At a time when clarity and certainty over Brexit, and how we will be able to trade with and travel to our EU neighbours, seems fanciful there is now some certainty over the movement of cats, dogs and ferrets in and out of Britain and the Isle of Man.

New arrangements will apply from 11pm on Thursday, December 31, when Great Britain and the Isle of Man become ’Part Two listed third countries’ for pet travel into the EU and Northern Ireland.

If you are transporting non-commercially (i.e. you are going on holiday) you need to know the following:

Pet passports are no longer valid for travel to the EU or Northern Ireland from January 1.

If you want to take your cat, dog or ferret to the EU or Northern Ireland from Great Britain (that’s England, Scotland and Wales) or the Isle of Man you will need an Animal Health Certificate (AHC) from your vet which is valid for one trip for up to four months. You will need to visit your vet no more than ten days before travel to the EU or Northern Ireland to get an AHC.

Your cat, dog or ferret (which must be more than 12 weeks old) must have been vaccinated against rabies, and this vaccination needs to take place 21 days before you travel.

If you are travelling to Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Finland, Norway or Malta your pet will also need treatment against tapeworm between one and five days before arriving in any one of these countries.

If you are travelling from the EU to the UK or the Isle of Man you will need a pet passport or AHC, and you will have to use a designated point of entry.

If you are travelling from Northern Ireland to Great Britain or Isle of Man you will not need a pet passport or AHC as we are in the same customs union, but you will need a passport or certificate to return to Northern Ireland.

And if you are planning to use the Eurotunnel, bear in mind that there is now a rule that a maximum of three dogs can travel in any one vehicle for non-commercial purposes.

Your pet may be put into quarantine for up to four months if you do not follow these rules - or refused entry if you travelled by sea.

But, happily, there are currently no official requirements for cats, dogs or ferrets travelling between the Isle of Man, the UK (excluding Northern Ireland) and the Channel Islands.

We’re very lucky on the Isle of Man to have sea travel arrangements that enable a pet owner to accompany their pet in transit, either in a designated pet lounge or in a pet cabin. Being alongside your pet when you travel is, for the majority of animals, the least stressful way to get from A to B.

Irwin, the golden retriever crossbreed (pictured, alongside Liam), doesn’t do stress.

He’s so relaxed that he needs quite a lot of gentle encouragement to move from his bed, and consequently he has a rather portly build.

He celebrated Christmas with us in the kennels, with our other rescue and boarding dogs, and helped us to say thank you to the many generous people who brought festive gifts and donations to Ard Jerkyll.

He has a new home to go to in the New Year, where he’ll be on a healthy diet and have an exercise regime that ensures he can enjoy good mobility far into old age.