What Are the Dangers of Bringing Foreign Animals Home?

As the homeless dog population decreases in Canada and the United States some shelters and humane societies have started importing dogs to ensure they have dogs for the public to adopt.1

Humane relocation began when city shelters began cooperating with each other. It was better for an animal to be moved to another shelter versus being euthanized due to a lack of space. Some agencies are no longer taking in animals from other regions in the same country but importing animals from foreign countries. For example, the Save a Sato program (as of 2003) had imported 14,000 dogs into the United States from Puerto Rico. Some shelters in the United States are importing 100-200 dogs per month. Dogs are not just arriving from Puerto Rico, but from Asian countries and Mexico. Some shelters are becoming similar to pet stores. Inventory (animals) is acquired at little cost, advertised using ‘rescue’ and ‘pet overpopulation’ campaigns, and selling/adopting the animals.2

Patti Strand said, “Even before considering the health issues, it is a reckless and indefensible practice to import stray animals into a country that pours hundreds of millions of public and private dollars annually, (and has for decades) into animal control and 'pet overpopulation' problems!” Importing dogs can threaten public health and sustain local pet-overpopulation. Dog importation does not save lives, it aids overpopulation and the killing of local adoptable dogs. Also, humane relocation does not reduce pet-overpopulation unless the exporting country/region increases public education and spay/neuter programs. 2

One of the health risks of importing dogs is that they may carry diseases and parasites that are not native to the importing country. Imported dogs are rarely pets in their exporting country; they are typically stray dogs that have not received quality veterinary care throughout their lives. The less-than-ideal conditions these dogs are living in makes them excellent carriers of disease. When these potentially unhealthy animals are introduced to a shelter the other animals in the shelter are exposed to whatever the imported dog may be affected by. Caregivers and adoptive families are also put at risk to zoonotic diseases and parasites. In countries without vaccination programs, dogs are often infected with rabies. According to the Centers for Disease Control a dog with rabies was recently imported into the United States. Rabies has been found to incubate in a dog from five days to years. Importation that does not require a quarantine period of at least 60 days is putting people and animals in the importing country at unnecessary risk. Patti Strand said, “Living in a country where it is difficult to get a banana through customs, and where livestock importation is strictly regulated and animal protection groups seek ever-tighter regulation of dogs from breed enthusiasts along with commercial breeders, it is a sick and intolerable paradox that poorly bred, often diseased, foreign-bred dogs enter our country by the thousands with the barest of regulation - often on airlines that fly them to the US at no charge to help out the 'cause’.” 2

Dr. Arnold Goldman said, "Even though relocating pets may feel good in the short run, it is a false, potentially dangerous and ultimately ineffective practice that does nothing to solve the problem of surplus dogs at the source. Improving animal well-being and solving animal welfare problems such as homeless animals must be addressed at the place where animals first interact with people, by the development of targeted programs in their cities, counties and states of origin." 3 So how can people help foreign animals? Patti Strand recommends that people help animals in developing countries by funding sterilization clinics and public education campaigns. 2