Can anyone explain why the UK is so unbelievably backward when it comes to the importation of pet dogs?
The UK isn't and neither is Australia which also has very strict quarantine/pet importation laws. Long may it continue. Hard luck if your wealthy passengers don't like their precious, spoilt little pooches and kitties having to travel with a proper airline and go through all the correct hoops and channels. I, and probably everyone else in the UK, wish this country to remain rabies free and if that is what it takes then that is what it takes. Before you criticise me and say I do not know what I am talking about - I do. As a family we have exported one dog and six cats to Australia. There was a lot of paperwork, vets bills etc. but it was worth it to know everything was fine. Two of the cats were delayed as there was a temporary ban on export of all animals the day before they were due to depart, something I only discovered when I took them to the vet for their last flea treatment on the morning of the planned departure, so I am perfectly familiar with the frustrations but they were worth it to keep both countries rabies free. Just because someone has money does not mean they have a right to do as they like.