Bringing my dog to China

Isal91 New member

Member since 01 August 2023

Isal91New member01 August 2023 22:44:56

Hi I'm Isa, I'm going to China for college and to live. I have a dog, whose honestly the light of my life. I've heard about a lot of problems for dogs in China, especially the pet trafficking issue. I want to move to Beijing specifically but I'm concerned. Expats who have brought their dogs, how has the experience been? Do I have anything to worry about?

ChinaTelevision New member

Member since 31 December 2022

ChinaTelevisionNew member01 August 2023 22:59:34

The process to bring a dog is very expensive and quite extensive. Others can speak to that. But dog trafficking? Not an issue. China is an extremely safe country.

Bhavna Team

Member since 01 June 2015

BhavnaTeam02 August 2023 03:08:34

41073

Hello everyone and welcome on board Isal91,

I agree with @ChinaTelevision. you shouldn't be facing any issue. Have you sorted out how to bring your pet to China/Beijing ?

Regards

Bhavna

BeijingBob Active member

Member since 09 August 2020

BeijingBobActive member13 August 2023 02:36:24

@Isal91 Hi, Ok so I have been living in China for over 25 years now and have had several dogs. Still do. I've brought one dog into Macao where I lived in the beginning and then brought one into China and she lived here 13 years without any issues living both in Guangdong and in Beijing. I've had and still have dogs that I have gotten while living in country as well. Same, never an issue. At the moment I have Sammy our Golden Retriever and Lucy a mongrel rescue puppy that I just brought home a week ago.

I've never known anyone here who has had any problems having their dogs here. But that is not to say that there are not issues with dogs here.

Size is the most common problem if you are going to live inside the city. If you are planning to live in Beijing and planning to live inside the 5th Ring road you may encounter a problem if you have a large dog. And you should know that LARGE as it applies to dogs in China is a different standard than Large in the US. (if that is wherre you are coming from? you didn't say) A medium sized breed in the US like our Golden Retriever is considered a Large Breed here and from my understanding Large breed dogs are not permitted or at least frowned upon if you live in the City area (w/in the 5th ring) So you need to factor this into your plans. I myself have never had a problem and we've had two Goldens but I live on the outskirts of the city outside the 6th Ring road.

One other thing though is that many many people in China are afraid of dogs. More and more people have dogs nowadays but still there are lots and lots of people who are scared. So you need to keep your dog on a tight leash and always leashed and don't be surprised if you see people cross the street just to avoid being near you dog (even the little ones). If you live in an apartment block you will need to be ultra polite and considerate when using the elevator. Before entering, if there are other people just be wary that they might be scared.

Good luck