European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 27, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Story and photos by Meridith Winder . Bureau guilty a a guilty of being furry having four legs and. A possibly carrying rabies. A a for their crimes the sentence is six months of confinement without parole they get visitation a. A privileges but no trips to the exercise  seems a bit cruet but. That a what pets go through when they Are brought into t he United kingdom. Under British Law All imported mammals except farm Stock and some other herbivores must face quarantine to prevent the spread of rabies. England has had Only two reported cases of rabies affecting animals not in six months quarantine in the . Quarantine since 1922 and no cases since 1970 most pet owners done to like the idea of being without their animals for six months but they put up with it. Quot if you have an animal that a a lifelong commitment a said Trisha Dick a British citizen who recently brought her cat marmalade from Kuwait Quot you have to take care of that animal regardless of the circumstances Quot a a. Some of the owners of the other inmates at . Quarantine kennels in Worlington about six Miles from. Raf Mildenhall expressed similar feelings Quot they Are More than pets a said Nina Miller a cat owner whose husband is stationed at Raf Mildenhall. Quot they cats Are part of the family and we  just part with them because they must stay in quarantine at our own   an animal in quarantine is costly. One pet owner who is counting the Days 35 until he will be reunited with his dog said the Kennel boarding charges Ana related fees will add up to about $2,000. This does not include air transportation for the dog from the United states which was $303. A  a a a a a a a its not just the Money however that concerns Many pet owners. They want to make sure their pets Are getting the Best care. A a a a a it. Col. Steve Grimes and his wife Karen decided to use . Quarantine kennels after a Friend who brought a dog to England had recommended if. The Grimes were concerned about what kind of treatment their dog would. Receive so far they be been pleased with the Way the a dog has been handled since its quarantine began in november. Quot she lost some weight because of some anxiety Quot said Karen Grimes referring to their Dachshund in quarantine. Quot Bui we. Were More concerned with the cold weather a a the kennels Are usually not heated. Some owners weren tas Lucky in their selection of kennels. A a. A Teresa Pavick owns two Shetland sheepdogs an placed them in a different Kennel. She did t have an Opportunity to Check out the kennels in Advance and / did t know anyone  placed bogs in quarantine. Quot i was extremely disappointed with the care and the. A condition of  Kennel Quot said Pavick whose husband a is  unaccompanied assignment in. Greece Quot it. A.  clean and my dogs weren t Happy i paid a. Lot of Money and expected better . A. ,. A a under British Law the dogs had to stay in the first Kennel at least one month before they could be moved. A Quot this Kennel is a lot better Quot she said of the . A a. Quarantine facility Quot the dogs look a lot healthier and the a people seem to care a lot More about the welfare of the animals Quot /. / a a a a. When pets Are being shipped for quarantine to a a a a England they must be sent As freight a not excess. A baggage. And once an animal is turned Over to the a airlines the next time the owner will handle or see the pet. Is in quarantine. A. A a a a a. A a a a a the animals Are in a state of Shock when we pick them up at the Airport Quot said Claire Johnson daughter of the owner of the quarantine kennels. Quot with All the noise and the people charging around in the Airport they Are. Actually quite relieved when we get them to the . Johnson and her family have been in the quarantine. Quot business for 12 years. The Johnsons Are breeders of German shepherds and decided to go into the quarantine. Business when they had to. Put a dog through the.  a a a a a a a a a a. When owners see their pets for the first time reactions Quot a a a vary Johnson said. Some people break into tears others.  come  Kennel because they can t stand to see their pets locked up. A a a a a. A Quot our son and daughter Don t like it or understand it but they Are learning to adjust like we Are Quot Steve Grimes a a said. Quot our dog Lieb Schon is 3 years old a Lap dog a. House dog and we  spoil her she s also very protective of my  a a a a. Quot it s been harder on my 5-year-old daughter Kate Quot. Said Miller the cat owner. Quot Kate and Scarlett the cat a had bonded very Well and while Scarlett did t mind As much Kate did nothing but talk about . A. Miller believes it was Worth the wait. Scarlett recently. A completed her six month confinement and is now at a. A Home at Raf Lakenheath. V a a a a a a a a a. A it s great to have her Home a Miller said. Quot she s strictly a House cat but she had no problems while in the Kennel. She s just starved for affection and All visitors have to stroke her at least once when they enter our  Johnson encourages owners to visit their pets even owners who find the experience painful. A ,. A we will look after the animals the Best we can a she said. But they need to know that their owners still care. The dogs in particular miss that constant attention. Also. We Don t know them As Well As the owners do they can spot things that might need treatment from a vet. We a  the owners input on How Well their pets Are  veterinarian visits the kennels six times a week and is. In Cal 24 hours for emergencies. And despite the care. They receive not All  it through quarantine a that s the hardest part of our Job a telling an owner that their pet has died Quot Johnson said. Quot the owners usually blame us although we be done everything possible for the pet s  a. Quot. She said they be never had any pet die from rabies. Pets die either from a disease they contracted before. They went into quarantine or. Because they can to adjust to confinement perhaps because of old age. Johnson considers old age As 10 years for a dog and 12 years for a cat. A a a a Quot a a. A a. She said the animals mainly dogs go through three phases of adjustment while in quarantine. The first involves growing accustomed to being away from their. Families. They become extremely Moody like people and react differently. For instance one dog lost a lot of weight the first. Couple of weeks because he refused to eat. The vet. Provided an appetite enhancer to make him hungry. The dog has now regained nearly All its weight and  the assistance of the drug. A the next phase is acceptance of life in a Kennel Johnson said. That lasts until nearly three fourths of the. Way through the confinement period. ,. The final phase is usually the three weeks before the animal is to be released. Johnson said that dogs especially become depressed wondering when they Are going to be released. The confinement has been Long and their attitude toward their owner seems to be Quot Why saturday april 27