(a) Quarantine Unit. The Department of Agriculture shall maintain a dog or cat quarantine unit, provide and carry out a quarantine program to receive incoming dogs or cats upon arrival on the island, ensure that such dogs or cats are examinedwithin twenty-four (24) hours upon arrival and twenty-four (24) hours prior to release from quarantine by a licensed veterinarian and provide for the health and well-being of such dogs or cats for the duration of their quarantine, including the administering of necessary immunization shots by a licensed veterinarian at the quarantine unit at the expense of the owner.

(b)(1) Quarantine of Dogs and Cats. All dogs and cats brought into Guam shall be subject to quarantine for a period of time approved by the Director pursuant to this Section.

(A) Requirements for the entry to and release from quarantine of dogs and cats brought into Guam, shall be a maximum of one hundred twenty (120) days.

(B) Any and all costs, including care and keep,
shall be borne by the dog or cat owner.

(C) At the time of release from quarantine, the pet must have completed not less than two (2) properly documented inactivated rabies vaccinations, and the most recent rabies vaccination must be current.

(D) The pet must also be current for other routine vaccinations as established by the Territorial Veterinarian.

(2) Quarantine Length. Pets that have received a properly implanted approved identification microchip and have a protective titer against rabies, as documented by a laboratory approved by the Director of Agriculture, may spend less than the full one hundred twenty (120) days in enforced quarantine.

(A) The quarantine period is calculated from the date the blood arrives at the approved laboratory.

(i) If the animal receives an import permit and arrives on Guam before the one hundred twenty (120) days has passed, the animal may be allowed to spend only those remaining days in enforced quarantine, rather than the full one hundred twenty (120) days.(ii) a. If one hundred twenty (120) or more days have passed since the blood with a protective titer arrived at the laboratory, and if all other requirements have been met, the animal must complete on Guam a quarantine period of five (5) days or less and a physical examination by a veterinarian approved by the Director of Agriculture.

b. The five (5) day or less quarantine program requires the following pre-arrival requirements for each pet before the pet may be released:

1. Vaccinations. Two (2) rabies vaccinations, with the last vaccination administered no more than twelve (12) months prior to arrival if a one (1) year vaccine was administered, or not more than thirty-six (36) months prior to arrival if a three (3) year or longer vaccine was administered. The two (2) vaccinations may not be administered within thirty (30) days of each other; and the last vaccine must be administered no less than thirty (30) days prior to the pet’s entry into Guam.

2. Microchip. A microchip approved by the Territorial Veterinarian for identification purposes must be implanted in the pet.

3. Blood Serum Tests. Blood serum OIE-FAVN test results or the results of a test recognized by the World Organization for Animal Health as being able to determine levels of rabies antibodies must indicate a sufficient level of rabies antibodies. Such results shall be from a laboratory approved by the Director of Agriculture4. Pre-arrival Waiting Period. The pre-arrival waiting period determines the duration of enforced quarantine on Guam only for those properly vaccinated animals with an approved microchip and a properly documented protective titer against rabies. If such an animal arrives on Guam less than one hundred twenty (120) days after the blood arrived at the approved laboratory, then the animal must spend the remaining days in enforced quarantine on Guam unless the pet qualifies for the home quarantine option.

5. Home Quarantine Option. After completing the initial five (5) days or less of enforced quarantine on Guam, those animals with a high titer of protective rabies antibodies (at least twice the minimum titer of 0.05 I.U. per milliliter of blood) may complete the remainder of the post-arrival quarantine at home, provided the animal originated in the United States, or has been screened by a military veterinarian prior to arrival on Guam, and is in compliance with items (1.) through (4.) of this Subsection. The owner must keep the pet isolated from other animals during this time. Failure to do so can result in the pet being placed in enforced quarantine for the remainder of the quarantine period at the owner’s expense. At the end of the home quarantine period, the animal requires another physical examination by an approved veterinarian for final release from quarantine.
6. Documentation Submission. Pet owners must submit evidence of required vaccinations and blood serum tests at least ten (10) days prior to the pet’s arrival. These items must be sent directly from the laboratory, not hand- carried by the pet owner.

(3) (A) The Department of Agriculture may require at any time within one hundred twenty (120) days after arrival on Guam that results from off-island laboratory tests be validated.

(B) If not confirmed to the satisfaction of the Department of Agriculture, then the Department of Agriculture may, pursuant to rules and regulations, place the pet in further quarantine or take other appropriate action.

(C) The Department of Agriculture is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations in accordance with this Subsection.

(c) Exemption from quarantine. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article:

(1) Certain dogs. Seeing-eye dogs serving blind masters or hearing-aid dogs serving deaf persons and dogs which are the official property of a federal, state or territorial government agency may, in the absence of evidence that they have been exposed to rabies, be granted exemptions from the quarantine provisions of this Article, provided they

(A) Comply with all other requirements for entry into the territory;

(B) Remain the property of the individual or agency whose property they were given when granted such exemption;

(C) Remain free of signs or symptoms of rabies;

(D) Are made available for examination by an officer at any reasonable time.

(2) Rabies-free areas. The Director shall establish a list of rabies-free areas as designated by the World Health Organization and will constantly review the status of the rabies-free areas and may remove a designated rabies-free area from the list if it is shown, to the satisfaction of the Director, that the area has not remained free from rabies or has not maintained stringent entry and quarantine requirements. Dogs or cats originating from areas designated as rabies-free at the time the pet was placed in transit to Guam will be exempted from quarantine; provided, that they comply with all other requirements for entry into Guam.

(3) Special veterinary care. Dogs or cats brought to Guam for the specific purpose of veterinary medical care may be granted exemptions from quarantine; provided, that

(A) The dog or cat is consigned to a licensed veterinarian;

(B) The dog or cat meets all other requirements for entry into the territory;

(C) The dog or cat is returned to its point of origin as soon as it is healthy enough to travel;

(D) The dog or cat remain in the custody of the treating veterinarian during its entire stay in the territory.

(d) Import restriction. The Director shall establish a list of restricted areas based on its high incidence of rabies, and may deny entry to any dog or cat coming from these areas. The Director will periodically review the status of these areas and may lift the entrance restriction if the incidence of rabies in these areas have decreased to a level acceptable to the Director.

(e) Entry requirements. All incoming dogs or cats shall comply with all entry requirements before they will be allowed to enter Guam. Such entry requirements shall be in accordance

with regulations adopted under the Administrative Adjudication
Law.

(f) Holding period. A dog or cat will be declared ineligible to enter the territory if it fails to meet the entry requirements established by the Director pursuant to subsection (e), supra.

(1) Such dog or cat shall remain in the custody of the carrier in a designated inspection area at the port of entry until such time as it shall leave Guam, or shall be humanely disposed of by the Pet Control Unit.

(2) Such holding period shall in no case exceed seventy-two (72) hours without the consent of the Director.

(3) (A) Any expense incurred by the government of Guam during or as a result of such holding shall be the responsibility of, and chargeable to the carrier.

(B) In addition, the carrier shall be fined an amount not less than Five Hundred Dollars ($500) and not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000) for boarding such dog or cat without entry permit.

SOURCE: Added by P.L. 22-013:1 (May 7, 1993). Subsection (b)
amended by P.L. 24-216:2. Subsection (b)(2) added by P.L. 27-84:2 (eff.
5/06/2004). Subsection (c)(2) amended by P.L. 27-84:3. Subsections (a)
and (b) repealed and reenacted by P.L. 29-112:3 (Aug. 26, 2008).

2017 NOTE: Subsection/subitem designations added/altered pursuant to the authority of 1 Guam Code Ann. § 1606. Internal reference altered to reflect the change.

2012 NOTE: In maintaining the general codification scheme of the GCA the Compiler changed the hierarchy of subsections beginning with “”Lowercase Roman numerals”” to “”Uppercase Letters”” in subsections (b)(2), (c)(1) and (c)(3).