Please Support CDC’s Proposed Rule on Dog Importation:
Submit Your Comments Today
The CDC is currently taking public comments on their proposed rule to update dog importation requirements. The comment period ends next Friday on September 8th, so now is the time to register your support for the first update to CDC’s dog importation regulations in 70 years.
Thanks to everyone’s efforts to protect the health of our animals, CDC has put forward a sound proposal that will take significant steps to ensure dogs imported to the U.S. are free from rabies. This is a critical step in the process to ensure that the CDC moves forward with a final rule that aligns with our goals of protecting the health of animals and the public.
We encourage you to submit comments today supporting CDC’s proposed rule.
To submit comments, please visit the following link:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/07/10/2023-14343/control-of-communicable-diseases-foreign-quarantine-importation-of-dogs-and-cats#open-comment
Outlined below are some points to consider when writing your comments. Use your own words and don’t feel like you need to write more than a sentence or two. What’s important is to let your voice be heard on this important rule.
• Thank you for the opportunity to comment on CDC’s proposed rule updating federal dog importation requirements.
• I am writing in support of CDC’s proposed rule which would add much needed safeguards to protect animals and the public from the introduction of rabies via imported dogs.
• In particular, the proposed requirement for permanent identification, a six-month age minimum for imported puppies, incorporating greater veterinary oversight, and requiring verification of documentation prior to transport are essential provisions in the proposed rule that will reduce the risks associated with dog importation.
• Absent these proposed updates to CDC regulations, the risk of reintroduction of dog-maintained rabies virus variant will persist, as we saw with the increased numbers of dogs imported with rabies leading up to CDC’s 2021 import suspension.
• The public health risks are too high to continue without these significant changes, and I urge the CDC to move forward with this rulemaking.
National Animal Interest Alliance
PO Box 66579
Portland, Oregon 97290-6579
(503)761-8962
(503)227-8450
naia@naiaonline.org
