Canadian woman who smuggled cat into New Zealand in her handbag sent home

Forget drugs and booze – a Canadian woman been caught trying to smuggle her pet cat.

New Zealand border authorities didn’t take kindly to the biosecurity breach at Auckland Airport, refusing her entry to the country and sending her straight home.

Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) revealed today (Thursday) that the woman only declared dirty boots to biosecurity officials when she arrived from Vanouver, neglecting to mention the cat in her handbag.

It was only when MPI staff attempted to x-ray her bag that the woman – described as being in her twenties – admitted four-year-old Bella the moggy was inside.

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Craig Hughes, MPI’s Manager North Passenger and Mail, said: “She was very reluctant to have the hand bag x-rayed, saying it had already been checked by our quarantine officers. She only revealed the cat after we insisted the bag will have to undergo further biosecurity checks.”

Following the cat’s discovery, the woman was refused entry to NZ and sent home to Canada with her husband and kitty on the next available flight.

While she told Mr Hughes that she had informed officials about her cat’s travel plans when she bought her ticket, he wasn’t convinced.

He said: “We believe this was a deliberate and very stupid attempt at smuggling. There are strict biosecurity rules in place to stop imported cats and dogs from introducing pests and diseases into New Zealand. The passenger clearly decided those rules didn’t apply to her.”

The Telegraph quoted Mr Hughes as saying the cat may have been drugged for the 7,000 mile flight as “apparently it was a very quiet cat, very docile”.

Not surprisingly, When the woman was told she had to make an immediate return to Canada she was quite upset. Mr Hughes said: “She had plans to have a nice holiday with her husband in New Zealand. And her cat.”