts Az should be fine with it, as long as the time scale wasn't too far off. 2 x Sinovac and 1 x Pfizer is a harder sell obviously. For the EU, mixed vaccines are being accepted on a country-by-country basis, so you would have to check, but as several major EU countries are mixing them (usually Az & Pfizer), it will probably be accepted everywhere in the EU eventually.

I've had a couple of messages off people asking about this, so I figured it would be easier to just post it here. I brought a dog over in March 2021. This is how it went for me at BKK: If you want to bring pet dogs or cat in, email qsap_bkk at dld.go.th with @ instead of at and no spaces. (I don't want them to get spammed to death) and ask them for the latest requirements. I understand that there are slight variations depending on where you are bringing them from. They respond fairly quickly during working hours, and you can contact them in English if needed. You will need to be in contact with them anyway to get the import certificate. This is the email I had a few months ago, but again, check with them first because it can change. I've attached the R1 form as well. --- Dear Sir/ Madam, Thank you for contact us to consult about how your pet could bring into Thailand. Any person wishing to import live animals into Thailand should receive an import permit from our office prior to importation. Enclose copies of: 1. A copy of passport or a copy of identification card an importer/ Cargo case: A copy of passport or identification card of the person who would pick up the pet. 2. Address in your country and address in Thailand (in R1 form) 3.Detail of your animal (such as type of breed, sex, age, microchip, etc.) 4. History of vaccination (Dog: rabies vaccination, Distemper, Parvovirus, Hepatitis, Leptospirosis) (Cat: Rabies vaccine, Feline Panleukopenia FPV) *Please send the first page of pet detail in the vaccination book* *Please translate it into English. If it is the first time of the vaccine please wait for 21 days before entering Thailand. 5. Picture of your animal 6. Approximate date, flight, and time of arrival to Thailand (in R1 form) 7.Name of the port of exit from your country (in R1 form) 8. R1 form (attached) 9. How are you bring a pet to Thailand (hand-carry or cargo) (in R1 form) *Send to us 7-14 days before departure and you will be able to get the permit when all of the documents are approve* *Pet fly with a passenger. Please attach the name and phone number of a person who picks up pets at the airport. **For the requirement on list number 8: The pet does not need to be quarantined upon arrival if a passenger had an Import permit and the Health certificate for the pet. Best regards -- Office : Suvarnabhumi Airport Animal Quarantine ,Free Zone Area, Customs Export Building, 1 st Flr,Suvarnabhumi Airport, Samutprakan Province. Tel : 02-134-0731 / Fax. 02-134-3640 Web : www.aqs-suvarn-dld.go.th/wp Email : qsap_bkk at dld.go.th with @ instead of at and no spaces. Open Monday-Friday 08:30-12:00 am and 13:00-15:30 pm --- Aside from these requirements, wherever possible, either bring them with you in the cabin (if they are small enough), or as checked baggage in the cargo hold. If you send them as cargo in the cargo hold, it's a lot more difficult and expensive to get them out, and you will probably need an agent/broker, especially if you are going straight to ASQ. If they are checked baggage, they come to the animal inspection area by the baggage carousels and you can collect them yourself from there. If you aren't traveling with them, they will have to go as cargo, but then you would need an agent anyway. You need the exact cash for the animal inspection fee. (It was 510 THB for me. I don't know if that is a fixed price.) They don't have change, so if you don't have the right money, they will keep whatever you give them. I also paid cash for the customs fee (1,000 THB for my neutered mutt, but it is based on what they think the dog is worth, I've heard it can be pretty steep if you have an unneutered pedigree.) This was the process when I arrived in March 2021. When I got off the plane there was a member of airport staff waiting for me with my name on a card. Right as I got off the plane, before I even went into the airport. They had my info and my dog's info from the import permit. (At some point before I arrived, I can't remember if it was before or after I got the import permit, I had to give the name and phone number of the person coming to the airport to collect him because I had to go straight to ASQ.) The same guy escorted me through the whole process, through COVID document check, immigration, baggage claim etc, and then took me to the animal inspection area, where my dog was waiting in his crate. They were expecting me and scanned his chip, checked his documents, etc. They wanted copies of some of his papers, and I gave them a full set to take. (I'd suggest having several photocopies of their papers with you. Otherwise, you'll have people wandering off with the originals trying to find a photocopier at various stages of the trip.) I did that paperwork and paid the 510B. Then my guy took me to customs, where my dog was 'valued'. I paid the 1,000 THB, which is the lowest rate. Just before we left the airport he called the pet taxi company that I'd made arrangements with. He waited until my ASQ taxi was ready, and then he took my dog to the pet taxi waiting at Gate 10. (I think it is always Gate 10). I wasn't allowed to see the pet taxi people. The airport staff did the handover, but the pet taxi company sent me pictures a few minutes later to show they had collected him. You don't have to use a pet taxi, if you have someone local who can collect for you, but you do have to make arrangements in advance for someone to do the collection if you are going to ASQ, as you have to send that info before you arrive. Finally, find out as early as possible what the process is for getting a health certificate in your current country, and whether you also need an export permit. That process for me was really stressful. My health certificate was only valid for 3 days, and I was flying on a Monday, so it was very tight to get the timing right. You also need to work out the time you will arrive, to make sure the animal inspection area is open. (Monday-Friday 08:30-12:00 am and 13:00-15:30 pm.) As I understand it, if you arrive outside those hours, your pet will be taken to the cargo area instead, which is a whole other process. I actually landed at about 7.30am but by the time everything was unloaded etc. they were open anyway. R1 (1).pdf