29/10/2025
Some of you may be wondering why we haven't updated on our 12 wonderful Greyhounds and lurcher flying to our friends at Greyhounds in Motion and that is because sadly all 12 are still here with us in Ireland due to the US government shutdown.
Here is a brief explanation from our friends in the US 💔
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The US Government shut down October 1. There is no way to guess when the government will reopen. Beyond this, there is no way to know how backed-up departments will be, when they do reopen. The longest government shutdown lasted 35 days in 2018-2019.
Currently the permits are submitted for 12 Irish dogs who were due to arrive October 23. We also are planning to bring Spanish dogs on November 20. Permits will be submitted as if all will be back to normal and we hope this is the case.
Greyhounds in Motion, in consultation with our import broker and legal counsel, have made the decision not to attempt to bring in dogs without approved permits. While we respect and understand why some groups have made different choices, we are unwilling to take the risks associated with taking action to bypass the import regulations.
Below we will detail the risks as we understand them.
1. There is no guarantee dogs would be cleared by customs once they arrive at a US airport.
• Each airport, and in fact, each customs agent can make a determination to approve or deny the dogs when the permits were not approved.
• Dog could be held in quarantine for an undetermined period of time.
• Dog could be returned to their country of origin with or without food, water. They may not be allowed to exit their crates.
They could wait for an undetermined amount of time to be flown.
2. If dogs come into the US without approved permits or under false pretense, there are still risks.
• We may be assessed a financial penalty for each dog.
• Future restrictions or a ban on our organization’s ability to import dogs could be issued.
• Authorities would have the right to reach out to the purported owner/importer of each dog. They could be forced to present proof of ownership or face federal fraud charges.
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Flights are booked, transport from Ireland to UK organised and now all we can do is wait.
Unfortunately this has blocked our kennels, we are currently caring for these dogs that should be in their homes, this has also impacted on Greyhounds due to come in from other trainers.
If you are willing to foster a Greyhound now is the time to let us know, we would also appreciate help from any other rescue who could facilitate some of the other Greyhounds currently on our wait list.
Thank you for your understanding, we wait and we hope for a resolution soon 🙏
