Destination X or bust! Your bags are packed and you’re ready to hit the road with your favorite horse. But, before gassing up the truck or loading onto an airplane for that journey, you need to consider what regulations concerning horse transport are in place at your point of destination, and whether that point is within the United States, or beyond. Having all paperwork and certifications documenting the health of your horse in order, and handy, will save you from delays and headaches. Information used in this article was taken in part from Current Therapy In Equine Medicine 4 by N. Edward Robinson, B. Vet Med., PhD, MRCVS.

Domestic Travel

“When you travel nationally you must have a health certificate. Basically, what this says is that your horse was healthy and free of contagious diseases when you left home,” according to Catherine Kohn, VMD. “All states have a requirement for a negative Coggins test; some are six months and others are a year. Regardless, you must know what the regulations are from state-to-state in order to be prepared in case you are asked to present this information when crossing state boundaries,” added Kohn. (See Guide To Interstate Travel for the 1998 list of requirements by state. The American Horse Council also recommends that you contact the state veterinarian (https://thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=3251) of the destination state to double-check on what certifications are needed to enter that state, since a state’s requirements sometimes change