Barbra Streisand Travels with Her Pooch on the European Leg of Her Tour

This article originally appeared on Dr. Mahaney’s Pet-Lebrity News column on Pet360.com as: Barbra Streisand Travels with Her Pooch on the European Leg of Her Tour.

What dog wouldn’t want to accompany their superstar songstress owner on a luxurious trek through Europe while she belts out her ballads to thousands of fans? Recently, Barbra Streisand was photographed in Amsterdam with her dogSamantha (Sammie), where she’s country-hopping through the E.U. as part of her Barbra Live tour.

This all sounds so glamorous, but traveling with a canine or feline companion may not  always be the best idea from the standpoint of health and safety. Sometimes, journeying via car, train, plane, boat, or other means can be very stressful or even expose pets to injury or illness that they otherwise would not face in the comfort of their own home environment.

Yet, taking a dog on a plane is a common experience for owners who are on-the-go and seek canine companionship in-flight or at their final destination. Some dogs travel in the compartment with their owners if they are within size guidelines or have been appropriately registered for service work. Other dogs’ larger bodies require containment in cargo, which is, in general, a safe experience for most dogs but not desirable for many owners.

Sammie, a female Coton de Tulear, would likely fit within the weight/size guidelines for in-compartment travel. It’s unknown if Sammie is a service animal or if Streisand flies commercial or private I suspect that private is her preferred mode of travel, yet Sammie will still need to be appropriately documented to be given access into the country of destination.  After all, Streisand doesn’t want to run into an issue with local government like Justin Bieber did while traveling into Germany via private plane (see Justin Bieber’s Monkey Kept From Entering Germany).

So, what kind of documentation is required to travel to Europe with a dog? An APHIS health certificate needs to be provided by the overseeing veterinarian. For export from the U.S. into theEuropean Union (including Holland, where Streisand was photographed with Sammie), a specific set of requirements must be adhered to, including:

Pet dogs, cats, and ferrets must be identified with a microchip compatible with ISO standard 11784 or 11785 or the appropriate microchip reader must be provided along with the pet. Microchip implantation must occur PRIOR to rabies vaccination. Any rabies vaccination that occurs prior to microchip implantation is not considered valid regardless of whether the animal was up-to-date on its previous rabies vaccines. In this case, the animal must be revaccinated. 21 days must have elapsed after the first (primary) vaccination after implantation of the microchip before the animal is eligible to enter the European Union. A rabies vaccination is considered primary if either: (1) an animal was up-to-date on its rabies vaccination but vaccination occurred prior to microchip implantation, (2) vaccination was not carried out within the period of validity of a previous vaccination, or (3) the animal was vaccinated for the first time.

So, these countries are quite specific about their demands for timing of the rabies vaccination in relation to the microchip’s implantation.  As a result, it takes careful planning on behalf of the owner and veterinarian to ensure a pet will be properly prepared for export to the E.U.

As rabies is a disease that’s well under control in both the U.S and the E.U. as a result of the legal requirements for vaccination of companion animals, it’s quite unlikely that Streisand’s dog will realistically be exposed to the virus. Yet, there are a variety of other diseases with which Sammie could be infected.

Streisand and Sammie reportedly live in Malibu, California, where the presence of many tick and flea-borne diseases is minimized in comparison to more humid ares of the country where ectoparasites (fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, etc.)  thrive and transmit microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, parasites, etc.). The seasonal heat and humidity of most European countries permits the prosper of annoying and illness-spreading bugs that are likely gnashing their mouthparts at the thought of sucking on Sammie’s blood.

Hopefully, Sammie is appropriately medicated to prevent ectoparasites from taking up residence on her skin’s surface. I speculate Streisand’s special pooch is kept in the safest and most sanitary of conditions and would have any of her health needs immediately met by a veterinarian in any country graced by their presence.

Eric Isselee via Shutterstock

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Copyright of this article (2013) is owned by Dr Patrick Mahaney, Veterinarian and Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist. Republishing any portion of this article must first be authorized by Dr Patrick Mahaney. Requests for republishing must be approved by Dr Patrick Mahaney and received in written format.

Tagged as: celebrities and pets, pets and disease, pets and health, pets and safety, pets and travel

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