ALL OUR ANIMALS ARE BASED IN TÜRKIYE.
For Adoptions Q&A, click here.
If you live outside of Turkiye and are interested in adopting one of Uzumlu’s street animals, whilst we cannot manage or finance the process for you, we would be happy to support with guidance and advice. Please note that all adoptions are subject to a satisfactory home check/references and an assessment as to the suitability of the animal to go through the travel process.
Please note, all countries have their own entry requirements. The below information is based on UK travel requirements as of January 2025.
Adoption to the UK
Travel preparation
From start to finish, the process for preparing an animal for travel to the UK takes around four months. For young animals, this process is longer, as they have to be of a certain age before they can have a rabies vaccination and microchip.
In the first instance, your chosen animal needs to be microchipped and registered on Türkiye’s online system. A “passport” will be allocated to the animal and all details of “ownership” will be recorded in the passport. A microchip can only be registered to someone who has a Turkish ID number.
Your chosen animal will then need a rabies vaccination. The rabies vaccination cannot be administered before the date of the insertion of the microchip and the vaccination must be registered on the system and a rabies sticker, with the vaccination date and the vet’s signature, entered into the passport. We recommend that a couple of weeks later, a separate mixed vaccination (parvovirus/distemper) should also be administered and recorded (although this is not a requirement for travel). The costs vary depending, on the vet used, but the State Vet/Tarim Office can do the passport, microchip and rabies vaccination process for a fraction of the cost of a private vet.
Thirty days after the rabies vaccination, your chosen animal will need a blood/titre test. This test checks the level of rabies antibodies in the animal’s blood. The cost of the titre test again varies, depending on which vet is used, and can only be done by a private vet.
Titre test results take several weeks to come back. If the antibody levels are high enough, your chosen animal will “pass” and is free to then travel ninety days from the date of the titre test. Just before the date of travel, your animal must visit the State Vet/Tarim Office where an authorisation certificate is issued. In addition, tape worm treatment must be given at this stage.
You will need to consider where your animal will stay while it gets ‘travel ready’. Once the animal is microchipped it has to be removed from the street, so a foster home or kennel facility must be sourced. These facilities generally charge per month and, once in the foster home/kennel facility, the animal must remain there until they travel. Please note that the foster home/kennel facility must be a private arrangement between you and the facility and you will remain responsible for all costs involved, for the entire period, even if the process takes longer than first anticipated.
There are several ways of getting your chosen animal to the UK, depending on how long you want the journey to take, the cost, and how much of the organisation you want to do yourself. As a charity, we are unable to arrange/fund the travel for your animal but are always on hand to offer help and advice.
By air
You are unable to fly an animal direct into the UK from Turkiye. However many people fly their animals into Amsterdam, using the ferry service then to enter the UK. Most people do this trip within a twenty four period. We can put you in contact with people who have personal experience of this option.
By road
Many people drive their animals from Turkiye to the UK. It will take approximately five days. Again, we can put you in touch with people who have personal experience of this option.
By road, using a registered/authorised transport company
If you find the prospect of coming to Turkiye to personally transport your chosen animal daunting, we would recommend using a registered/authorised transport company. Animals travel by road in a climate-controlled environment, in crates, alongside other animals. The company has all the required permissions and licences and will be fully insured. Costs vary depending on the destination, as they provide a door-to-door service. They will arrange all travel paperwork and can also help with sourcing a foster home/kennel facility.
These are the travel companies we recommend, who are registered and local to us. Please contact them direct to discuss prices and availability.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063539740298&mibextid=ZbWKwL
https://www.facebook.com/aboveboardpettravel?mibextid=ZbWKwL
Adoption to other Countries
If you live outside of the UK and are interested in adopting one of our street animals, please get in touch and we will happily offer advice/guidance on the specific process relevant to your country.
All adoptions
As with any adoption, very careful consideration should be given before making a decision to commit to adopting an animal. This is even more important when you are looking to adopt from abroad, particularly if you have never met the animal.
Most of the animals will never have been in a home environment, the long journey from Turkiye to their adopted country can be extremely stressful and unsettling and, as a result, whilst we would always do our upmost to give an accurate assessment of the animal, the animal that arrives with you may be very different to the animal that left Turkiye. It can take many, many months for an ex street animal to settle into home life. They will be scared, unsettled and will need time to decompress. Lots and lots of patience, guidance, love and support will be required to help settle your animal into their new life.
Careful consideration needs to be given to how you would help your animal settle, within the first few days, weeks and months – also, if you already have animals, how you would carefully and safely introduce them. We are a street animal charity based in Turkiye, not a rescue and therefore are unable to offer a “rescue back up”. We would therefore recommend that, prior to your animal arriving, you research and then engage the services of a professional trainer/behaviourist who can support you throughout the process of your adoption.
Before making any final decision, we would ask that careful consideration is given as to what would happen if things don’t go as smoothly as you would hope, having in place a backup/support mechanism, should it be required. Our volunteers in Turkiye and the UK would always be happy to offer advice and support – we would obviously want, as much as you, for the adoption to be successful but we would not ever be in a position to take an animal back. An adoption from the street is a lifetime commitment, that can be challenging at times but hugely rewarding.