A week out, gather the physical paperwork together: the EU pet passport or health certificate, and any Bundesland-specific permit or insurance documentation if your dog is on a Listenhunde list for your destination state. Keep these somewhere accessible, not buried in checked luggage.

Pick up basic tick-prevention treatment now if you haven't already — available at a pharmacy, vet practice or a Fressnapf once you arrive, or bring your own from home if your pet is already on a specific product. If your route runs through Bavaria or Baden-Württemberg specifically, this is also worth a reminder to check the FSME article in the Health section before any hiking.

Check the Leinenpflicht rules, covered in the Activities section, for every Bundesland your trip actually crosses, not just the first one — the dates and conditions genuinely differ state to state, and if your route includes the North Sea coast, the dike-specific leash rule applies there regardless of what the rest of your itinerary's states require.