The Cabinet is to consider amending Ireland's quarantine laws to take into account a new "passport for pets" scheme that begins in Britain today. Up to now, pets being brought into Ireland and Britain have had to spend six-months in isolation as a means of protecting against rabies. However under the new British scheme, pets will be able to travel without quarantine providing that they have been fitted with an identity microchip, vaccinated against rabies and tested by a vet.
Rabies, which was once rife on the Continent, but has now virtually disappeared, attacks the nervous system, causing fever, convulsion, paralysis and eventually agonising death. A Department of Agriculture spokesman said that Ireland has long held a common quarantine with the UK, and so the Cabinet would consider amending laws to facilitate the scheme.
The trial British procedure, which will run initially for 12 months, means that people from 22 European countries can bring their pets on holidays to the UK for a cost of around £250. The scheme is being monitored closely by Irish authorities. One of the first pets to travel with their passport was Frodo Baggins, a five-year-old black pug, who travelled to Dover from Calais this morning. His owner Helen de Borchgrave, who lives in London, said that the new scheme would avoid a lot of heartbreak for pet owners.
