Bringing Large Dog to Jakarta

[Hummingbird.1968]

Hello

This is my 2nd post!

My husband will be taking a job in Indonesia. We lived in Jakarta in the 90s so I'm not sure how much has changed. We brought dogs with us back then with no problems.

I have talked to a friend, she said now Indonesia quarantines dogs, and hers got sick and had a cough when she got him back. What is the current quarantine? Also, my dog is skittish and probably will not do well in a kennel...she will injure herself trying to get out of the kennel, so I'm sure I might need to sedate her. Boarding her has been problematic....any suggestions?

Do I bring a years supply of vaccines and heart guard? It sounds like the best option is to make your own dog food, which I did before? Depending on the package offered, if there were room would you ship over dog food? Dog food cost more than what I paid our maid in the 90s, so I always felt a bit guilty. My dogs were spoiled and had a hard time going back to regular food when we brought them back.

Any type of agility training over there in Jakarta? We are in agility 3 and I eventually wanted to have her compete.

Are most Indonesians still fearful of dogs, especially black dogs?

[Jaime C]

Using a service that helps bring pets in is probably a necessity. I've heard the name Jakpets, but have no personal experience with them.

Do you know how long you will be in Indonesia? I personally would not bring a skittish dog, as there can be some many problems involved in shipping. Some Muslim employees may not want to deal with dogs.

If you can ship dog food in, it might be cheaper. Perhaps vacuum pack dry food so it won't go stale?

[Hummingbird.1968]

We brought in 2 large dogs before, and Unocal had an 'expediter' (professional briber) that made things go smoothly. However, there was no quarantine. That is how we used to interview our staff...if they didn't like the dogs, they didn't get the job.

Not sure what my husband's expat package will cover this time around. I'm sure we will be there a few years.

[bad_azz]

You also need to check with the airlines, you don't say what breed your large dogs are, but some airlines have banned transporting snub nosed dogs- such as Bulldogs & Boxers. There is a thread in here somewhere that has a link to a service that is very informative about air travel & dogs.

[bad_azz]

Here's the site I thought was useful.
http://www.pettravel.com/airline_rules.cfm

Pet food, a 20kg sack of basic kibble is 300k here, if you want to go into the stratosphere then buy the high quality brands - personally I don't rate them at all.

I have a Boxer & a Rottie (& now a French Bulldog), all perfectly healthy and perfectly happy to eat the mix we give them: economy kibble mixed with rice and meat, or meat stock, and other scraps that are on offer-
... and anything at all they can scavenge from the garden- including but not limited to- sandals, bamboo furniture, the front mud guard of my moped, kittens, frogs- tho I don't advise feeding these things.... my point being, make your own dog food or use the economy brands- the rest is all BS & just a way to get anxious owners to part with their hard earned cash.

If posting pics wasn't such a hassle in here I would show you how shiny & healthy they are.
Anyway I digress, as ever.

Most Indonesians I have encountered here in Bandung/Jawa Barat are fearful, so getting help with the animals is not always easy.

[Happyman]

We made our own dog food. You can get a recipe online. The main ingredients were rice, eggs (including shells), vegetables and cheap meat. Living next to the market, we were able to conveniently buy "last chance" vegetables and meat that had to be cooked immediately. It was pretty cheap, and the dog was happy with it. No longer have Fio...

[phiss]

Here's the site I thought was useful.
http://www.pettravel.com/airline_rules.cfm

Pet food, a 20kg sack of basic kibble is 300k here, if you want to go into the stratosphere then buy the high quality brands - personally I don't rate them at all.

I have a Boxer & a Rottie (& now a French Bulldog), all perfectly healthy and perfectly happy to eat the mix we give them: economy kibble mixed with rice and meat, or meat stock, and other scraps that are on offer-
... and anything at all they can scavenge from the garden- including but not limited to- sandals, bamboo furniture, the front mud guard of my moped, kittens, frogs- tho I don't advise feeding these things.... my point being, make your own dog food or use the economy brands- the rest is all BS & just a way to get anxious owners to part with their hard earned cash.

Mostly agree with you BA. However, some dogs, like my GR do have genuine food allergies. I spent loads on vet bills for his skin allergies, which we eventually tracked down to gluten allergy, mostly found in wheat derivatives. I then found out that about 98% of dog food products... and dog treats... contain wheat, as do the vitamin tablets I was feeding him at the time! The remaining 2% of so called 'hypoallergenic products', when they were available here in Medan, were super-expensive.

Out of sheer frustration, I started making a 'stew' of the cheapest meat cuts I could buy and mixing the meat with either brown or white rice. Doggie treats are home made biscuits containing pumpkin, sweet potato and brown rice flour. Other things get thrown in the mix as and when available. I usually cook up a huge amount of both things once a week. The stew is portioned up and stored in the freezer. The rice is cooked fresh each day, unless I decide to give them rice noodles, which they love. The small dog sucks up the noodles like kids eating spaghetti in tomato sauce, with the same amount of mess! The biscuits are stored in the fridge.

Anyway, since I started this regime, skin problems have been reduced to a minimum. When I do spot anything flaring up, I immediately spray the area with an equal mix of apple cider vinegar and water. This usually knocks the infection out before it has a chance to get a hold.

Moral of this story: You don't have to spend huge amounts of money on factory produced dog feed. You can feed your dogs more cheaply and healthily by making it yourself. I mean, seriously, what did we all do before we were 'brainwashed' into believing that the only balanced diet for a dog came out of a bag??!! Some people have become seriously rich on the back of our gullibility! (Don't get me started on 'doggy-toothpaste'. I can rant for hours on that one).

[bad_azz]

Mostly agree with you BA. However, some dogs, like my GR do have genuine food allergies. I spent loads on vet bills for his skin allergies, which we eventually tracked down to gluten allergy, mostly found in wheat derivatives. I then found out that about 98% of dog food products... and dog treats... contain wheat, as do the vitamin tablets I was feeding him at the time! The remaining 2% of so called 'hypoallergenic products', when they were available here in Medan, were super-expensive.

Out of sheer frustration, I started making a 'stew' of the cheapest meat cuts I could buy and mixing the meat with either brown or white rice. Doggie treats are home made biscuits containing pumpkin, sweet potato and brown rice flour. Other things get thrown in the mix as and when available. I usually cook up a huge amount of both things once a week. The stew is portioned up and stored in the freezer. The rice is cooked fresh each day, unless I decide to give them rice noodles, which they love. The small dog sucks up the noodles like kids eating spaghetti in tomato sauce, with the same amount of mess! The biscuits are stored in the fridge.

Anyway, since I started this regime, skin problems have been reduced to a minimum. When I do spot anything flaring up, I immediately spray the area with an equal mix of apple cider vinegar and water. This usually knocks the infection out before it has a chance to get a hold.

Moral of this story: You don't have to spend huge amounts of money on factory produced dog feed. You can feed your dogs more cheaply and healthily by making it yourself. I mean, seriously, what did we all do before we were 'brainwashed' into believing that the only balanced diet for a dog came out of a bag??!! Some people have become seriously rich on the back of our gullibility! (Don't get me started on 'doggy-toothpaste'. I can rant for hours on that one).

Or doggie clothes ... & a couple of weeks ago I saw a pram.. for a bloody dog- WTF???

[Puspawarna]

I'm not sure I buy the idea that economy pet chow is as good as the high-end brands, especially in a place like Indonesia where there are likely to be fewer controls on production quality/imports (we used to get cat food from China in Egypt, and it was so bad that even the starving street cats wouldn't eat it).

However, I do agree that making one's own food is a fine alternative. We did that for years for our cats. The vet approved, our cats loved it, and it seemed to keep them healthy.

[Puspawarna]

Oh ... on the dog imports, check with Jakpetz and/or Groovy for information and prices regarding current pet import and quarantine issues.

[Jaime C]

Or doggie clothes ... & a couple of weeks ago I saw a pram.. for a bloody dog- WTF???

Your puppies don't have diamond collars or a nanny?

[Hummingbird.1968]

I have a Doberman. (In the 90s we brought a Dalmatian and Doberman) BTW, I did find an Indonesian agility club, with a red Doberman but no expats were pictured. Dobies have a lot of skin issues, the one we had in Jakarta had a huge spot she kept licking, it took over a year for me to find something to make it heal. I feed Roxie lamb and rice from Costco, it is cheap, but pretty high quality. She does seem to get sick and get ear infections when she eats wheat, so I think I will be shipping some food if possible, and supplementing with chicken and rice. Is it easy to get fish oil over there? That has helped her coat and dandruff.

Roxie was a rescue....not sure what happened to her as a puppy. My vet has put her on Prozac...yep, thats right, prozac. Dobies are often neurotic or have OCD, my vet has owned a number of them and we are hoping she relaxes enough so that I can train her out of some of her self injurious behavior. She has pretty severe separation anxiety, so I might look at getting a second dog over there. We were looking at a second dog when my husband got this offer.

[Hummingbird.1968]

Yep, those dog strollers are all the rage here....I have some friends who are now empty nesters so their dogs seem to replace their kids. Its all good, they do rescue for Bichons and King Cavaliers, but one seriously has a stroller for her elderly one that has arthritis. Poor dogs that get dressed up like little people!

Roxie needs lots of exercise (I swear she is half greyhound). So I have a bike attachment....a WalkyDog so that she runs along side my bike. Any chance that can be done in Jakarta? Maybe at the stadium? What is the most dog friendly and teen boy friendly areas to live? Kemang Club Villas, or Pondok Indah?

[sintiasaski]

a lot of people still afraid to dogs, especially big dogs like yours. But if you train them and became the pack leader, people can sense it and they will not be fearful of your dog