Can someone inform me about the rules around traveling through Germany with an American Stafford?
Hi,
I consider to do a road trip from the Netherlands to Italy with my dog, an American Staffordshire terrier with a pedigree. It would also be nice to have one or more stops (to sleep) in Germany.

I have read there is breed specific legislation in Germany which differs per bundeslaender or city. Can anyone explain / inform me about the rules or refer to where I can find those? I am also interested in experiences in Germany wiith those dogs. Is there an attitude against them (maybe in specific regions more than others)?

My biggest fear is that she would get confiscated or something. I would not want to risk that. Any information is welcome.

Thanks,
Evita

Question

Can someone inform me about the rules around traveling through Germany with an American Stafford?
Hi, 
I consider to do a road trip from the Netherlands to Italy with my dog, an American Staffordshire terrier with a pedigree. It would also be nice to have one or more stops (to sleep) in Germany.

I have read there is breed specific legislation in Germany which differs per bundeslaender or city. Can anyone explain / inform me about the rules or refer to where I can find those? I am also interested in experiences in Germany wiith those dogs. Is there an attitude against them (maybe in specific regions more than others)?

My biggest fear is that she would get confiscated or something. I would not want to risk that. Any information is welcome.

Thanks,
Evita

Answer

I don't have a dog either. From what I have read online, you can come into Germany with your dog for a maximum of four weeks, if you carry the documents with you that certify that you are allowed to keep this dog in your home country. If these documents are not in German, you'll need an official translation into German. For further information, the best thing is probably to contact the German customs authorities at  info.privat@zoll.de or enquiries.english@zoll.de.

Apart from the legal requirements, you'll probably want to contact the hotel(s) in which you plan to stay in Germany and ask them if they are ok with your dog (and check beforehand whether pets in general are allowed or not).

Answer

As far as I can tell, it's generally not allowed to bring dogs of that breed into Germany: http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/hundverbreinfg/__2.html

However, among the exceptions is that someone living abroad can bring them in for up to four weeks: https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/hundverbreinfvo/BJNR124800002.html (§2 (3) – see also §3 for some required documents)

I can't say anything about the details of how the dog must be kept when in the country. The list on https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rasseliste#Rasselisten_der_deutschen_Bundesl%C3%A4nder mentions that the breed belongs to different categories in different states, but I don't know what these categories mean in practice; you'd have to look for details for the regions you want to go to.

Answer

Hello Evita,

we have strict rules in Germany here.
 https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/pet-travel/by-country/eu/pettravel-germany
http://www.ansbach.army.mil/documents/RestrictedDogBreeds.pdf (only Bavaria)
We are very animal friendly, but it helps to ensure the safty of all.

Regards Denny.

Answer

Thank you for your thoughts. Those rules / laws are in German. If I can / will go there with my dog I would like to learn / refresh my German (had German for 4 years in high school but that's a long time ago) and would like to study and get familiar with those rules/legislation. Which I would prefer to do with someone that is already familiar with the issue. On top of that I do think how people relate to dogs (or other animals) is also related to culture. Still hope someone is willing to help me with these questions.

Answer

I don't think this community will be able to help you much in that regard. Perhaps ask people on reddit.com under r/germany or something like that. Most of us here are primarily here to learn about language and culture.