Hello everybody! I found a mail in the yesterdays list that makes me think somebody is wanting to take ferrets to Mexico ( sorry but I haven't been reading my mails in the past days due to lack of time). I hope Shirley can help you with the information and experience she has about taking ferrets to Central America. I would like to tell you how difficult was for me, to take Gigio my ferret, out of Mexico and how difficult is going to be to take him back. Originally I was told (3 months before I travelling to USA) that I only needed a helath certificate from my vet and current vaccinations, but one month before my trip I decided to ask again (at the animal department in the airport of Mexico city, where I had already asked before) and this time I was told something different, that because ferrets in Mexico are considered "wild fauna" and in consequence a protected species (go figure, ferrets are not even mexican fauna) I needed to do a long list of things before getting permission to take my ferret with me. I had to go to the Secretary of Ecology to register my "wild animal" as a pet and I had to bring photos of me, photos of Gigio, original purchase ticket, veterinary report, fill forms.... One week later people from that secretary came to home to visit and inspect the place where I keep the "wild animal" and they ask 50 or more questions about the health of Gigio, what do I feed him etc... after an other week I picked up my official certificate of ownership. With that paper I had to go to the Secretary of Agriculture and initiate tramits to get a zoosanitary certificate which is nothing else but a health certificaty expedited by an official institution instead of a particular veterinary. Again I had to bring health certificates (no more than 3 days old!), vaccination record... One week later I came back to pick up the certificate ( not to mention that I almost not get it because my vet wrote down in one form that Gigio is a siames color instead of sable color). With that certificate I had to go to an other branch of the Secretary of Ecology to pay for an "Exportation certificate" . Just imagine that Gigio is a Marshal farms ferret from NY and now I had to pay for an exportation certificate as if he were raised in Mexico. I payed something like $35 dolars (which can not be directly payed in the Secretary, you have to go to the bank first and fill a special form, the bank stamp it and you hand it at the Secretary). By the time all my papers for Gigio were complete it was just one or two days before my departure. WEW!!!! At the airport I still had to pay some other things besides the plane ticket for Gigio, but that is an other story... Anyway, when I will finish my research in the USA I will have to do a similar procedure to get Gigio back to Mexico, in fact after 6 months (and every 6 months for ever in the life of Gigio) I have to send by fax a veterinary report that states the general health of Gigio in order to keep my original certificate of ownership of "wild fauna". I was told that when I will come back I will have to pay for an "Importation certificate" and so on.... My parents in Mexico will initiate all the paper work a couple of months before I'll go back. I hope that for foreigners things are easier than for nationals. I wanted to share this information with you, I hope it will helps. Best regards, Cathie and Gigio [Posted in FML issue 3623]