Job Discussion Forums

[summerrain]

Does anyone have any experience having pets in Colombia? I'd like to bring my cat with me and have researched requirements to get her into the country, but I'm wondering about cultural customs that would make having a cat easier/harder.

Is it a problem to find pet friendly housing? Any particular diseases to watch out for? Are people friendly toward pets? Can I get special diets (for protein allergies) and medications there? What is the vet care like? Any and all advice and experiences are appreciated

(I will be living in Medellin, Bogota, or Cartagena.)

[KatrinaESL]

Hi hi, I brought my 3 cats to Colombia. It was annoying as hell, but more so because it was 3 of them and one of me and trying to lug them around. Taking one will be easy, you just have to get an FDA approved vet, and they know what to do. There are vets everywhere here and you can definitely buy special diet food in most vet offices. I live in Barranquilla and it was super easy finding an apartment that allowed cats. When I asked if I could have animals in the two different apartments I've had people seemed surprised that I would even ask.

[travelNick]

My experience with having a cat in Bogota wasn't the best, unfortunately. It was a new experience raising a cat in an apartment environment and not something I was used to. Not having trees to climb and nature to do cat-stuff in seemed not right to me. However, there are plenty of places to buy cat toys, towers etc. Colombians typically love pets and it is big business.

As for vets, you would need to shop around. Just like a GP, there are some that are wonderful, and many that don't know diddly squat about cats. The pet of choice for around 95% of families is a dog.

Don't expect to be able to buy cat treats or anything remotely exciting foodwise unless you can find a vet who imports that kind of stuff.

One final thing you might want to consider is that if you're coming from a country that doesn't have rabies, and in the future you want to return to that country, you won't be able to bring your cats back with you. The only country in South America declared "rabies free" is Chile, if I'm not mistaken. There are ways around this, but nothing that doesn't involve extended quarantine time.

Other than that, cats are still quite a novelty for Colombian families and your wee ones will be well appreciated by guests!

[leretif9]

Do I need to get my cat a rabies shot first if I'm coming from the US to Columbia? It seems to be a requirement for Argentina.

[summerrain]

Yes - Rabies shot, rabies certificate, and international health certificate.

It looks like he doesn't need a new rabies shot to come to Colombia - he just needs to be current (with certificate from your vet to prove that). In adult cats, rabies vaccines are usually good for 3 years.

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/regulations/vs/iregs/animals/downloads/co_cn_rev.pdf

[summerrain]

KatrinaESL and TravelNick - do you know what kind of feline diseases are in Colombia? Are there preventatives I can start before we move down (fleas, heartworm, ticks, other South American diseases I haven't even heard of)? Or are there things I should avoid? I'll be in Medellin and she'll be indoors only.

[travelNick]

Rabies would be the big one. If it were "me", I would get everything that the vet has in their cabinet, but I'm a worrywort about those things. If he/she is going to be inside, there's probably not much you need to worry about beyond the normal. If you're going to go to a "finca" (farm house) then you might need to get some extra shots of whatever. That of course can be done in Colombia.

My cat, unfortunately, got perotinitis and it took over in the period of 3 weeks... Apparently got it from his mother. But that, and leukaemia, are pretty much beyond control...

It is just a hunch, but I imagine Medellin would have more cats per capita and vets that know more about them, and consequently more kitty-cat stuff.

[leretif9]

This girl cat of mine is very much an indoor cat.