Nine new countries join the border free area in Europe under the Schengen agreement today, an area where humans may travel freely without stopping at border checkpoints or showing passports. Sweden has been a member for several years. Among the new members are Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland on the other side of the Baltic Sea.
The open borders for humans does not mean the borders are open for dogs. Sweden and Norway are rabies free, which Finland and continental Europe is not. This means that dogs who will go to Sweden or Norway from other countries has to be vaccinated agains rabies and have proof that the vaccine works. This affects Swedish dogs as well; if we want to go abroad to another country than Norway, we have to have the same vaccination and paperwork in order to be able to come back to Sweden.
It is a happy coincidence then, that our veterinarian had the time to give me my first rabies shot today. I am thus on my way to get vaccinated and get the paperwork that allows me to travel Europe as freely as a human. This feels great.
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