Pets, owners reunited after Covid break
Dozens of pets have finally been reunited with their owners after up to a year apart due to Covid-19 and border closures.
The happy reunion took place at a Ministry for Primary Industriesapproved quarantine facility in Brookby, South Auckland yesterday.
The 42 cats and dogs made the flight from Vancouver to Auckland and had completed 10 days of quarantine.
Some pets belong to families who left Canada during the pandemic and were not able to bring their furry companions with them.
Jennifer Ellis said she had had sleepless nights leading up to her reunion with her dog, Sage.
Ellis and her partner, Geoffrey Nijhuis, moved back to Auckland in December 2019.
However, sorting out Sage’s transport took three months and the dog’s original New Zealand flight in early April was cancelled, along with a number of others.
Ellis said she was thrilled to finally be able to reunite with Sage.
‘‘It is a bit surreal,’’ she said. Sage had gained weight and Ellis said she was satisfied her dog was looked after well in quarantine.
Danielle Anderson said it had taken 17 months and up to $10,000 to arrange for her husky Reed to come home – but it was ‘‘worth it’’.
She and her partner, Karl, had been separated from their dog for seven months. ‘‘His reaction is better than I expected,’’ she said, adding she expected him to be aloof and not recognise them straight away after the long separation.
They adopted Reed when they were travelling in Southern California and took him to Canada to live with them.
The couple said they had been saving up for the cost of bringing him to New Zealand since the adoption.
Anderson said she reckoned Reed would like New Zealand, other than missing the squirrels in Canada.
The couple have taken annual leave in the coming week to spend more time with Reed as he settles in.
Mark Webster said collecting Azul, his daughter Alix’s dog, was exciting but an emotional reminder of his daughter who is still stuck in Toronto.
Webster’s daughter is completing a PhD and she and her partner had decided they wanted Azul to be safely back in New Zealand before they return. ‘‘We are very keen to get the dog, because it is one more solid step towards getting them home.’’
Alix is due to return in June. She has been living under near-lockdown conditions for more than a year. ‘‘It has been a trying time,’’ Webster said.
He said it was great the puppy could now have more space to play around in, compared with living in an apartment in Toronto. Pets are allowed into New Zealand while the borders are closed, provided they meet Ministry for Primary Industries requirements. However, the reduction in international travel has meant cargo capacity is at a premium and it is hard to secure passage for cats and dogs. Those in the industry have predicted the difficulties will remain until normal travel and immigration resumes.