Pet sitting in Estonia
Estonia is small, wooded and never far from the sea, so a dog is rarely more than a few minutes from a proper walk. When you have to leave yours behind, Petswap lets a neighbour take it in at home, and you thank them in Care Points, which are not euros and never turn into euros.
Pet lovers in Estonia
Neighbours who look after each other's pets, for love, not money.
Find pet care near Estonia
Look for care near you, or join and offer care yourself.
Why pet people choose Petswap
Real homes, not cages
Your pet stays in a warm home with someone who loves animals, surrounded by care, not bars.
For love, not money
No one here does it for cash. Care Points are a way to give and receive care, never income.
Neighbours you can trust
Members verify their identity before booking, with a real profile and reviews. You can always chat and meet before any stay.
Key facts for pet owners in Estonia
- Microchip and registration
- Microchipping is a municipal duty today. Tallinn requires every dog and cat to carry a chip fitted by a licensed vet and to be entered in the city register within five days of turning three months old, and Tartu requires the chip and the registration for dogs and cats too. A bill the ministry signed in February 2026 would make the chip and entry in a national register run by PRIA compulsory for dogs, cats and ferrets across Estonia from 1 June 2027, if the Riigikogu passes it.
- Dog tax
- None. The Local Taxes Act lets a municipality levy an animal keeping tax, the loomapidamismaks, but the Ministry of Finance records that no municipality has introduced one. Registering a chipped pet in the municipal LLR register is free, the Estonian Small Animal Veterinary Association's register charges a one-off 25 EUR through the vet, and the national register planned for 2027 would carry a 12 EUR state fee per animal, with existing entries moved across free of charge.
- Leash and muzzle
- No Estonian law puts every dog on a leash; the rule sits in each municipality's dog and cat regulation. Tallinn's, renewed from 15 September 2026, keeps the rule it has applied since 1 January 2014: in a public place a dog or cat is on a leash or in a carrier and runs free only in a designated dog exercise area. Tartu has required the leash in public space since 29 May 2023, with its purpose-built dog parks as the exception.
- Rabies vaccination
- Compulsory for dogs and cats: a first shot at three to four months, then no less often than every 24 months, recorded in the pet passport. Estonia was declared rabies free on 3 April 2013, and the Agriculture and Food Board still rates the risk of it returning from neighbouring countries as very high.
- Trains and city transport
- On Elron trains a pet counts as hand luggage and has no ticket of its own. A dog outside a carrier wears a muzzle, stays on a short leash and rides in carriage C on the Stadler trains or in the marked section of the newer Škoda trains, with stickers above the doors; a small animal in a closed carrier can sit in the saloon. No pet goes on a seat or into first class. On Tallinn's TLT buses, trams and trolleybuses a dog rides on a short leash and muzzled, or in a closed carrier. Guide and assistance dogs are exempt on both.
- What commercial care costs
- A dog hotel in Estonia charges roughly 20 to 40 EUR a night, less for a small dog or a stay of a week or more, and several add 20 percent on public holidays, some at weekends too. Dog day care starts around 11 EUR a day in the countryside, is about 20 EUR around Tartu and reaches 40 EUR in Tallinn. A cat sitter's home visit is about 35 EUR a day in Tallinn and 45 EUR in Harju county, often 20 EUR more at weekends and on public holidays. These are commercial rates; Petswap has no price list, because care there is measured in Care Points.
A pet owner's guide to Estonia
Handy local knowledge for keeping a pet happy here.
Leash rules are written by the city, not the state
Estonia has no single leash law. The Animal Protection Act covers welfare, and each municipality publishes its own koerte ja kasside pidamise eeskiri, the dog and cat regulation, which is why what is allowed in one town may be fined in the next. Tallinn's regulation was renewed on 15 September 2026 and keeps the strict line the city has held since 1 January 2014: a dog or cat in any public place is on a leash or in a carrier it cannot escape from, and a dog comes off the leash only inside a marked dog exercise area, a koerte jalutusväljak, of which the city lists more than twenty. Tartu asked for a leash only when needed until it amended its regulation from 29 May 2023; since then a dog in a public place is leashed, with the city's purpose-built dog parks, service dogs and hunting dogs as the exceptions, and a cat in a public place has to be under supervision too. Smaller municipalities have their own versions, published in Riigi Teataja, so read the eeskiri of the town where your pet will be staying.
Chip, register, vaccinate
Three pieces of paperwork, and the first is about to change. Today the microchip is a municipal duty: in Tallinn every dog and cat is chipped by a licensed vet and entered in the city's pet register within five days of turning three months old, or within five days of you acquiring an older animal, and Tartu asks the same chip and registration of dogs and cats. A bill the ministry signed in February 2026 would make the chip and entry in a single national register under PRIA compulsory for dogs, cats and ferrets everywhere in Estonia from 1 June 2027, if the Riigikogu passes it, with current owners given until 1 January 2028 to comply. Registration there would cost a 12 EUR state fee per animal, and PRIA would move an existing entry from the older registers across for nothing, which is its argument for chipping now rather than later. Registration in the municipal LLR register is free today and can be done online with an ID card; the Estonian Small Animal Veterinary Association's register costs a one-off 25 EUR at the clinic. Rabies vaccination has been compulsory for decades: first at three to four months, then at least every 24 months, stamped in the pet passport. Keep that passport handy, because a host will reasonably want to see it before a stay.
Commercial pet care in Estonia, in euros
A commercial dog hotel in Estonia charges roughly 20 to 40 EUR a night. A country hotel asks around 20 to 25 EUR, one in Lääne-Virumaa 28 EUR for a dog under 15 kg and 35 EUR above it, and a short stay at a coastal hotel 40 EUR, falling to 30 EUR from the second week; a boarding home near Tartu takes a dog for 25 EUR a night and a cat for 20 EUR. Public holidays add 20 percent at several hotels, one adds it from Friday to Sunday as well, and a week or more earns a discount. Dog day care starts around 11 EUR a day in the countryside, runs about 20 EUR around Tartu and reaches 40 EUR in Tallinn. A cat sitter's daily visit to the cat's own home costs about 35 EUR in Tallinn and 45 EUR in Harju county, 50 to 60 EUR for two visits a day, and weekends and public holidays often add 20 EUR a day. None of this is a Petswap tariff, because Petswap has no prices in euros: a host writes a number of Care Points per night into their care offer, and you earn those by hosting someone else's pet.
Elron, TLT and the county buses with a dog
Elron, the national train operator, treats your pet as hand luggage, so it has no ticket of its own. A dog that is not in a carrier wears a muzzle, rides on a short leash and stays in carriage C on the Stadler trains or in the marked section of the newer Škoda trains, the one with the pet stickers above the doors; a small animal in a closed carrier that fits the hand luggage limits can sit with you. No pet on a seat, and none in first class. In Tallinn, TLT's buses, trams and trolleybuses take a dog on a short leash with a muzzle, or any pet in a closed carrier, and the city regulation puts a cat on a leash too unless it rides in one. Guide and assistance dogs travel without restriction. County bus lines belong to separate operators, each with its own conditions. Lux Express sells a pet its own seat on domestic routes, a 40 percent cheaper extra ticket for an animal in a closed carrier or bag of up to 40 x 40 cm, and its international coaches take no pets other than guide dogs.
How it works
Add your pet
Create a free profile for your pet, or offer to care for others nearby.
Give care, receive Care Points
Look after a neighbour's pet and receive Care Points as thanks. Prefer not to? Buy points anytime.
Travel with peace of mind
Spend your points so your own pet stays in a loving home while you're away.
Pet sitting in Estonia: common questions
Do I have to register my dog in Estonia?
Yes. Tallinn and Tartu both require a microchip and registration for dogs and cats, and a bill the ministry signed in February 2026 would extend that to the whole country from 1 June 2027, when microchipping and entry in the national register under PRIA are due to become compulsory for dogs, cats and ferrets, if the Riigikogu passes it. In Tallinn the chip and the registration are due within five days of the animal turning three months old. There is no dog tax to pay with it: Estonian law allows a municipal animal keeping tax, but no municipality has introduced one, and registration in the municipal LLR register is free.
Do I pay an Estonian host in euros?
No. A stay is settled in Care Points: you earn them by hosting someone else's dog or cat, or top them up if you would rather not host, and you spend them when yours goes to stay. No euros pass between members and points can never be cashed out, which is what keeps it neighbourly rather than a business. Each host writes the number of points they ask per night into their care offer, every member who requests care completes an identity check first, and the app itself is free and open to anyone aged 18 or over.
Can I take my dog on the train in Estonia?
Yes, and there is no pet ticket: Elron carries a pet as hand luggage. A dog outside a carrier needs a muzzle and a short leash and rides in carriage C, marked with a pet sticker, or in the marked section of the newer Škoda trains, never on a seat and never in first class; a small animal in a closed carrier can sit with you. Tallinn applies the same muzzle and short leash rule on its buses and trams. Pack the pet passport as well: rabies vaccination is compulsory in Estonia and the passport is the record of it.
Is my pet safe?
Members verify their identity before booking and have a public profile with reviews. You can always chat and meet before any stay, and you choose who cares for your pet.
Explore pet care across Estonia
Give your pet a real home in Estonia
Join a community of pet people who care, for love, not money.
Join Petswap free