WARNING dog pet passports (1 Viewer)

Apr 20, 2009
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hi i hope none of you needs this information but i felt it may be usefull.
Last year i had my dog Ruby all sorted for her pet passport everything went well and we took her to france and got her home very easily no problems atall .We came home at the end of august and 2 months later got a letter from our vets telling us that there had been problems with the chips that had been inserted and would we like to go to the vets and have it scanned to ensure that ours wasnt one of those affected , we did this and the chip was fine.
So this year we booked to go to france on 14 june on the 1 june we recieved a reminder from our vet that Ruby needed her health check and booster vaccinations we took her on the 3 june and mentioned that we were off to france again on the 14th vet says ok will just check her chip OH NO chip has failed so he put new chip in he says he will get in touch with defra but all should be ok now to cut a very very long storey short 2 hours ago iv been told that i cannot travel till 27 june (you have to wait 21 days after rabies injection) not my fault not vets fault but if you have one of these chips inserted in your animals to avoid dissapointment get it checked at least a month before you go we cant now take Ruby with us not even sure if we can go trying to sort care for Ruby . This chip is made by VIRBECK if yours is by this company please get it checked well in advance i cant tell you how much upset this has caused . Yes we now have a brand new pet passport and next time we go so will Ruby but this time im gutted my holiday is ruined.
 

vwalan

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if the rabies vaccinations started last year then there really isnt any need for another for three years . the time waiting is only for new dogs anyway.
mine left uk before the passport scheme started . at first it was every year a jab then after a few years two years then about 4 years ago it became every three years . think your vet is screwing you. you have proof of vacs and the old passport plus new one it will be ok . i have four passports for mine as they get filled up she travels that much . i keep all as a back up.
 
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sillybug
Apr 20, 2009
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The problem isnt the vaccine its the chip if the chip fails and virbeck who make this particuler chip already no that it is failing there is no way to prove that you have had the jab done . the number on the chip is the same as is on the passport if they cant read the chip number they cant see if that passport belongs to that dog , so you have to restart the whole process again . i have now spent most of today talking to defra they wont allow you to travel if either the chip is not working or if you as i have had to do start again so i have to wait for the 21 days unfortunately its to late for me

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sillybug
Apr 20, 2009
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sorry this company is called virbac they are the suppliers to the vets if you have one of these fitted please get it checked
 

vwalan

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hi . mine had hers fitted in 99 still ok .
didnt mean to confuse , but vets are known for conning folk.
20,08 99. we left in the december before the scheme started in the april of 2000. hope you get sorted .
 

Chris

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I would stick a claim in against Virbeck for the failed chip, any cost of refitting and your kennel fees.

You might like to do a bit of googling to see how common this is and then hit them with that as well.

Good luck

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:Eeek::Eeek::Eeek:

How annoying is that!


hi i hope none of you needs this information but i felt it may be usefull.
Last year i had my dog Ruby all sorted for her pet passport everything went well and we took her to france and got her home very easily no problems atall .We came home at the end of august and 2 months later got a letter from our vets telling us that there had been problems with the chips that had been inserted and would we like to go to the vets and have it scanned to ensure that ours wasnt one of those affected , we did this and the chip was fine.
So this year we booked to go to france on 14 june on the 1 june we recieved a reminder from our vet that Ruby needed her health check and booster vaccinations we took her on the 3 june and mentioned that we were off to france again on the 14th vet says ok will just check her chip OH NO chip has failed so he put new chip in he says he will get in touch with defra but all should be ok now to cut a very very long storey short 2 hours ago iv been told that i cannot travel till 27 june (you have to wait 21 days after rabies injection) not my fault not vets fault but if you have one of these chips inserted in your animals to avoid dissapointment get it checked at least a month before you go we cant now take Ruby with us not even sure if we can go trying to sort care for Ruby . This chip is made by VIRBECK if yours is by this company please get it checked well in advance i cant tell you how much upset this has caused . Yes we now have a brand new pet passport and next time we go so will Ruby but this time im gutted my holiday is ruined.
 

Heyupluv

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Urgent update on Virbac’s faulty microchips! DEFRA recommend that a new chip is inserted in case the existing chip fails at some point in the future.
Post from Dog owner stuck in France 2nd October 2012.

“The faulty microchips start with 9000 you can also view an update on defras website. We know this is correct as we are currently stuck in France awaiting the 21 day period to expire before we can return with our dog after obtaining a new pet passport. There are some dogs in quarantine now due to this issue. Virbac are covering additional costs. We were lucky and were able to stay in France with the dog, it was however, a big drama and initially we had nowhere to go. We ended up in a tent for a week but now are in a gite courtesy of virbac who also paid for the pet passport. Some people had no choice but to return to the uk and go down the import license route and quarantine due to work commitments. The chip failed as we were about to return to the uk after working out here since the 1st of may, the chip worked on the way out as he was scanned with Brittany ferries, the chip was implanted in 2010 and worked for that time up to some point since may. So I recommend a chip replacement even if the current chip is working as it can fail at any time.

Virbac should have made the issue more widely known, we and many others could have prevented our current situations”

Failure of Virbec microchips
Virbac have identified a functionality issue with some microchips distributed since 2010. A small number of these microchips have recently malfunctioned.

The following chips with these batch numbers need to be replaced:

Chip numbers up to 900088000202473
Chip numbers 90008800020274 to 900008800259207

Here is a link....Brucy Bonus
http://vetsgetscanning.co.uk/urgent-update-on-virbacs-faulty-microchips/

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Hollyberry

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What a nightmare.

You should definitely claim against the chip manufacturer.

If your return to the UK is more than 21 days from the latest rabies jab ( which matches the passport to the new chip) Ruby could go as there are no restrictions going to France, just coming back to the UK.

But you should claim for any kennelling, newts sport and new chip and any other expenses incurred because of the faulty chip.
 

ShiftZZ

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Thinking about it, the whole point of chipping a dog is the ability to trace the dog’s owner. With that in mind, the data on the chip would have to be linked to the owner, so the question has to be, why did the company not contact the dog owners to advise them that the chip was faulty. Otherwise whats the point of having a chip that you can’t trace its owner??

As far as I can see the company had a duty of care and they had the information, so the issues could have been averted. Otherwise the whole chipping principle is now worth the chips the data is written on.
If this was the US there would have been a class action taken against them. I suggest that they should cover all the costs and some element of compensation. Plus they should be ordered to contact every affected owner.
 
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steveclecy

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2 hours ago iv been told that i [HI]cannot travel till 27 june[/HI] (you have to wait 21 days after rabies injection) not my fault not vets fault but if you have one of these chips inserted in your animals to avoid dissapointment get it checked at least a month before you go we cant now take

As far as I can see you can travel immediately. It is your return date that has to be 21 days after the rabies injection.

Steve

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Roryboys Dad

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Why does your dog need a rabies injection to leave the UK?
As long as it's 21 days or more before it goes through Pet Passport control in Europe on your return to the UK then there should be no problem - or have I got the wrong end of the stick?

:france::france::france:
 

Xabia

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Since the pet passport scheme started we have always had our own scanner. We check regularly to make sure the chip is functuioning correctly and always do a check well before we leave the UK and again before we leave our house in Spain to return.

Peace of mind is well worth the initial cost.

Mike
 

chatter

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Im sorry but somewhere to my mind wires are crossed, a microchip is not proof of rabies injection, it is to trace the owner if the pet wanders and is found by someone, the rabies injection, batch number and date is a seperate entry in the passport. So surely it only required the chip number on the passport changing and duly stamped/verified by vet that did it and the reason why (which it seems is well known about). To have to go through the whole procedure and have to wait the month when it has already been done is daft unless of course the rabies jab was due

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steveclecy

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Im sorry but somewhere to my mind wires are crossed, a microchip is not proof of rabies injection, it is to trace the owner if the pet wanders and is found by someone, the rabies injection, batch number and date is a seperate entry in the passport. So surely it only required the chip number on the passport changing and [HI]duly stamped/verified by vet that did it[/HI] and the reason why (which it seems is well known about). To have to go through the whole procedure and have to wait the month when it has already been done is daft unless of course the rabies jab was due

The microchip is there to identify the dog. The vet checks the microchip, confirms the dog's identity, gives that dog the rabies injection, and then signs a statement to that effect. The owner can change. The chip doesn't (and therefore the dog doesn't). It is when the chip fails that problems arise. How could the vet know it was the same animal if the chip failed? The process must be restarted.

Steve
 

Ridgeway

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Why does your dog need a rabies injection to leave the UK?
As long as it's 21 days or more before it goes through Pet Passport control in Europe on your return to the UK then there should be no problem - or have I got the wrong end of the stick?

:france::france::france:

My understanding as well.

I think this justifies a longer holiday:Smile:
 
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sillybug
Apr 20, 2009
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when i first new there was a problem i got on the defra webb site and many more and like some of you i also read it as i could take a dog out so long as they didnt come back to uk before the 21 days was up . when i spoke to vet he said no so i rang defra and they also said no because for the rabies jab to be fully working takes the 21 days if you take them before that time they could get rabies while you were away you would bring them in to uk and it may have rabies . in my case this wouldnt happen she was jabbed a year ago but i cant prove that because of the chip not woking

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ukbill

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but surely the pet passport says the vaccine has been done not the chip so from your point of view your dog is protected that would be my concern is me mutt protected
 
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sillybug
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but surely the pet passport says the vaccine has been done not the chip so from your point of view your dog is protected that would be my concern is me mutt protected

Yes your right but when you go to the port they need the chip to work so that it corresponds to the passport without all these things in order you cant travel and it still remains the case that you cant travel out of the uk untill the 21 days are up.
if i leave the uk on 14 june and assume i dont get stopped and have 2 weeks in france when i come back on 30 june the 21 days would be up but in france they will check the passport and new chip and they will probably be able to tell that we travelled before the 21 days then what could happen would you get a fine would you be allowed to bring in the dog. i have to ask myself is it worth the risk i dont think so .believe me i tried everything to be able to take the dog with us but i can see why they stick to the rules after all nobody wants rabies in uk.mind you makes you wonder why they cant controll illegal immigrants this well ?
 

ukbill

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i dont think they have ever checked by dogs chip on the tunnel on the way out when we return yes but not on the way out i will be travelling on wednesday i will try to give you a heads up then if they check it or not

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steveclecy

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i dont think they have ever checked by dogs chip on the tunnel on the way out when we return yes but not on the way out i will be travelling on wednesday i will try to give you a heads up then if they check it or not

We have been travelling to France since 2001, soon after the Pet Passport scheme started and have probably made between 15 and 20 trips with dogs (not always with a Motorhome). We have [HI]never[/HI] been checked on the way out. As regards being "fined" on the way back, how could they do that? If you lived in France you could travel to UK on the 22nd day after the injection. What is different?

Steve
 

ukbill

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thats the point the check is on the return so the 21 days would be up np with returning
 
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Yes your right but when you go to the port they need the chip to work so that it corresponds to the passport without all these things in order you cant travel and it still remains the case that you cant travel out of the uk untill the 21 days are up.
if i leave the uk on 14 june and assume i dont get stopped and have 2 weeks in france when i come back on 30 june the 21 days would be up but in france they will check the passport and new chip and they will probably be able to tell that we travelled before the 21 days then what could happen would you get a fine would you be allowed to bring in the dog. i have to ask myself is it worth the risk i dont think so .believe me i tried everything to be able to take the dog with us but i can see why they stick to the rules after all nobody wants rabies in uk.mind you makes you wonder why they cant controll illegal immigrants this well ?

I am gutted for you. I too thought there was a glimmer of hope in not bringing back until 21 days had elapsed, but yes, now I can see the reasoning behind waiting in case dog catches rabies before the innoculation has become effective.
Your post has been helpful and sent me scurrying off to check Alfie's passport as we are off to France at the end of July. I shall make sure the Vet checks the Chip during his annual health-check although his chip is not in the suspect batches.
Odd to think that if we are both bitten by a rabid dog, he has a better survival risk than me.

Thanks again for the post and hope you can make the best of your limited choice

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sillybug
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We have been travelling to France since 2001, soon after the Pet Passport scheme started and have probably made between 15 and 20 trips with dogs (not always with a Motorhome). We have [HI]never[/HI] been checked on the way out. As regards being "fined" on the way back, how could they do that? If you lived in France you could travel to UK on the 22nd day after the injection. What is different?

Steve

i would have thought the same but after talking to defra they really put me off . wouldnt they be able to tell from computer records ect when we entered france therefore be able to tell that we travelled before we should.
i also feel that the defra site is misleading to me it does say that you can travell before the 21 days but as iv said on telephone they were very insistant that you cant.
think i should just except the situation and make new plans having said that virbac will be hearing from me very soon!
 
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We have been travelling to France since 2001, soon after the Pet Passport scheme started and have probably made between 15 and 20 trips with dogs (not always with a Motorhome). We have [HI]never[/HI] been checked on the way out. As regards being "fined" on the way back, how could they do that? [HI]
If you lived in France you could travel to UK on the 22nd day after the injection. What is different?

[/HI]Steve

That's a good point, who knows Mr Frenchman's dog wasn't Rabid at the time of his/her innoculation? but once 21 days have elapsed.....................

Seems I'm now querying my own post above, all down to interpretation?
I have to say I would be tempted to travel out based on Steve's point
 

todogseatsthemall

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HI EVERY ONE
ONE OF THE MAIN PROBLEMS WITH PET MICRO CHIPS IS THAT THEY CAN MIGRATE AROUND ONE OF MY DOGS CHIPS HAS MOVED SO THE VET HAS TO BE TOLD TO DOUBLE CHECK THE POSITION OF IT :Doh:

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vwalan

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hi. apart from when we took our dog out before the passport scheme started brittany ferries have always had the dog scanned at the port as you get your boarding cards etc . same coming back into uk at the ports france or spain always checked .blackie as been abroad more of her life than in uk . if the tunnel arent checking then it needs reporting . its the responsibility of the carrier to do it . perhaps for safety of pets the tunnel needs reporting .
 

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