After finishing in Europe we knew we had to find somewhere in the Caribbean to haul Liger out and rectify the remaining warranty issues. In the end, we settled on the island nation of Trinidad & Tobago (check out our haul out guide!).
Part of the process of heading to Trinidad was making sure we had everything we needed to import Rose, as authorities can be very strict.
Having gone through it now, here's a breakdown of our experience importing a dog into Trinidad, including what we needed to do, what allowances there were for people coming by sea and who had to be involved.
Staring the process
The first thing I needed to do was complete the Application for an Import Permit to Import Cats and Dogs into Trinidad and Tobago and email it to the government vet at aphmalmr@gmail.com.
The form says the application should be submitted at least 6 weeks before entering Trinidad and given there may be disease testing requirements, I agree with the time frame. In fact, I'd suggest that the earlier you start the process, the better.
Receiving the Trinidad & Tobago pet permit
Once the permit application is submitted it should only take a few days for it to be issued. The only problem is the permit needs to be collected and paid for in person at their office in Port of Spain, Trinidad. This means you'll need to use a local agent.
On the recommendation of others, we used Jesse James. Jesse has an office inside the Power Boats compound and has been helping cruisers with the pet import process, among other things, for a number of years now. He collected our permit paperwork for me and sent pictures of it via Whatsapp.
If there's a delay with your permit being ready to collect after it's been approved just follow up by email, it's likely a miscommunication.
Meeting the pet permit conditions
The permit contains a list of conditions that you need to meet and provide evidence of before you can proceed to Trinidad. We were coming from Gibraltar which is considered a Category 2 country by Trinidad & Tobago. Here's what our permit asked us to provide:
Our Trinidad Permit Requirements:
The dog must be accompanied by an Official Veterinary Health Certificate issued within 10 days of export and endorsed by the Competent Authority (stamp/seal and signature) as defined by the OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health), written or translated in English. Pet Passport and other relevant documents should accompany the pet.
Microchip number, brand and location in animal
Animal must be microchipped before given rabies vaccination
Country of origin of the animal
Name and address of owner of the animal
Description of the animal including Species, Breed, Sex, Age and Coat Colour/Markings
Country/countries in which the animal was resident continuously for 6 months prior to travel
After microchipping the animal must be vaccinated against rabies with an inactivated or recombinant vaccine conforming to a potency recognised by the World Health Organisation or approved for use in the exporting country. The dog must be at least 12 weeks old before the primary rabies vaccine is given. The name of the vaccine, its manufacturer, batch number and period of validity must be stated.
The blood titer test (FAVN) must be done at least 30 days after completion of the vaccination booster/protocol. The titer reading must be equal to or greater than 0.5lU/ml. The test must be performed at a laboratory approved by the Competent Authority of Trinidad and Tobago. The date of sampling for the titer test must be stated, as well as the original test results and the Name and Address of the testing laboratory. Once the blood sample shows an acceptable titer, pets may be considered for entry from 6 months after vaccination/booster to 3 months prior to the date of expiration of the immunity of the vaccine, as stated by the manufacturer.
Pets must have been tested and found to be free of:
Brucella canis
Trypanosoma cruzi (for countries in Central and South America only)
Leishmania (North American countries, Greenland, Hungary, Caribbean countries and western, non-Mediterranean European countries are exempt from this test.
If the country is free of any pathogen, this must be stated and testing for the presence with respect to that pathogen is not required. The above listed tests must be conducted within 30 days of export.
Animal must be treated against Echinococcus multilocularis, which is to be administered by a veterinarian within a period of not more than 7 days and not less than 24 hours before the time of scheduled entry of the dogs. The treatment must consist of an approved medicinal product which contains the appropriate dose of praziquantel or pharmacologically active substances which alone or in combination have been proven to reduce the burden of mature and immature intestinal forms of Echinococcus multilocularis in the host species concerned.
Animal treated for internal and external parasites including Dirofilaira immitus by a veterinarian not more than 10 days before scheduled arrival in Trinidad & Tobago (the product used, date of treatment and dosage are to be provided).
Animal has been clinically examined by a veterinarian recognised by the Competent Authority within 10 days of export and were found to be free of contagious disease, in good heath and the animal is fit for travel.
When I read the permit I realised we wouldn't be able to meet some of the time constraints because we were sailing directly from Gibraltar. I emailed the government vet and Jesse James explaining the situation and we were able to organise some time period exemptions.
After this I met with the government vet in Gibraltar and we organised the required testing and paperwork. Luckily Rose already had a valid rabies titer test, as these can take at least a month to get results.
After the conditions are met
Once you've met all of the conditions on the permit you need to email evidence to the government vet using the email address on the permit. You'll then get a response permitting you to proceed to Trinidad.
Arriving in Trinidad
The government vet requires 2 business days warning of your arrival to Trinidad. To do this, we coordinated with Jesse James using our satellite phone. If you have internet you could liaise with the vet directly.
When we arrived at Chaguaramas to check in we notified Jesse who informed the vet of our arrival and organised for us to meet her at the dock. We took Rose and her paperwork over and after a quick look at it, the vet issued the document which officially imported Rose into Trinidad. The whole process took under 5 minutes and once it was done we were able to proceed to customs and immigration to check the humans and boat in.
While in Trinidad
Once we arrived in Trinidad there was nothing else paperwork wise to do. Rose is able to be in the Power Boats yard and we often take her to waterfalls and trail running. One of the easiest spots to get to from Chaguaramas is Covigne Gorge.
One of the most frustrating things to manage is transport; to drive the dog around you either need to hire someone you meet or hire a car, as public transport and rideshare generally don't allow pets. We found hiring a car was generally the more cost effective option.
For veterinarian care we used Sunnyview Vetcare Services and her food was a mixture of fresh meat from the Port of Spain Central Market and dog food delivered by Paws and Whiskers Pet Boutique or bought from P&R Distribution & Shopping Centre Ltd in Diego Martin.
Something to be aware of; we were warned about the potential for there to be poison baits in the shipyards. These are not laid out by the yards themselves, but by some boat owners who are trying to harm cats and birds that go inside their vessels. It was good to know that this can happen, but we are very careful with Rose in shipyards anyway. No matter where you are, yards are filled with poisonous chemicals and materials that pet owners need to be careful of.
Trinidad pet importation assistance
Aside from Jesse James another person in Trinidad who may be able to assist you with bringing your pet to Trinidad is June Tompack from Jet Set Pets. I wasn't aware of June before we arrived but was put in contact with her by Sunnyview Vet when I had a question about a vaccine the dog needed for the Bahamas. During our conversation she was quite knowledgeable about pet import and export and I've since learned she's been used by a few cruisers and expats who've flown their pet in.
Official websites
While this information was accurate in early 2024, it's a good idea to double check what the current rules, regulations and restrictions are in case something has changed. Here's links to official sources.
Ministry of Agriculture, Land & Fisheries - Importation of dogs and cats
Ministry of Agriculture, Land & Fisheries - Animal Production & Health Unit
Thank you for sharing this!!! It seems more complicated than alot of the islands but maybe not as bad as people said...