Swedish Pets

The simple joys of Sweden’s fresh air, culture, starkly beautiful forests, and giant lakes make this country a lovable place for your pet as well as you. The countryside has much more to offer the visitors and the beauty of Europe lies in this part with some spectacular views and lovely and clean atmosphere.

Away from the cities vast areas of scenic coastline and idyllic islands invite visitors to have a ball of a time. Norrland has the legendary midnight sun, which can make any visitor mesmerized. Stockholm, the capital, is a progressive city that maintains a village feel, while Gothenburg and Malmö beckon with urban delights.

Sun shines between late May and late July in Sweden and August can be both hot and wet. In summer months many youth hostels, camping grounds and attractions open here. Remember to plan accordingly because people in Sweden have long holidays during Christmas and even Stockholm shuts down for two or three days, and although the big cities are in full swing all year- as the temperatures begin to go down the smaller towns almost go into hibernation. This means traveling into the smaller towns would not be recommended during winters, however, your pet will surely enjoy the sunny days of Sweden and also the day time during winters.

The following are the rules and requirements for prior approval for pets entering Sweden and must be completed in the following order:

Rules and Requirements For Pet Import Into Sweden:

*Please note that your Veterinarian MUST BE “USDA ACCREDITED” if coming from the United States.

1. Microchip: Your pet shall be identified by means of a microchip. No other form of identification is acceptable. The microchip used should comply with ISO Standard 11784 or Annex A to ISO Standard 11785 – otherwise the pet will need to be sent with its own scanner attached to the top of the crate.
   The microchip implantation MUST BE DONE BEFORE the rabies vaccination. Make sure the Vet scans the chip prior to implant so you know it works.
2. Rabies Vaccination & Certificate: All pets must have an original Rabies Certificate and this certificate must state the microchip number, the date of inoculation, and the validity of the particular vaccination you obtain – some are good for two years, others are only good for one. This vaccine must be an inactivated vaccine.
3. Rabies Titer/ FAVN-OE Tests: This test needs to be done 120 days after the most recent rabies shot but no later than 365 days. The FAVN, or Fluorescent Antibody Viral Neutralization, Blood Test is to ensure that the rabies vaccinations have provided adequate rabies antibody levels and must be approved by an approved Government Facility. You or your Vet will send these to:
   
   
   Rabies Laboratory Kansas State University
   1800 Denison Avenue, Mosier Hall
   Manhattan, KS 66506-5601
   Phone: 785-532-4483
   Fax: 785-532-4483
   
   Note: Only FAVN test is approved.
   * The results of the blood test must be 0.5U/ Mil or above in order to qualify for entry.
   ** Please call them prior to sending the blood to make sure they are aware of the delivery and the destination location. We also suggest, prior to shipping the blood, that you ask how they want the blood container labeled and how they want it sent to them. These labs do change their policy often, so it’s best to double check with them.
4. Echinococcus Treatment: Dogs and cats must have a tapeworm (echinococcus) treatment no more than 10 days before arriving. This treatment shall be repeated within 7 days after arriving. Both treatments, including the name and dosage, shall be certified in the Certificate listed in step #5.
   The treatment used MUST contain the ingredient – praziquantel – and be administered in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
5. EU Vet Health Certificate (Form EC#: 998): This is the standard Health Certificate to be filled out by your accredited Veterinarian. If your pet is going to be traveling as ‘unaccompanied cargo’ you will need the commercial variant. This means that a vet check and tapeworm treatment must be given within 24 hours of departure.
6. USDA Endorsement: The above referenced forms:
   
   • Microchip Implantation Record
   • Rabies Certificate
   • Rabies Titer Test Results
   • EU Vet Health Certificate
   Must be sent to your local USDA for their stamp of approval.
7. International Health Certificate: Within 10 days of departure your vet will need to issue an International Health Certificate (Form 7001) as required by all airlines. This certificate states that your pet is in good health and is OK to fly.

Additional Notes:

• For animals originating in an EU Member State, the “pet passport” can be used and comes in a booklet form, blue in color with the EU emblem of yellow stars. This passport is a document standardized throughout the EU.
• In the case of animals originating in a qualifying country other than an EU Member State the “passport” is in the form of a “Veterinary Certificate”, must consist of a single sheet, be printed in the language of the Member State of entry (in this case Swedish) or English.
• North American vets write dates confusingly, sometimes in two different formats on the same document. The correct layout requested, and the ISO Standard, is dd/mm/yyyy.
• Microchip Numbers must be read from the chip in the animal – and not from other paperwork. You must double check to make sure the chip can be scanned and that ALL NUMBERS of the microchip are recorded correctly.