We have been crazy pet people for pretty much always. We don’t have human children, and our furry kids are very important to us. At the largest, our brood was up to ten pets. We have owned cats, dogs, a hedgehog, bunnies, and a guinea pig.

When we started planning for early retirement and an international move, we had zero doubt that our two dogs and two cats would be going with us. The European Union (EU) issues pet passports which is great for moving pets between most of its member states, but what happens if you are moving a pet from the United States to Portugal?

We were delighted to find that the requirements for moving pets (at least dogs and cats) to Portugal is fairly straightforward. Pets need to be microchipped and have a rabies vaccination. There are specific rules that apply to the kind of microchip needed, and how long you have to wait after a rabies vaccination before traveling. The other requirement is a health certificate issued by a USDA certified veterinarian, which must also be certified by the USDA within 10 days of your trip.

The biggest question we get asked by people who hear about our move with pets is “Does your pet need to be quarantined upon arrival?” The answer is no, there are no quarantine requirements for Portugal. Portugal does have some banned dog breeds, and the above rules are different if you are transporting pets for commercial purposes.

The stress inducing question we came up against was how are we getting all the furry kids there in one piece? There are quite a few options with a large range of associated expenses. Some airlines will fly animals in hard sided crates under the plane in cargo (like checked luggage). Almost all airlines have a limit on the size of carrier and pet which are allowed in cabin. Many airlines limit the number of pets you can fly with and also have limits on how many pets total can be on any single flight. Some people who move internationally hire pet transportation specialists, others charter private flights and fly in style with their pampered friends.

We decided to fly with all of our pets on the same flight as us, in cabin. We have two special needs dogs. Zoe our French Bulldog has Addison’s disease. She is medicated twice per day and while her disease is currently managed, stress can induce serious complications for her. Basil our 6 pound Yorkie/Schnauzer mix has a thyroid condition and is also medicated. When he was young he slipped a disc in his back and had back surgery that prevented paralysis in his back legs. We worry about his size and any further back injuries. We also did not want our cats to travel in cargo or separate from the group.

We chose United Airlines since they fly from the east coast of the U.S. directly to Lisbon. They limit the total number of animals to 4 per flight. You are also only allowed to fly with one pet per person because they must go under the seat in front of you. Since we are flying with four pets in cabin, we were required to purchase two extra seats so that every pet has a seat to fit in front of. United does not currently fly pets as cargo due to the pandemic.

We also decided to break up our flight into two legs so that our pets did not have an extremely long single flight. Booking flights with pets took two days and approximately 9 hours on the phone, but it was well worth it to have everyone together. Our next step is purchasing gear for everyone to fly safely.

The cats are oblivious to change since their lives are still full of adventure every moment, whether that’s chasing a dust mote or doing laps through the house in their very own cat track meets. The dogs are older, wiser, and more sensitive. They know that something is going on since their mom is home most days now and we keep moving piles of stuff from one room to another (or take it away as we sell, Goodwill, or trash things that aren’t going with us). Overall they aren’t having half the stress their humans are experiencing. The dogs got bathed and Basil got a haircut yesterday by the mobile groomer (this is such a luxury). This will probably be the only direct stress they have before the move, outside of a quick vet visit.