Anybody brought in a horse?

[CeeGee]

Hi--My American fiance is a horseback riding instructor. She is applying outland and will come into Canada while she is waiting for her PR status to be processed. She is leaving the majority of her possessions at the border; she is just bringing in some clothes, her cat and her dog and a few supplies for the time she is waiting.

However, she also has one horse that she intends to bring in. She will not be bringing it at the same time she crosses the border. She intends to ship it in a couple of weeks after she joins me in Ontario. Has anyone else on the forum ever brought a horse in? Any problems? Any suggestions? Any ideas of where to look for more information about this topic?

Thanks for all your help everyone. I know this is a weird one. . . .

 

[RobsLuv]

No clue. One thing to keep in mind, she CANNOT come to Canada to live until after she has been approved for PR. With that in mind, a few belongings and her cat and dog are one thing . . . a horse could raise some red flags. I'd suggest making some inquiries at some equestrian centres or veterinarians who treat horses about what might be involved when someone buys a horse from the States - like from a breeder or something - and handle it that way. I hope I don't sound dumb - horses are not by thing so I don't even know the terminology - but I would think that people who do deal with horses would be able to give you some good advice on how to get one into the country.

 

[Lylyth]

http://www.horse.on.ca/news/2009_press_releases/new_restrictions_for_equine_imports_into_canada_from_the_united_states_.html

Still bothers me that this qualifies under the Canadian Food Inspection Agency :'(

Let me know how it works out and good luck!

 

[ariell]

I think this wins the prize for the most unusual question I've seen asked here! Sorry I have no advice to offer but I agree with Robsluv -- definitely wait til PR is approved before bringing in the horse. Good luck.

 

[racoon]

Hey guys,
I happen to have a degree in Animal Science =)), so had to deal with Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) quite a lot.
1) All animals are under CFIA jurisdiction (not only food animals)
2) Moreover horses from the USA go under pet categorie
3)You should not have any problems importing your horse if it has all its vaccines in order and a vet certificate
4)A lot of people bring horses from the US to Canada for a short term stay, so I don't think it will raise any red flags or will affect your girlfriend's ability to get her PR (plus CFIA and Immigration are completely separate so I don;t see how one can affect another given that you girlfriend will be here already and the horse will follow her...CFIA can't check the status of your girlfriend in Canada and Immigration dudes cannot find out that she brought a horse to Canada)

Here is a link that explains everything
www_inspection_gc_ca/english/anima/imp/petani/equie_shtml (I can;t post links so just substitute underscores with dots =))

The status of your girlfriend in Canada does not affect her horse's ability to come to Canada =)) so she can bring it anytime!!! Overall the horse import is pretty easy and straight forward unlike cattle or exotic animal import.

Cheers, Racoon!
PS:Horses rule