Pet owners can once again travel with their dogs from the United States to Mexico after federal officials reversed a brief restriction tied to concerns over the spread of the New World screwworm.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Department of Agriculture\u2019s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recently clarified that pet dog travel to Mexico will continue under previously established procedures, despite earlier guidance that temporarily included pet dogs on a list of animals restricted from export.<\/p>\n
The policy confusion came as officials in both countries work to prevent the spread of the New World screwworm, a parasitic fly whose larvae can infest and feed on the living tissue of warm-blooded animals.<\/p>\n
While dogs can still travel into Mexico, strict requirements remain in place for dogs returning to the United States from countries affected by screwworm, including Mexico.<\/p>\n
According to APHIS, dogs entering the U.S. from a screwworm-affected country must have a screwworm freedom certification completed by an authorized veterinarian. The certification confirms the animal was inspected and found free of the parasite before travel.<\/p>\n
The USDA says these requirements have been in effect since November 2024.<\/p>\n
The issue has raised concerns among pet owners in border communities, where some residents routinely travel to Mexico for veterinary care.<\/p>\n
One of those pet owners is Gloria Gonzalez, who crosses into Mexico several times a week to have stray animals spayed and neutered.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe prices over there are more accessible, and that\u2019s the only way we can afford to do so many spay and neuters,\u201d Gonzalez told Channel 5 News in the Rio Grande Valley.<\/p>\n
Veterinarians are also encouraging pet owners to closely monitor their animals for wounds that could attract screwworm flies.<\/p>\n
Dr. Esteban Perez Villarreal, a veterinarian in Camargo, Tamaulipas, said exposed injuries should be treated as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe ask all of our clients to treat any exposed wounds as soon as possible,\u201d Perez said.<\/p>\n
The veterinarian said some confusion remains regarding what documentation may be required for pets crossing the border and hopes authorities provide additional guidance for veterinarians and pet owners.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Mexican animal health officials have announced increased inspections of cats, dogs and pet birds at ports of entry as the country continues efforts to contain the parasite.<\/p>\n
Pet owners planning to travel with their animals are encouraged to review the latest requirements from USDA APHIS before crossing the border.<\/p>\n
Breaking News Alerts<\/p>\n
More Stories Like This In Our Email Newsletter<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pet owners can once again travel with their dogs from the United States to Mexico after federal officials…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":699638,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[23,302715,302716,7474,26,3,1068,298683,21,19,22,20,25,24],"class_list":["post-699637","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-states","tag-america","tag-animal-health-inspections","tag-cross-border-pet-regulations","tag-dog","tag-mexico","tag-news","tag-pets","tag-screwworm","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/699637","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=699637"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/699637\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/699638"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=699637"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=699637"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=699637"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}