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Lifestyle & relocation

Pet import to Paraguay: bringing your dog or cat

Your dog or cat comes too: we plan the import to Paraguay, from the timing of vaccination, examination and international veterinary certificate to the SENACSA check at the airport.

Price
Price on request
Duration
6 to 8 weeks of lead time
For whom
Movers with a dog or cat
Get in touchCalculate your price

Paraguay is comparatively easy on pet owners. A healthy dog or cat with correct papers is normally not quarantined, and SENACSA, the animal-health authority, asks for no separate import permit. The difficulty lies in deadlines that interlock: rabies vaccination, parasite treatment, clinical examination and the international veterinary certificate (CVI) all have to fall in the right order and at the right distance from your flight.

We organize the import for you. We work the schedule backwards from your flight date, check the vaccination record, rabies protection and microchip, agree the certificate appointment with you and settle how your animal should travel. The vet examination and the appointment with the official veterinary authority in your country are yours to attend with your pet; we make sure you arrive there with the right papers inside the right window.

If your dog needs somewhere to stay in the first weeks, because the apartment is not ready or appointments are piling up, we can point you to Hotel Canino 1870, a dog-boarding site on eight hectares near Asunción that we recommend.

What's included

  • An import schedule worked backwards from your flight: rabies, parasite treatment, examination, certificate
  • A document check: vaccination record or pet passport, rabies vaccination, and a microchip to ISO 11784/11785 where one is used
  • Preparation of the international veterinary certificate for SENACSA and timing of the appointment with the official vet
  • Advice on how your pet travels (cabin, hold or cargo service) and, on request, an introduction to an experienced pet-transport service
  • For breeds classed as potentially dangerous: a check of airline and transit restrictions and a note on local registration
  • Contacts for vets in Paraguay and, on request, a recommendation for dog boarding near Asunción

Process

  1. 1Intro call: species, breed, size, age, health and planned flight
  2. 2About 6 to 8 weeks before the flight: check rabies protection and microchip, book a flight with a pet space, settle the transport
  3. 3Within 15 days before the certificate is issued: treatment against internal and external parasites
  4. 4Clinical examination no more than 10 days before the certificate is issued, then issue of the international veterinary certificate by the official vet
  5. 5Arrival at Silvio Pettirossi airport: document check and a brief look at the animal by SENACSA, usually 15 to 30 minutes

Allow 6 to 8 weeks of lead time. After a first rabies vaccination the animal may travel only once 21 days have passed, so start earlier in that case. Two windows matter: the clinical examination may be no more than 10 days old when the certificate is issued, and the certificate is then valid for 60 days from issuance as long as the rabies vaccination stays valid. The 10 days are the gap between examination and issuance, not between certificate and flight.

Who is this for?

For people bringing a dog or cat to Paraguay now or later, especially large dogs flying in the hold, short-nosed breeds, older animals and breeds classed as potentially dangerous, where airline and route need careful choosing.

Pricing

  • Pet relocationPrice on request

Price on request, because the work depends heavily on the animal, the breed, the transport and the route. Third-party costs you pay directly are not included: the vet and the official vet, vaccinations, the crate, flight or cargo charges and any boarding.

Important note: Which requirements apply in a given case is set by SENACSA and by the veterinary authority of the country you depart from; the rules are adjusted from time to time, and what counts is the position at the time of travel. Whether an animal flies is the airline's decision. We coordinate and introduce pet-transport services and vets, but we are neither vets nor legal advisers.

More on this topic

In-depth guide: bringing pets to ParaguaySettling in: your first 30 days in Paraguay

FAQ

Does a dog or cat have to go into quarantine on arrival in Paraguay?
Not when the papers are in order: a healthy, fully documented dog or cat normally leaves the airport with you. SENACSA checks the documents and takes a brief look at the animal, usually within 15 to 30 minutes. If documents are missing, the animal can be held and moved to quarantine at the owner's expense, which is exactly what a clean schedule prevents.
Do I need a SENACSA import permit for a dog or cat?
No, not for a dog or cat traveling as a pet. What matters is the international veterinary certificate issued or endorsed by the official veterinary authority in the country you leave from, together with the vaccination record and proof of rabies vaccination. Six or more animals count as a commercial shipment, and birds, reptiles and exotic species follow their own, sometimes much stricter rules, up to a CITES check.
What do the 10 days and the 60 days on the Paraguay veterinary certificate mean?
They are two different windows that often get mixed up. The clinical examination may take place no more than 10 days before the certificate is issued. Once issued, the certificate is valid for 60 days, as long as the rabies vaccination remains valid. You therefore have to fly within the certificate's validity, not within 10 days of the vet appointment.
Does my dog need a leishmaniasis test for Paraguay?
Under the MERCOSUR rules Paraguay may refuse entry to an animal diagnosed with leishmaniasis. Whether a test before departure makes sense depends on where your dog has lived and traveled, so we raise the question with your vet early rather than treating it as a box to tick.
Can my pet fly to Paraguay in the cabin, or must it travel in the hold?
Cabin travel is usually limited to small animals within the airline's weight cap, often around 8 kg including the carrier, and pet spaces per flight are scarce. Larger dogs travel in an IATA-compliant crate in the climate-controlled hold or through a cargo service. Some airlines refuse short-nosed breeds such as pugs or French bulldogs altogether, especially in summer.
Which rules apply to breeds such as the Rottweiler when importing a dog to Paraguay?
There are two hurdles: airlines and transit countries restrict the transport of certain breeds, and in Paraguay you should plan for registration as a potentially dangerous breed. We check both before you book the flight.
Where can a dog stay in the first weeks after arriving in Asunción?
If the apartment is not ready or appointments fill your days, a boarding kennel bridges the gap. We recommend Hotel Canino 1870, on an eight-hectare site near Asunción, and can put you in touch; expect it to ask for a complete vaccination record and flea and tick protection.

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Questions about this service?

In a free intro call we clarify your situation and the path to Paraguay that fits.

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