Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Egypt]

Hi All,

I'm thinking about going to S. Korea to work for a year, but I'm wondering if it's possible to bring my dog. She is a two year old Shih Poo and FABULOUS! Basically, if she can't go neither can I.

Has anyone else brought a dog or cat over? Were there any problems? Do they let you have them in the apartment? Did anyone try to eat it? (Just kidding! I hope!)

Also, I was in Seoul about 6 years ago (Sanbon). I'm wondering if cities like Daegu and Daejon (sp????) are fairly similar. I've heard Seoul is the only westernized city. Do these cities have Fast Food, access to cheese, english book stores?

Anyway, thanks! Any info would be appreciated! Jill

[uberscheisse]

there are tons of pet owners on this board. my coworker has a 10 month old husky that he lives with in his rather tiny apartment. koreans love dogs, because they are 'cut-uh' and most live in apartments... so it's probably safe to assume it's OK. but check with your employer (i'm assuming they're setting up your accomodations).

i know one person who brought her cat over. she had no trouble at customs. there are most likely threads about quarantine etc. but they didn't even say 'boo' to her at customs. she brought a few extra bucks to sway the customs officials' opinion on her cat's entry but she didn't have to whip it out.

nobody has ever said 'boo' to me at customs either.

but by all means research the proper paperwork... i'm sure that there's about 10 people here that know exactly what to do.

[southboca]

We brought our dog with us to Korea about a year and a half ago because we weren't sure how long we'd be here or where we'd move next.

We had no problem in customs; the dog didn't even overnight there. The people in the motel where we stayed gave her quite a few sideways glances. She's too scruffy, she's a mutt, and she's too big (18 pounds) to qualify as Korean cute. If your dog is a bigger dog, it might cause bigger problems.

We lined up accommodations, not our school, so that was a non-issue. We live in Itaewon and they tend to be pretty doggie-tolerant.

The downsides:

Lugging around a pet carrying case was !@#$% difficult after 20 hours of travel and delays. With the dog inside, it was really heavy. With the dog outside, everything kept getting tangled up. My advice, if at all possible, don't come in on the last plane and arrange a ride from the airport.

For our dog, the trip was pretty traumatic. She was weirded out for the first 1-2 weeks -- avoiding people and not eating very much. She's also had to get used to NOT seeing grass on a daily basis.

Apartments in Seoul are small, so if your dog is used to a lot of outside time or even a lot of space, you'll need to schedule in plenty of time for walks. That's a real bummer in the winter time.

If your dog is bigger and not used to cold weather, buy winter doggie stuff before you come. Our 18-pound dog takes XXL from the cheap vendor stands. In Seoul, pet specialty shops sell gear for bigger dogs, but selection was limited and it seemed kind of pricey.

In Seoul, finding dog food, hasn't been a problem. But if you have a picky eater, finding a particular brand of dog food will probably take a lot of legwork and cost a lot.

It was a lot of work, but we're glad we brought our dog with us. That said, I am not looking forward to the trip home.
Best of luck, whatever you decide!!!

[Intrepid]

I posted on this a while back. Toward the bottom is the US-->Korea stuff.
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=24509&highlight=