Dog or cat: what actually differs

Last verified: 2026-08-25

The short answer

Mostly the same. Microchip, identity check, rabies vaccination at 84 days or later, RNATT, the 180-day wait, permit, quarantine at Mickleham, parasite treatments, Melbourne arrival as manifest cargo — identical for both species.

Three things differ, and one of them can close the pathway entirely.

1. Blood tests: dogs need three more

For a cat, the laboratory work is the RNATT and nothing else. For an entire, unvaccinated dog it is four tests, four submission forms and four reports — each of which must carry the microchip number correctly, because those fields cannot be amended afterwards.

Dogs also face a restricted list of accepted Brucella test types, where a laboratory’s standard panel may well use a variant Australia rejects. See the non-rabies blood tests.

2. Prohibited types: different lists, same authority

Both species face bans that come from environmental-protection and customs law, not biosecurity — so a different Australian department decides them than the one issuing your permit.

Dogs — five pure breeds: dogo Argentino, fila Brasileiro, Japanese tosa, American pit bull terrier, Perro de Presa Canario. Four wolfdog hybrids: Czechoslovakian wolfdog, Saarloos wolfdog, Lupo Italiano, Kunming wolfdog. Mixed breeds are allowed if all other conditions are met.

Cats — non-domestic hybrids: Savannah, Safari, Chausie, Bengal, and any crossbred offspring derived from them. The list is explicitly not exhaustive.

Bengals have been barred entirely since 1 March 2026.

That is the sharpest difference on this page. A Bengal is a common, popular pet in all three origin countries, and for Australia its pathway is closed rather than difficult.

3. Canine influenza: a Canadian dog problem only

Dogs leaving Canada must either be vaccinated against H3N2 canine influenza, or meet three alternative conditions in the final ten days: isolation from other dogs, a negative PCR within 7 days of export, and an examination within 48 hours.

Cats are unaffected. On the Canadian corridor this is the single largest practical difference between moving a dog and moving a cat.

Two smaller differences

• Nursing. The export exclusion reads “nursing puppies” for dogs and “nursing kittens” for cats — same rule, and the same 30-day pregnancy limit applies to both.
• Feline vaccinations. Enteritis, rhinotracheitis and calicivirus vaccination is not mandatory for import, but should stay valid through the quarantine period. There is no equivalent recommendation recorded for dogs in the sources read so far.

What this means if you are moving both

The timelines are the same, so both animals can run the same schedule — and the permit fee is lower for the second animal in the same consignment (AUD 299 rather than AUD 626) as long as they depart together from the same country under the same importer and exporter details.

The dog’s extra tests are what will pace you. Start those conversations first.

What this page does not compare

• Quarantine experience for each species at Mickleham.
• Airline acceptance, which differs sharply by species and breed and is set by carriers, not governments.
• Costs beyond government fees, including veterinary work, which is higher for dogs simply because there is more of it.