North America moves up on pet passport waiting list

London-Britain is considering lifting a six-month quarantine on pets arriving from the United States and Canada - in part under pressure from pet-loving diplomats.

A century-old law requires animals from most countries be quarantined for six months upon arrival in rabies-free Britain.

In 2000, the British government debuted a pet passport plan allowing cats and dogs from Western Europe to skip quarantine if pet owners could verify their identity and rabies-free status.

The plan later added 50 territories including Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the U.S. state of Hawaii.

American officials would like the plan to comprise the remaining 49 states as well.

More than 40,000 cats and dogs have entered Britain under the passport program, which requires pets to be tagged with an identification microchip, vaccinated and blood tested before they travel to Britain.

Rules for American pets would be even tighter, requiring them to be deloused and dewormed and undergo veterinary inspections both before and after arrival.