 |
RSC will be happy to provide any assistance necessary to
import a puppy from Russia. This help is completely free
in hopes that the puppy will become a part of the RSC
breeding stock. You can read testimonies of our members
who imported their dogs through RSC here.
Also, please read the answer to the most commonly asked
questions related to big question Why Import?
NOTE: If you have visited this page before, please look at the information
again!!! The process has changed for the better: faster
and cheaper!!!
Overview
Once you choose a puppy, the "puppy-keeper", the
person who will care for the puppy, prepare all papers
and ship him/her to you, picks up your baby from the breeder.
Before puppy can be picked up, the buyer would only
need to send the
about half of the money which covers the cost
of the puppy (average $550), cost of the tattoo
($9), shots ($20), crate ($86) and "permit to export" document
($25), plus a part of the puppy-keeper's fees ($200).
Puppies are usually picked up from the
breeder at 4-6 weeks of age. Unless someone is
going to bring your puppy home, he/she will stay
with the puppy-keeper till 10 weeks of age. During
that time puppies are kept indoors to avoid exposure
to illnesses. Puppies are not housebroken when
shipped. Puppy-keeper is responsible for all care,
appropriate diet and socialization. During that time
puppy-keeper obtains
all nessesary documents including the health cerificate
from the vererinarian, crate and assessories. We
pre-arrange the flight
date and time with buyer and puppy-keeper. At this
time, the buyer would need to send the remaining
amount. Once the puppy is on the plane, buyer can
contact the airline directly with any concerns. Puppy
is picked the airport
cargo terminal with a picture id. Most airports charge
a small fee (~$20) that was not included in the calculations
below. Please contact the airport of the puppy's
arrival to verify the amount and bring cash.
|
Russian Spaniel Club will
be happy to help you with the process of finding the puppy for you! The only
thing we ask in return is to have your new
puppy
in our Club Registry and would
like for it be a part of the breeding stock in the future, if situation allows.
We have a "Puppies
for Import" webpage showing
all available and expected litters with information and pictures of parents
and puppies when those become available. That page gets updated all the time,
so please
keep
checking it. RSC gets this information from local clubs in Russia who contol
all breeding and evaluate every litter prior to sale. We also do our best
to check the pedigrees for potential problems.
Are there health guarantees
on an imported puppy? The status of law in Russia provides us with
no enforcing
mechanism for any type of guarantee contract. Russian Spaniel Club can
not be responsible in any way. We do our best to help you for free
but we are only human. On the other hand, because breedings in Russia are
always pre-arranged by
the
dog club,
only
healthy
dogs produce
offsprings. Qualified breed expert from the local club evaluates the puppies
at 4 weeks of age for health problems, deviations from the breed standard,
and quality of care puppies recieved in the breeder's home. A
puppy would then be examined
by
a veterinarian
prior to the flight. Also, remember that the breed
is very young, and therefore there are NO genetic diseases specific
to
these
dogs except obesity (control your pup's diet please!), otitis (common in
all spaniel breeds - keep their ears clean!), and a very rare case of food
alergies (we have not seen any yet, but it's in the literature).
STEP 2: Arranging the transport
There are 2 options to transport your puppy into the US:
1. Most of our imported puppies are sent from Russia as "live
cargo"
to a local (large) airport via Delta or Aeroflot. Unless there is a
direct flight to destination city, the puppy will spend the night either in
New York City or Atlanta in a professionally ran kennel where
they are fed,
walked and taken care of. Delta charges for overnight stay $40 in NYC or
$85 in Atlanta. Aeroflot flies only to NYC, Toronto, Washington DC and Los
Angeles. We try to arrange it so that a puppy has no more than 1 night stays,
and look for
the
shortest
trip
possible.
Crate size: 64cmx43cmx43cm or 25"x17"17".
2. If you (or someone you know) are planning a trip to Russia,
you can bring the puppy back in the airplane cabin. We strongly
urge you to reserve a place for your puppy in the plane cabin as early
as possible since only a limited number of animals are allowed for each
flight! Lufthansa rules state that the maximum weight for the animal allowed
in the cabin, including the carrier, is 18lbs/8kgs and may be a maximum of
55x40x20cm or 22x16x8in. AirFrance takes only dogs with all shots, i.e. they
puppy would be over 3.5 months old. For most people,
this is not a real option, however
if this is what you choose, please consider bringing another
puppy for someone else as well.
Note: Sometimes the Russian Spaniel Club becomes aware of a trustworthy
person who would carry your puppy across the ocean on board of the airplane.
We can not guarantee that one will be located. Also, the carrier
might land in a city some distance from your home, and it's up to you to
arrange the transportation from there. We will tell you if this is an option
before you make your decision.
STEP 3: Sending payment to breeder and "puppy keeper" .
Both, Moneygram and Western
Union companies have an extensive network
of locations in Moscow and St Petersburg and many other large cities.
Moneygram
might be a little cheaper, but
Western Union
also allows you to send and track your money online. Prices might also
depend on sender's location within the US.
Payment can be made in full
or in two transfers. 1st payment is sent before
the puppy can be picked up: for the cost of the
puppy (average $550), cost of the tattoo ($9),
shots ($20), crate ($86) and "permit to export" document
($25), plus the
part of the puppy-keeper's fees ($200). 2nd payment
is sent a week before the flight for the remaining
amount which depends on the destination.
See detail
on the cost breakdown below.
Note: If the puppy gets sick in the care of the "puppy keeper", the buyer
will be responsible for the veterinary expenses, unless "puppy keeper" fails
to notify of the problem before treatment decision is made or right after
the urgent care was administred.
STEP 4: "Puppy keeper" obtains necessary documents
- If you are using transportation options 1 and
the puppy is going to be sent as "live cargo", shots are not requited
by
the US customs for puppies under 3 months of age. Here is what a puppy needs
to fly.
|
|
Necessary documents:
|
Cost
|
|
1.
|
Original pedigree from the local breed club
|
-
|
|
2.
|
Permission to export, i.e. "Справка на вывоз"
|
$25
|
|
3.
|
International Veterinary certificate (obtained
in the airport before the flight), i.e. "Международная Ветеренарная Справка"
|
$40
|
| 4. |
Medical
form #1 (obtained with 3 days of flight) |
$27 |
Note: "Permission to export" states
the type of transportation, date and name of the person exporting the
dog. It's recommended that the dog has a tattoo for identification. The
permission lists the breed, sex, color, date of birth and tattoo number.
Then it states that this particular dog has "no special value to people
of Russia", costs one thousand rubles and is permitted to be exported.
It
will be
turned
in to the Russian customs at the airport.
-
If you are going to use the 2nd or "the carrier" option,
your puppy would need:
Same documents described above: Original pedigree from the local
breed club, "Permission to Export, Medical form #1, and International Veterinary
certificate. No
shots
are required for puppies under 3 months of age.
Plus: It is not a requirement but to avoid possible problems, we would
recommend getting a veterinary
certificate
on
the
mother
of
your
puppy
stating
that
she recieved rabies shots no more than 1 year and no less than 1 month prior
to puppy's travel date.
-
OPTIONAL : "РКФ" (pronounced as RKF:
Russian Kynological Federation) pedigree is not required for
export/import right now.
It costs another $50 and takes a VERY long time! Since there are
negotiations FCI and "РКФ" about Russian Spaniel breed
recognition, you might choose to apply for one. If you choose
to do that, please let us know as soon as possible so that we could ask the
local club in Russia to issue an additional certified (signed) puppy pedigree
for submission
to the "РКФ".
- SHOTS: Puppy keeper
administers the first set of shots 3 weeks before the flight. This is not
required
by airlines, but is done for puppies' protection during the long
flight. Cost is $20.
STEPS 5 and 6: "Puppy keeper" takes the puppy to airport
in Russia, and you pick up your new puppy at the airport in the
US.
Unless you are traveling to Russia yourself and will be bringing
the crate with you, breeder or "puppy keeper" will have to purchase
one for you. Cost: carry-on crate and accessories are about $60,
cargo crate and accessories are about $86.
Unless you can pick up the puppy, the puppy-keeper will
bring your puppy to the airport to the "Carrier" or to "Live Cargo" counter.
From that moment on you can contact the airline to find out where your
puppy is. If you are using "Live Cargo", please contact the airline to
make sure your dog is arriving on time. At
the airport cargo terminal you will show your picture id, get the paperwork
stamped by customs/agricultiral
service,
and pick up your puppy. It might take between 1 and 3 hours depending on
the airport personel...
Then... ENJOY YOUR NEW
PUPPY! And don't forget to send us many pictures!
Time Table:
|
From puppy's DOB
|
"Live Cargo"
|
Yourself Carry-On
|
"Carry-On Carrier"
|
|
at least
|
10 weeks
|
1 month
|
1 month
|
|
at most
|
<3 months
|
<3 months
|
<3 month
|
Estimated
Cost Table:
Expenses
|
"Live
Cargo"
|
Yourself
Carry-On*
|
"Carry-On
Carrier"**
|
| Puppy (average) |
$550.00
|
$550.00
|
$550.00
|
| Puppy keeper fees*** |
$300.00 |
- |
$150.00 |
| Puppy ID tattoo |
$9.00
|
-
|
-
|
| First set of shots |
$20.00
|
-
|
-
|
| Papers: |
|
|
|
| 1. "Permission to export" form |
$25.00
|
$25.00
|
$25.00
|
| 2. Medical form #1 (3 days
before flight) |
$27.00
|
$27.00
|
$27.00
|
| Travel: |
|
|
|
| 1. Crate, padding, etc (approximate) |
$86.00
|
|
|
| 2.
Custom/airport fees (incl International Veterinary Certificate) |
$135.00
|
$40.00
|
$40.00
|
| 3. Transportation (estimate to east
coast) |
$385.00
|
$160.00
|
$160.00
|
| 4. To puppy carrier |
-
|
-
|
$150.00
|
|
$1537.00
|
$802.00
|
$1102.00
|
| * Plus the
cost of your trip to Russia. Also, if the puppy keeper arranges all
papers, crate, and brings your puppy to
the airport for you, she should be paid a fee of $120, as for "Carry-On
Carrier"
option. |
| ** Add transportation cost from the
carrier's port of US entry to your house. Remember: there is no way
to predict if a carrier would be found, therefore one should not assume
availability
of this option. |
| *** If breeder is located outside of the
Moscow area, additional fees would be required to cover the cost of the
trip
to the breeder's city to pick up the puppy. |
Note:
All prices listed here are approximate and might change without our knowledge.
If you find that a price listed here is no longer accurate, please let
us know right away. The purpose of listing this information is to familiarize
a potential puppy buyer with the process. Please do not hold us responsible
for inaccuracies, as we do our best to keep you informed. Last updated 03/31/08
|
|
