Hey

[Solero]

Hi All

My wife and I (and our faithful Labrador Reg) are about to start on our sailing odyssey in 2010 buying a yacht in Europe and starting from there. Thinking of an Xc 45. Don't know how long we'll go for or where we'll end up but looking forward to it immensely.

We have been training by sailing along the eastern seaboard of Oz and doing as many sailing courses as possible. Both keen dinghy sailors and have had various keel boats of various sizes over the last 10 years.

Thank you moderators or a wonderful site full of great people and information.

Might see you on the sea.

Cheers Dave & Dee (and Reg of course)

[JeanneP]

Welcome aboard. *Have a drink on me, it's my shout this week.

I'm curious, do you plan to take Reg on your cruise? *Have you discussed with Australia what problems, if any, there would be repatriating Reg at the end of your cruising?

[Lighthouse]

Welcome to CruiserLog Dave, Dee (and Reg) - good to have you here.

I suggest you do your homework about Reg as JeanneP suggests.

Grab all the VBs that JeanneP is offering, she doesn't come to the party very often.

Make yourself at home and we hope to hear all about your plans as they progress.

[JeanneP]

Originally Posted by Lighthouse

Grab all the VBs that JeanneP is offering, she doesn't come to the party very often.

[Istioploos]

Welcome Dave, Dee, and Reg. I hope you will enjoy this convivial group of sailors.

[redbopeep]

Welcome! Dave, Dee, and Reg.

We'll look forward to learning about your travels with Reg--as we travel with a cat and are thinking of getting a dog as well.

Brenda, David, and kitty Beamer.

[Solero]

Hi All and thanks for all the kind words and the beer, they went down very nicely.

With Reg, my wife has done many hours of research and from what we have learned so far is.

To go to Europe he has had a rabies vaccination then 6 months later a blood test to prove it had taken. Then he has to keep up to date with yearly rabies boosters. There are some other worming requirements he has to meet closer to flying out.

We don't know how long we will cruise for, but it is quite possible our Reggie will not need to be repatriated as he is nearly 6 already.

If we do want to bring him back into Australia the quarantine regulations depend on where you were last on land. Normally there is a 3 month quarantine, but if you spend the last 6 months in one of several countries (the UK is one) the quarantine is only one month.

We know there are countries in the south pacific which don't allow dogs to land, but in Europe there don't seem to be any problems like that. We are going to get him a Pet Passport in Europe which makes getting into countries a bit easier - I think it mainly is a record of his vaccination status and microchip ID.

Our BIG issue at the moment is how to teach our absolutely fastidiously well house trained dog, to do his business on the boat. It goes against everything he has learnt so far! He does sail with us, but so far the maximum voyage time was only 8 hours and he was able to hang on that long. It is a bit inconvenient rowing him ashore at 10pm in the rain....

We can't leave him behind, and we can't wait for 8 years to start our cruise, so we will find a way somehow.

Cheers

Dave and Dee and Reggie (woof)