Travelling to Morocco with a Dog

There’s quite a bit to consider when bringing your dog with you to Morocco, it is not just entry into Morocco that you need to think about, but bringing your dog back into the EU afterwards. 

Table of Contents

• Standard requirements for travelling with a dog
• Requirements to enter Morocco with your dog
• Our experience
• Important note for UK travellers:
• Rules for dogs in Morocco
• Useful accessories for your dog when travelling 

 Standard requirements for travelling with a dog

The following are the standard requirements you will need to ensure you meet to travel with your pet in most countries.

• Your pet must be at least 3 months old (this is because of the age requirement for the rabies vaccination).
• Valid EU pet passport in which your animal is clearly identified (microchip or tattoo), as well as a rabies vaccination valid on entry. The rabies vaccination must be at least 21 days old.
• The import of fighting dogs or breeds classified as dangerous is not permitted.

Requirements to enter Morocco with your dog

To enter Morocco, your pet must have an Animal Health Certificate and an Animal Export Certificate.

To enter the EU after visiting Morocco, you must have a rabies antibody test (titre test) that shows your dog is above the required limit of antibodies. Morocco is a high rabies country so it’s important for Spain to manage pets coming back into the EU.

This test must have been administered by a vet in an EU country. If your pets' rabies boosters are kept up to date, then this test should last a lifetime. Some people have done this test, then travelled to Morocco and had the results emailed to them. 

Our experience

We took Sandy to a vets in San Juan in Spain, they did the rabies titre test and we went back after 2 weeks to collect the results and for them to add this into Sandy’s EU pet passport. At this point they also did the Animal Health Certificate 5 days before the ferry we had booked. They emailed this to PIF (Port Authority) and the day before (within 24 hours) our ferry we went to PIF to get the Animal Export Certificate. Although not required, the vets also gave Sandy a worming tablet as a precaution.

Important note for UK travellers:

We got Sandy a titre test done in the UK as both us and the UK vets were unaware of the rules that it must be done in an EU country. We then got it done again in Spain (for half the cost than in the UK). It took 10 days for us to get the results back and the vets gave us the certificate, added the test to Sandy’s EU pet passport and sent us a digital copy. 

Rules for dogs in Morocco

Since dogs are not really kept as pets in much of Morocco, the rules are pretty lenient in regards to things like leash obligations. However, the attitudes to dogs is something you will want to consider carefully.

Many people are afraid of dogs, we had people literally jump out of the way of us when we walked past with Sandy. Therefore, while there might not be strict rules, it’s probably best to keep your dog on a leash and since dogs are often seen as vermin, it might not be appropriate to turn up to restaurants or public transport with them.

Personally, when we visited cities, we chose to leave Sandy in the van because the towns and cities are very busy, the paths are narrow and busy and there are a lot of people who are not comfortable around dogs.

Useful accessories for your dog when travelling

• Drag line or long leash, this is a must in our opinion, it allows them to roam around you but always be under your control. We use a 10 metre one but you can get them up to 20 metres. 
• Chest harness, if you’re using a long leash then this will give you more control and make sure your dog is safer than with a collar. We get our bits like this from Non-stop dogwear, they’re tough and good quality. 
• Life jacket, if you plan on taking your dog along on any water activities, this is essential.
• A seatbelt, we attach ours to Sandy’s harness so that we know she is secure when we are driving.  
• Collapsible drinking bowl, this is a must when out and about.
• A towel or bathrobe that your dog can wear, this is great for when you have a wet dog that wants to get in your van!