[Ditzyblond]

I was wondering how to go about moving all my animals across the country. I really dont want to sell them and get new ones. The dogs I know wont be a problem, its just the livestock. I know that it would be easier to sell them and replace them and alot of the poultry will be in the freezer but the goats, horses, and some of the chickens I just dont want to part with. My evil rooster has survived the most incredible situations and I dont think it would be fair at this point to kill him. I have grown quite attached to him. My horses, no question, they come with me. The goats, well the billy is someone elses but he said I could have him if I wanted but my little girl, I love her!

So has anyone tried to move 2500 miles with a livestock trailer full of creatures and what sort of paperwork am I going to need for them? Are the laws going to fall under the federal department of agriculture or do I contact every cotton pickin state ag department I am going to be traveling through to see what the laws are? What an endeavor. I have a headache!

Traci

 

[CoonXpress]

Don't know a thing about what you're doing, but if you know what route you're taking I can try and help research some of the states ag dept and see what they say.

Will

 

[caroline00]

well, when we went from CA to MO we had to get a health certificate from the vet. I think for some species scrappie tags are required now.

YOu need to at least know the regs of the state you are leaving and the state you are moving to.

We moved a truck load of goats. WE stopped freqently to water them. I think that the horses need to be walked every 4 or 5 hours. It might be hardest on your chickens. YOu might decide to find them another home before you move.

 

[fordy]

...............Traci , there is a trucker who specializes in hauling animals all over the country , just as you will need to move your livestock . I can obtain his name and phone number if you wish . His sister lives in Iowa and helps book his "customers" . They are both Ham Radio Operators and not hard to locate . Just let me know and I'll be glad to get his phone number for you . You can visit with his sister and see if you can reach a deal. Let me know , ...fordy..

 

[Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians]

You will contact your vet, who will then contact your state animal health commission, they will have all the information. Scrapie for goats, tests for horses etc.. Your health certificate will be from Nevada to whereever you are moving, since you won't be offloading, just driving through you shouldn't even been concerened. The guy who hauls goats for us dairy goat folks, does detour around problem areas, like down south here during the VS scare, and Michigan with their TB rules. Your state vet will know all this.

You may want to contact fairgrounds, so the horses can have some place to be lunged or stalled for the night. Most horse folks bound for Nationals do this routinely, I bet on the right forum, there are lists of places that will take you. Certainly better than (stopping at rest stops and milking while everyone watches

Stopping to water is much better than hauling water buckets full in the trailer, because it sloshes all over the bedding. Bedding must be thick. Lots of hay, little to no grain. Using probiotics.

Have fun! Vicki

 

[Ditzyblond]

Fordy, that might be a good idea to talk with those people. Most likely probably wont be doing this until spring or summer but God may decide to bless me with a really quick escrow on my house here and then I am gone! Still, I should have a game plan together because it is going to be a very difficult move. I guess you can private message me with the info if you want to. It might be easier to have a pro move my animals because they will be able to better plan nightly layovers and all that jazz. I shudder at the thought of having to unload my Arabian at a truckstop and try to watch my 3 kids and everything at the same time. I am confident I could do it, but I know I would be a nervous wreck and by the end of the trip I would be on tranquilizers. It wont take but a week or so though, so hey, whats a week of excruciating torture.

Oh, I had heard there was a book that gets published every now and then that lists places you can overnight with horses, etc. I think I saw a copy of one in a tack store about 5 years ago. Anyone heard of this or know where I can get a copy?

I am thinking of just going out through UT out the 70 and then hrm...not sure. Depends on where I can get good overnight places to let at least the horses out and then the goats can have the whole trailer to sleep in.

 

[Jena]

Call your vet. They should know all the paperwork requirements. I've hauled horses across country and needed a brand inspection (they came from out west) and a health cert. They were a little stiff and sore when we got here, but then so were we.

Put your rooster in a large dog crate. that might work for your goats too, depending on how big they are. I think a rooster in a large crate would do fine for a few days, as long as he can move around.

Check out horsehotel.com (I think that's it). There are lots of B&B that will take horses overnight. I'm sure you could talk to them about goats too. We stopped every few hours for an hour or so to give the horses a break. We'd water them and just leave them in the trailer, but they didn't have to be bracing themselves against the ride. We let them out at night at the B&B places.

Be extremely careful of letting them out on the side of the road somewhere. It's stressful on them and they could react unexpectedly.

Jena

 

[goldenlady]

Do not know the regulations for chickens and/or goats, but I know that bringing a horse from the west, you usually need a brand inspection and a clean bill of health from your vet. Also, if coming into and/or through Michigan, you will need a negative Coggins test. You should have all these papers at the ready for inspection at any given stop.

 

[sidepasser]

Hi,

I have two books that list every conceivable place to stop over with horses. let me know what route you are planning and I can email you with some suggestions.

Best wishes
Sidepasser

 

[Cyngbaeld]

I don't know where you are heading, but I 70 can be an absolute nightmare, especially with trailers and loads and some of the worst spots have no place that is safe to pull over. I moved from NW CO to western OK this past spring with a 32ft UHaul and towing my car. NEVER AGAIN!!!!!

 

[Shahbazin]

You need scrapie tags for sheep/goats (& health certs.) & to do a pullorum/typhoid test on chickens (a licensed tester - a private individual in many states - comes out & takes a blood sample). Here's the webpage that should help you find the regualtions: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/
Dogs need proof of rabies vacc.
Goldenlady has the details on horse health.
We moved from eastern OK to southern CA 25 years ago (2 day trip), with 5 chickens (in a wire cage in the horse trailer), 3 horses, 2 dogs, & a cat. Everything went just fine. A couple of years ago, I helped a friend load about 20 sheep (& 2 rams), 20 goats (& 2 bucks), & 2 llamas that they were hauling from CA to OR, via a specialty hauler. They also took 3 Pyrenees dogs & some cats.

 

[seedspreader]

As far as all barnyard animals, I think it would be preferable to get new ones. if you are moving 2500 miles, then you are more than likely going to a different climate (was it Mi???) and this can be harder on your animals than it is on you. An obvious exception should be your horses. You will want to take them and there are plenty of stops (as everyone above has said).

Just my .02

 

[Billie in MO]

I would not go I-70, thru Colorado. You have several narrow canyons and mountain passes to go over. The rest areas are not very big and the road is heavily traveled. We have one canyon just a few miles from us. Even tho signs and lights are up and flashing with the slower speed limits, it is ignored and the semi-trucks wreck constantly. Can be several times a week and the interstate is shut down for several hours at a time. No way to route around with mountain on one side and river on the other. Also you can have frequent rock slides that can shut the interstate down. The canyon near us had one last year and it took over a month before both lanes were open. They had to blast the boulders apart before they could begin to move them. This can happen any time of the year. I dislike traveling thru Denver, immensely. Constant state of construction on the roads there. I am on the western slope of CO, just off I-70 and I travel it frequently back and forth to MO. We always went south and around when moving. Takes longer, tho.

 

[tatanka]

Three years ago we moved from Alabama to North Dakota. Along with three kids we brought four horses, five sheep, four dogs, and a rabbit. There was no attachment to the chickens so we started fresh with them. All the info here on paperwork is right just concentrate on getting the paperwork for the state you are moving to. We were advised by our vet to stop and walk the horses every six to eight hours for 15 minutes and water them. DH drove a 26' Ryder truck pulling the horses in a four horse trailer. Our oldest son drove his pickup truck loaded with hay for the trip and to change them over when we got here, and I drove our truck with two dogs inside pulling a cattle trailer with the sheep, two Great Pyrenees and the rabbit. We could not financially afford to stop at B&B's or motels along the way so we drove straight thru. When I mapped our trip on the computer I also looked up all the Rest Areas on the way so we knew approximately how far to go. We stopped of course for gas but also every six hours to water all the animals and walk the horses. Our move was only 1500 miles but what should have been a 24 hour drive turned out to be a 36 hour trip. We did have to stop one time for a two hour nap just at sunrise in a Rest Area. If I was rich and had to do it over again I would pay a hauler but I am sure if we ever go back south we will do it again the way we came. Our main concern was getting the animals to NoDak early enough in the fall to acclimate them to the weather so they would get heavy enough coats before winter. We moved in September and they did fine.

Good Luck with you move.

Marla