Image credit: Dunham/AP

In a previous blog post, I briefly listed a few resources you can consult if you’re moving to London and planning on bringing your pets.  Most pet owners do, after all—not doing so would, for them, be akin to leaving a child or a leg at home.

In any case, over the last few days, I’ve participated in discussion threads on forums like London Living and The London Expat American Meetup Group that address pet relocations in terms of London’s pet-friendliness, so thought I would also do so here.

Overall, London is quite pet-friendly—dogs can run without leashes at many city parks and are permitted entry to various shops and pubs.  I never cease to be impressed by how docile these animals manage to be, especially when they ride the Tube   But I have to say I think the local dogs are more reserved than some of the Yankee renegades that come over, as my friends’ American dogs will tear through out of control like cowboys riding the untamed Wild West.  I had a good laugh at one of my friend’s tales about his puggle at Hampstead Heath:  while the British dogs were trotting at their owners’ sides and only required a single command at an indoor-voice volume for them not to stray, his dog proceeded to run ragged and fall into ponds, then rub his muddy hide up against the Burberry raincoats of proper older British ladies.

Anyways, see below for a list of sites that offer up pet-friendly locales:

Pubs:  DoggiePubs.org.uk

Hotels:  VisitLondon.com, GoLondon.com

Services (e.g., groomers, kennels, etc.):  DogFriendlyBritain.co.uk

And do consult Yelp for Londoner’s ratings on assorted pet-friendly venues:  Yelp.co.uk

Now when it comes down to pet-friendly flats, we’re entering different territory.  The biggest obstacle you will encounter in this respect is finding a building that allows pets; if the building doesn’t allow them, it doesn’t matter if the individual unit’s landlord doesn’t mind them.  If the building says no, it’s a no.

If the building says yes, but the landlord says no, that might rest at a no as well.  However, while many landlords may not be keen on having a dog or cat in their owned property, they may be willing to negotiate.  Ways to sweeten the pot for them when negotiating your lease is meeting the asking price rather than trying to haggle it down, if not offering more than the asking price (indeed, some landlords may require an additional fee).  In addition, they may be inclined to allow it if you are able to offer them additional months’ rent in advance as a way of bypassing additional costs.

There’s no way around the fact that having a pet versus not will be more of a property-finding challenge.  BUT it’s possible, so keep faith.  And if you’re employing the services of a relocation specialist like London Relocation Ltd., that expertise on your side will give you that much more of an edge, as we know the local contacts to call.  I’m just sayin’…

Clark, an American Puggle who recently relocated to London, researches the Pug branch of his aristocratic family lineage at an English country pub.

If your pet is relocating to London with you, the complications surrounding shipping Man’s Best Friend over here might become Your Worst Enemy.  Nah, it shouldn’t be too insurmountable an obstacle for you as long as you do your research plenty ahead of time.  To get you started, below are several websites that may prove useful resources in answering your questions (as well as relocation services):

PetRelocation.com – UK import rules and requirements; also provides pet relocation services

About.com: Moving:  What About My Pet? – article on pet travel, including a comprehensive list of questions you should be asking

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) – general UK regulations on animal transfers

Air Animal – flight FAQs & relocation services

Additional pet relocation services from which you can obtain quotes for comparison:

Airpets

Jet Set Pets

TransFur International Pet Relocation

Pets On The Move Ltd.

Non-pet-people (including myself) may find it difficult to understand why anyone would go through the extra aggravation of transporting a pet internationally.  In response to this moving issue is a moving (in another sense) poem that I recall Jimmy Stewart reciting on the Tonight Show years ago about his dog Beau.  I’ve never even owned a dog, but this coupled with ‘Marley & Me’ reduce me to a weeping infant and teach me to never place judgment on another’s love of an animal as a member of the family.