🚨 IMPORTANT UPDATE: July 2026 The USDA has officially confirmed active domestic cases of New World Screwworm in U.S. livestock (including detections in Texas and New Mexico). Because Fiji is proudly a screwworm-free nation, the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji (BAF) has strictly heightened clinical oversight. All pets traveling from the United States must strictly adhere to specific external parasite protocols and passing physical inspection windows. Read on for what this means for your relocation timeline.
Bula everyone!
When you’re preparing to make the big leap and relocate to our beautiful islands, there is always a massive checklist running through your head. From finding the perfect home to packing up your life, it’s a huge transition—and if you have four-legged family members, ensuring their safe, smooth arrival in Fiji is usually right at the top of your priority list.
Here at Find Your Feet Fiji, our mission is to take that weight off your shoulders. Right now, there is a major piece of international biosecurity news unfolding in the United States that we are watching very closely: the re-emergence of the New World Screwworm.
Keeping Fiji Screwworm-Free
For those who might not be familiar with it, the New World screwworm is an aggressive parasite that affects warm-blooded animals. While it had been successfully eradicated in the U.S. for over 60 years, recent official detections in livestock and domestic pets in Texas and New Mexico have put biosecurity agencies worldwide on high alert.
Fiji is proudly free of screwworm, and we want to keep it that way! Protecting our pristine islands, our local wildlife, and our farming communities is a responsibility we take incredibly seriously.
Our Partnership with Biosecurity Authority Fiji (BAF)
Navigating island regulations can feel daunting, but that is exactly why we are here. Over the years, Find Your Feet Fiji has built an excellent, trusted working relationship with the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji (BAF). We collaborate with them daily, we understand their procedures inside and out, and we work hand-in-hand with their team to ensure every single pet we bring into the country strictly meets Fiji’s world-class biosecurity standards.
Whenever global animal health situations shift, BAF adapts its import requirements to protect our borders. Because of our close partnership with the authority, we receive these updates in real-time.
Our Promise to You: We are monitoring this situation daily. Should BAF introduce any new preventative treatments, isolation protocols, or specific veterinary certifications for pets traveling from the USA, all Find Your Feet clients will be kept completely up to date with the new requirements immediately. We handle the paperwork adjustments so you don’t have to stress.
To Our Current Clients Traveling from the USA
If you currently have a dog or cat booked with us to make the big move from the United States to Fiji, please rest assured: you are in safe hands.
Our team has already proactively reached out to all of our current clients with active bookings originating in the USA. We are already working directly with you, your home-country veterinarians, and BAF to ensure that proper preventative treatments (such as specific, authorized flea and tick medications) and pre-departure clinical checks are flawlessly executed.
Leaving a beloved pet’s safety or entry status to chance simply isn’t an option. We are entirely on top of this outbreak, our lines of communication with BAF are wide open, and we are doing everything it takes to keep Fiji safe while getting your furry best friends safely home to paradise.
🎧 Recommended Listening: Screwworm Pet Travel Prep
We know that navigating biosecurity and strict inspection rules can feel overwhelming. If you want to know exactly how this parasite works, what the clinical inspection involves, and how to best prepare your pet’s coat and skin so they pass their USDA and BAF checks with flying colors, we highly recommend listening to this audio guide:
🎧 Recommended Listening: Screwworm Pet Travel Prep
We know that navigating biosecurity and strict inspection rules can feel overwhelming. If you want to know exactly how this parasite works, what the clinical inspection involves, and how to best prepare your pet’s coat and skin so they pass their USDA and BAF checks with flying colors, we highly recommend listening to this audio guide:
👉 [Listen to the Screwworm Pet Relocation & Prep Podcast]
Read below about how Find Your Feet Fiji handled a previous client who had problems arise. Staying on top of any developing situation with honesty and open communication is key…
If you have any questions at all about your pet’s upcoming travel itinerary, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our team directly!
JULY UPDATE:
Screwworm has been detected in 34 animals in the US, most cases in Texas with one in New Mexico. The latest reports have said that screwworm has been found in livestock and pets. Read this article to understand exactly what it is, how screwworm can affect your pet and what is being done about the outbreak.
Additionally you can check the USDA Animal and Plant health Inspection Service which is part of the US Department of Agriculure to get up to date information on the outbreak.
