USDA: Santa's reindeer allowed to enter the US

In a rare move, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is waiving their normally strict requirements for the movement of livestock to allow a special herd of reindeer to move freely across the United States during the Christmas holiday. 

In a blog post posted Thursday morning, officials with the USDA said the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is issuing a special permit to "Mr. S. Claus of the North Pole," to allow his reindeer "to enter and exit the United States between the hours of 6 PM December 24, 2015 and 6 AM December 25, 2015, through or over any northern border port."

The USDA permit seeks to do everything in its power to help Santa, according to officials. 

As a condition of entry, the reindeer must be certified by Santa Claus as never having been fed anything other than hay, sugar plums, and gingerbread. The reindeer must also be individually identified with microchips or official eartag identification, and must respond to the names ‘Dasher’, ‘Dancer’, ‘Prancer’, ‘Vixen’, ‘Comet’, ‘Cupid’, ‘Donner,’  ‘Blitzen’ and ‘Rudolph’ when interacting with port personnel. No more than one reindeer in the group may be visibly affected by ‘Rednose Syndrome’, and upon entry, port personnel will visually inspect the reindeer to ensure they are healthy and fit for continued travel.

We're also tracking Santa as he makes his way around the world to deliver gifts to thousands of children. Find out where he's currently at by clicking here.