Travelling With a Pet: Rabies Titre and Health Checks

Before you travel with a dog or cat, ask your vet what the destination and the airline require, then book any blood tests in good time. A rabies titre is only one item on a long list, and health checks such as a blood count may be asked for too. The lab cannot promise that any country will accept a report.

Where should you start?

Start with the rules of the place you are going to, and then your airline or transport company. Ask for the list in writing from the official source, not from a friend's story. Rules differ between countries, they change over time, and airlines add their own on top.

Sit down with your vet and read the list together. Some steps must come before others, and some need time between them, so it helps to work backwards from your travel date. Do not fix your dates until you know which steps are needed.

Think about your pet's comfort too. Some pets get car sick, panic in crates or refuse water in a strange place. Ask your vet how to prepare a nervous pet, and ask before changing anything on your own just before the journey.

How does a rabies titre fit in?

Some destinations ask for evidence that a vaccinated pet responded to the vaccine. The Rabies Antibody Titre (ELISA) measures antibodies in the blood for that purpose. It shows the response to vaccination, never infection, and it does not replace the vaccination certificate.

Ask the destination whether it accepts the method and the laboratory before you book. Rabies is a fatal disease that can pass to people, so anyone bitten or scratched by any animal on the way must see a doctor at once.

Which health checks do vets often suggest?

A vet may like to look at a pet's general health before a long journey. Common choices are:

• A blood count. The Complete Blood Count (CBC) counts red cells, white cells and platelets, and can help show anaemia or signs of infection.
• A blood parasite smear. The Blood Protozoa (Blood Parasite Smear) looks at a stained slide of blood for parasites. Ticks are common in many parts of India, and some tick-borne germs live in the blood.
• A kidney test. The Kidney Function Test (KFT) checks how well the kidneys are working. Travel is tiring, and a pet may drink less on the way.

The Pet Travel Check with Rabies Titre groups the titre with several of these checks. These tests do not decide on their own whether a pet is fit to travel. A registered veterinarian does that after examining the pet and reading the reports. A pet that is unwell or still recovering should see the vet before any plans are made.

Which papers should you keep?

Good records save a lot of worry at the airport. Gather these in one folder:

• the vaccination certificate, with dates
• every lab report, as a printout and on your phone
• the health papers from your vet
• identification details, such as a microchip number if your pet has one
• a note of the date each step was done

Lab reports are shared on WhatsApp and e-mail and sit in My Reports in your account on this website, so you can find them again. Carry the originals and keep copies separately.

What can the lab not promise?

The lab can provide a report. It cannot promise that a country, an airline or an officer will accept it. Those bodies decide for themselves which tests, methods and laboratories they trust, and they can change their rules.

That is why the order matters: find out the rules first, then book the tests, and ask your vet before you repeat anything if the rules change. A short call to the destination's official office can save you from a journey that ends at a closed gate.

Read next

For the detail behind the titre test, including what it cannot show, see Rabies Antibody Titre Test: What It Shows and What It Does Not. Because a blood count is on most travel lists, Understanding Your Pet's CBC Report: What the Numbers Mean helps you read yours before you show it to your vet.

Testing in Bhopal

Start with the travel rules, then book the tests. The lab at C-200, C Sector, Shahpura, Bhopal is open every day from 8 am to 10 pm. Free sample collection is available anywhere in Bhopal; elsewhere, blood can come by courier, bus parcel or through your vet. WhatsApp +91 88175 01118, and the lab confirms the method, sample needs and reporting time when you book.