Living with Dogs in Buenos Aires
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post contains affiliate links at no extra charge to you. I only feature products that I believe in and use myself.
Are you thinking of moving to Buenos Aires, Argentina and you have dogs? This blog post is for all you dog lovers out there. I get it, you’re considering moving to Buenos Aires for work or to be a digital nomad and you’re wondering how that will affect your dogs. Moving abroad is a big change to undertake. Especially if you’re taking dogs with you! Well, don’t worry, this post will answer all your questions and concerns about living with dogs in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Moving to or visiting Buenos Aires? Be sure to check out this activity list I created with over 50 things you have to do when you’re in Buenos Aires!
I have two small dogs - Peanut and Herbie. They are 16 years old and 9 years old. They are from Texas and lived with us in both Luanda, Angola and Buenos Aires, Argentina. And I have to say, they really loved living in Buenos Aires. I never knew they were such city dogs until we moved there.
Check out my YouTube video on this topic —>
General Info
Buneos Aires is a very dog friendly city. It seems like everyone there loves dogs. People were constantly bending down to pet our dogs and ask what their names were. Chihuahuas aren’t common in Buenos Aires so they were always excited to see them.
It seems like most people have small dogs but I did see a few large ones here and there. I’m sure it’s due to the apartment sizes. Usually, with apartments people want to own smaller dogs.
Getting Dogs In & Out of Argentina
We traveled from Houston, Texas USA with our dogs to Buenos Aires and everything was easy on the Houston side but when we landed in Buenos Aires at EZE international airport, things were more difficult. Our dogs flew under the plane so they were held at a separate cargo area (about a half mile from the airport). After collecting our luggage, we had to drive over and begin the process of retrieving our dogs.
The process was quite complicated with between 7-9 stops/office visits where we had to show/collect various paperwork, get security clearances, pay fees, get official stamps, etc. The retrieval process was extra difficult because our Spanish was very limited when we first arrived in Buenos Aires. So we had to use context clues and sign language to get by. If you’re planning to take your dogs to Buenos Aires via cargo on the airplane, expect a 2-3 hour process of collecting your dog after you pick up your luggage. Here are the dog crates we used to move to Angola & Argentina!
Be sure to check out this blog where I share my experience of leaving Buenos Aires to go home to the USA with my dogs.
Vet Care
There were many veterinarians to choose from in all neighborhoods. So you don’t need to worry about lack of veterinary care. Something that I thought was neat in Buenos Aires was that they have a lot of mobile veterinarians that will come directly to your apartment to give care. And believe it or not, the cost of a vet to come to our apartment to give the dogs a check-up and their rabies shot was only about the equivalent of $50 USD.
That is significantly cheaper than what it costs in the USA. I loved the convenience of the mobile veterinarians. I basically never had to take my dogs into a veterinarian's office until the pandemic and we had to get their paperwork to fly home with them (we weren’t allowed to have visitors in our apartment).
Dog Walks
BA is a great place to walk your dog. Your dog will never get bored with all the street life. There’s always something to stimulate them! You do have to watch out for dog poop though.
Unfortunately it can be all over the sidewalks in most neighborhoods. I don’t understand why people don’t pick up after their dogs but we always had bags with us. The last thing you want is for your dog to have to go to the restroom in front of a nice shoppe or restaurant and you don’t have any bags with you!
You may also have to be on the lookout for food scraps if you don’t want your dog eating food from the ground during your walks. Somehow our dogs would always find little pieces of medialunas or other foods and snatch them up before we could stop them!
Parks & Green Space
There are great parks in every neighborhood in Buenos Aires so your dog will definitely have someplace green to play. After work and on the weekends, the parks near our apartments are always full with dogs and their owners. We actually called one area the “dog park” because every night at 7pm several dog owners would gather and visit while their dogs ran around and played in the plaza.
A lot of porteños let their dogs off leash while playing at parks. It’s amazing how trained many of the dogs are. They know when to stop at the end of a sidewalk before crossing a street! We kept our dogs on leashes because they aren’t used to the city and Herbie likes to run straight into the street or anyplace he shouldn’t be going.
Be sure before you let your dog off leash that they are pretty disciplined or that you’re in a large green area away from the streets and cars.
Pet Care / Dog Sitter
You won’t have to worry about your dogs while you’re on vacation visiting other parts of Argentina. There are great pet sitters available all over the city. We used Antonella and she was amazing! I’ll share her information here. —>
When we went on trips, we left our dogs in our apartment and gave her a key. She would visit them 2 or 3 times a day to play, let them use the restroom and walk them. She even spent the night in our apartment a few times when we were gone for 2 weeks at a time.
We never boarded our dogs however I did see many options for that as well. A lot of Buenos Aires veterinarians offer kennel boarding at their offices.
Do you board your dog or have a pet sitter when you go on vacations? Let me know in the comments below.
Dog Food
There are many brands of dog food to choose from when you’re living in Buenos Aires with your dog. All veterinarians will have foods to choose from and there will be multiple pet shops in your neighborhood that have food and treats. There are also websites where you can order food.
When we lived in Buenos Aires with our dogs, we ordered dog food from puppis.com.ar and it was great. They have hundreds of food options for dogs and cats and they deliver right to your door. We always ordered Nutrique dog food and our dogs loved it! They also have lots of great options for cat food too!
Dog Walkers
Buenos Aires is infamous for its dog walkers. Dog walkers in Buenos Aires typically walk at least 10 dogs at once. You’ll see them walking through the streets and parks with up to 20 dogs at the same time! It’s pretty impressive. I have my hands full with just two dogs!
Their services are pretty inexpensive and it’s a great way to give your dog a walk while you’re at work. The dog walker will come to your apartment and pick up your dog. They’ll walk it along with several others and return your dog to your apartment in an hour or two, depending on what you agreed. Even if you don’t use their services, it’s a pretty cool sight to see in Buenos Aires on a daily basis.
Overall, if you’re planning to move to Buenos Aires with a dog or adopt one after you move there, you really shouldn’t have any issues.
Buenos Aires is a very dog friendly city and with all the action your dog (and you) should never get bored. There’s great and inexpensive veterinarian care, pet sitters and dog walkers. And getting your dog into Argentina isn’t a hard process, just a little lengthy if your dog is traveling by cargo (under the plane).
I even think having dogs made our experience living in Buenos Aires better. We spent more time at the parks and walking around our neighborhoods than we would have without dogs. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
If you have any specific questions, let me know down in the comments.
Ready to move abroad? Check out my ultimate moving abroad packing checklist for everything you need to take with you to make your new country a home!
And be sure to download this activity list I created with over 50 things you have to do when you’re in Buenos Aires!
