Bringing Household Pets to Wisconsin
Importing refers to animals brought to Wisconsin for events, shows, and vacation travel, as well as animals relocating permanently to the state.
Make sure you have reviewed examples of household and exotic pets above. Import requirements for household pets are below. Import requirements for exotic pets are on the exotic animal movement webpage for movement requirements.
Import Requirements for Household Pets
You must provide a certificate of veterinary inspection (CVI) when importing a household pet. A CVI is required for animals entering Wisconsin by any mode of transportation, such as automobile, airplane or rail.
DATCP no longer accepts the computer-generated APHIS 7001 form, which has no preprinted CVI number. Older, multicopy forms with printed numbers are still accepted.
Alternative CVI forms are listed below; payment may be required. Some options may not be available in your state. Call your State Veterinarian's office to verify. If your State Veterinarian's office has another option not listed here, or if you are unsure if the CVI is accepted, contact the Import Coordinator.
- Electronic forms from any of the following: Global Vet Link, AgView CVI, your State Veterinarian's office.
- Paper copies available from your State Veterinarian's office. DATCP accepts large animal forms for pets and wild animals if allowed by the state of origin (where the animal is coming from).
- For imports from Texas, in addition to the above, the Texas Veterinary Medical Association (TVMA) CVI.
CVIs must include the following:
- Complete physical origin and destination addresses.
- Age of animal, species, breed and sex.
- Number of animals.
- Purpose of movement.
- Current veterinarian-administered rabies vaccination for dogs and domestic cats five months and older with the date of vaccination and revaccination due date or indication of 1 or 3 year vaccine clearly written on the CVI. Wisconsin accepts both valid one-year and three-year rabies vaccines, which must be administered by a licensed veterinarian.
- For dogs, see additional requirements below.
Not required for household pets:
- Testing.
- Statements on the CVI.
- Import permit number.
How to submit a CVI:
CVIs written for animal imports into Wisconsin must be sent to DATCP's Division of Animal Health. This can be done in the following ways:
Electronic CVIs like Global Vet Link, AgView CVI, or an eCVI provided by the state of origin are automatically and electronically submitted and no additional action is required after CVI submission.
If paper CVIs are submitted to a State Veterinarian's office in the state of origin and that office is forwarding them to Wisconsin, no further action is required.
Additional Import Requirements for Dogs
Heartworm-Positive Dogs
Any dog found to be positive on a heartworm test in the state of origin may not be imported into Wisconsin until it has completed the appropriate heartworm treatment protocol as recommended by the American Heartworm Society. After the treatment is completed, a veterinarian in the state of origin must record on the CVI that the dog was treated for heartworm and record all treatment dates.
Additional Import Requirements for Household Pets from Another Country
For household pets being brought into Wisconsin from outside the U.S., contact the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) at (404) 639-3311 or visit the CDC website. You should also visit the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) website to find any information not covered on the CDC website.
In addition to any requirements from CDC and USDA, household pets being brought into Wisconsin from outside the U.S. need to meet the regular import requirements for Wisconsin. This includes meeting the requirements for rabies vaccination for dogs and cats. Any health documentation used by the country of origin will be accepted for international movement.