Hawaii Department of Agriculture Animal Quarantine Station - Aiea, Hawaii

Jacob Martinez

I could share so much about our experience with these people but let's just say I'm ecstatic it's over and we got our baby out. These people were so unorganized, did not communicate with one another and seemed to be only about the money. We did everything hawaii required before we pcsed here and it still wasn't good enough for them. Our baby was too young to even have a 2nd rabies shot but we signed waiver for vet to do it 3 months early just to satisfy hawaii. These people are heartless. Very cold and unfriendly. Why do you choose to work with animals if you all are like that? We literally been told 3 different release dates by 3 different people during a span of 2 months before we finally got her out. We argued and argued with these people. Extremely unprofessional. I have dates, times and conversations all documented if I knew it would get something done. They feed the animals twice a day, 7 and 11 am and nothing till the following morning. They can never leave their kennel for exercise and our baby's bed was soaked from them spraying their kennel out. Like have some consideration to not soak their bed. If you bring toys, they pick em up and put em through the fence high up and never put em back down for the dogs to play with. WHYYYY?!?! Because your people are too lazy to clean the kennel and put the toys back down to have something to do. With her soggy bed bugs started accumulating, she had sores on her elbows and on top of her head which we took pictures of. Their vet said it's fine of course. I could go on and on about these people. DO EVERYTHING YOU CAN TO NOT DEAL WITH THIS FACILITY! Someone needs to look into this place. No telling the abuse that could possibly go on by these "care takers". Not saying it does but the fact that there's only a span of 3 hours a day you can visit your own pet, not right.

Ashley B.

Definitely not impressed with my dogs quarantine here. The cages are outside in the heat. Also, my dogs were damn near starving when I got them. The were eating some much grass. Then when I got them home to feed them they ate so much they started to gag. Furthermore, the staff is something else. They are grumpy for no reason. If this place wasn't mandatory, if you don't do direct release,I would never let my babies go back here.

Tracey Villaseñor

Unfortunately our animals may end up here as a result of the FAVN test, or for other unforeseen reasons. Our 4 yo Japanese Akita spent time here as well, and I believe it may have been harder on us than it was for him. Coming from Germany, this was the last thing we expected after we hired a pet mover to facilitate a smooth transition.
Is this the Ritz Carlton for your animal?
No
Is this a state funded facility with a team of ppl who genuinely care for the pets that are given to them while in transition?
Absolutely, without question.
No one wants to keep you from your pets, but love, patience and respect go much further in any situation than anxieties, accusations and intimidation. (a wonderful staff that both my husband and I witnessed being mistreated by pet owners) yes it is a stressful experience, but the staff is their to help

The facility is not new; but very clean and well kept, fresh water is plentiful, food is desirable. The staff watches each and every pet in need of special attention, which they deliver accordingly. (our dog wouldn’t urinate in his own individual area and he was given special care for this; thanks Tina!) Even consideration was given for our dogs thick Nordic coat...shaded and cooled by the trade winds.

If you are reading this w concern over your own pets well being while in quarantine, rest easy...your pet is being well cared for.

scha’leigh davenport

If you don’t have to deal with them, don’t. I bought a puppy from a friend on mainland and knew the process would be long but the fact they can’t even answer a phone call and email is ridiculous. You charge all that money to not even work? And also they aren’t nice at all. They make you feel stupid and one person tells you one thing while the other opposite. I turned in my paperwork almost 2 weeks in advance and they wouldn’t get back to me about accepting it. I finally got a call day before asking when my dog will be here and they said I will have to pay $244 plus he might have to stay the night. If they would actually work and not sit around maybe things could’ve gotten done. It’ll all just a way to make money for them. I will never do this again.

Charlie Appel

The Hawaii Department of Agriculture, Animal Quarantine Station has been such a life-saver! I know the process of importing your dog or cat is beyond stressful and especially with dealing with the paperwork, but with patience and persistence magic happens!

My family and I are about to leave to go to Kona, Hawaii and bring Kona, our Medium Goldendoodle on vacation with us. Although, it was beyond stressful to do, we managed to work through the process and get everything done. The biggest thing to bringing your dog with you to Hawaii is to be diligent about the paperwork and keep track of the checklists necessary for your travel.

Additionally, Ali'i Veterinary Animal Hospital was extremely helpful. I know this review may seem shocking, but the honest truth is people are genuinely kind and are willing to help you if you treat them with the Golden Rule.

Thank you so much, Tracy and everyone involved in the process of bringing Kona with us to Kona!

Kayli Daymon

I had hoped that I would be pleasantly surprised but unfortunately that was not the case. First I will tell you what was positive. They did have running water in every kennel which was nice and there was a shaded area in each one. Other than that, I wasn't really impressed. I get that it is a large facility but I feel like the dogs aren't really paid attention to. I saw the caretakers just hosing the kennels down and that's it. Not going in the kennel. Not really checking on them. They are in these really flimsy gate kennels and the lock on my pets was very insecure. What really bothered me was that my dog was only there for a week and when I got him he had a hotspot under his neck and his fur was green! So I can't imagine what other pets look like if they are there the full 120 days. They make you wait even when there is no line. They will literally look at you and then go back to whatever they where doing without even saying anything because they know that you don't have a choice. This review won't really make a difference since it's a law that pets have to go through here to get into Hawaii if they haven't met the 120 qualifications. But maybe this will give others a heads up on what to expect.

Beau Bennett

We were so pleasantly surprised at the exceptional care they give to our furry babies. The kennels are always kept clean. In fact, as you visit with your dogs, you will likely see employees cruising around looking into the kennels to see if anything needs to be cleaned up. The dogs are fed well with a diet of chicken and rice, twice a day and there is always a vet on hand in case they need anything. We have 2 dogs in quarantine right now and while they can't share the same kennel, they do keep them right next to each other. Yes, it sucks to have to go through the whole process of it all but given the circumstances, we couldn't be happier with the employees and all they put into making it as comfortable as they can.

Cari

Great place! Very clean. Some staff is might be cranky according to some but it’s work and they deal with the government red tape side of quarantine. There’s nothing “fun” about that so be understanding. The lady taking care of my Oly is wonderful and that’s more important to me anyway. My dog loves her. I read how people are complaining about how long their dog has to be here, we’ll I got news for you, that’s your fault. The information is out there on what steps you need to follow to make sure your dog is healthy before arriving to the island. Respect YOUR animal and follow directions. If our pet has to stay you can visit them during proper hours. You can bring them toys, treats, and bring a chair to hang it with your pup for a while. You can bath them too. It’s a wonderful place considering the reason this place is here. Thank you to the staff. Mahalo!