Before you leave for Ecuador your pet must have several vaccinations. These include panoleukopenia feline or feline distemper, as well as rabies vaccinations for animals that are more than three months old. All dogs that are older than three months have to be immunised against a number of diseases. These include distemper, canine hepatitis, leptospirosis , rabies, influenza and parvovirus.

The documentation you need to provide when taking the animals into Ecuador must declare all of the relevant vaccinations and the dates when they were administered. All vaccinations must have been administered not less than four weeks prior to the date of travel and not more than one year before.

All animals must have a certificate of good health issued by an authorised vet in the country of origin. The document must be translated into Spanish and the signature notarised. This then has to have authorisation from the Secretary of State for the region in which the owner lives.

This must also be accompanied by an international health certificate which can be supplied by the vet and must be done so within 10 days of the date of travel. It is important that all pets are micro chipped as this is essential for identification and also if you wish to leave Ecuador to return to your home country. If the chip does not conform to the recommended standards then a separate scanner will need to be supplied and attached to the pet’s cage. The crates or cages in which the pets will be transported also need to meet certain standards.

Once the pet arrives in Ecuador you will be able to arrange collection after two or three days. There are fees payable, which is usually 25% of the cost of shipping. It is possible to collect the pet immediately but this will cost 120% of the shipping cost although you may be able to reclaim this at a later date.

There are some airlines that will allow you to bring a small pet in the main cabin of the plane. These airlines will charge a fee for this and will usually only allow one pet in the cabin at a time. Otherwise a pet will have to be transported in the hold of the plane.

Finding a vet in Ecuador should be relatively easy, particularly in the bigger towns and cities. Most will have studied at universities in the United States or the UK and will be English speakers. Pet supplies are readily available at most supermarkets or pet stores and branded pet foods are imported into the country.