New CDC Dog Importation Requirements Come into Effect on Aug 1

Update from the Canadian Trucking Alliance

The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) continues to hear from fleets and cross-border truck drivers who have significant concerns over new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) rabies vaccination requirements coming into effect for all dogs travelling to the U.S. as of August 1, 2024.

The upcoming rule, meant to protect against the spread of rabies in the U.S., has led members to express concerns about the policy, including condensed timelines, burdensome compliance requirements, and potential adverse health effects that could endanger the wellbeing of their dogs if certain re-vaccination requirements remained in place.

Due to these concerns, CTA recently wrote the CDC, indicating that many cross-border truck drivers travel with their pets as a companion, with some fleets estimating that upwards of 20 per cent of their long-haul drivers travel with their dogs into the U.S. Many drivers also have questions about potential impacts on admissibility, and the lack of education around this rule prior to its introduction at the border.

Based on feedback received by the Alliance, and the fact that the CDC has recognized Canada as a low-risk country for rabies, CTA has called on the CDC to extend an educational enforcement period until the end of 2024, and has requested that all dogs that are currently vaccinated, regardless of when they were microchipped, be grandfathered into the CDC regime.

“The Alliance believes this is a reasonable compromise, which will not only boost compliance, education and awareness of this policy, but will also ensure precautions are being taken to safeguard the health and wellbeing of the animals travelling with truck drivers who are servicing our Canada-U.S. supply chain,” says CTA’s director of Policy and Industry Awareness Programs, Lak Shoan.

The CTA continues to work with its diplomatic contacts on both sides of the border on this issue and will update members if more information becomes available.

To see the original article from Canadian Trucking Alliance, click here.