How to Prepare for Moving With Pets

If you think moving is hard, imagine how your pets feel! Disrupted routines and a busy environment can distress animals when selling a home with pets. It's essential to plan your move carefully and maintain conditions that keep you and your animals safe and relaxed. By sticking to these tips for a stress-free move, your pets will quickly learn to love their new home. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about moving with pets.

Update Pet Tags & Microchips

Pets are territorial and often look to return to their familiar surroundings, such as a former home. If they get loose on or after moving day, they may attempt to find their way to what they remember as home. Getting new, updated tags that include the new address and phone number will help identify pets who accidentally slip away. Another option is to have a vet microchip your pets so they can be easily associated with your up-to-date contact information when found by someone else.

Use Pet Carriers & Crates

Pet owners sometimes reject the idea of sticking their pets in a carrier. While pets may show some signs of distress when crated during a car ride, it's your obligation as an owner to do what's safest for them. Moving involves a lot of chaos, and even the most obedient pet may get confused and bolt. Using a pet carrier will ensure the pet is safely transported to its new home. Start introducing them to one about a month before the move to get cats or dogs who are never crated used to the idea. Place a favorite toy or blanket inside the carrier to help them create friendly associations with it.

Keep Pets Away From Packing Disruptions

Both cats and dogs are highly reactive to changes in their environments. To help them remain calm, don't do a flurry of packing in their presence. Instead, establish safe spaces for pets where they're not subjected to packing or moving boxes to vehicles. It's best to place them in a separate room where the door can be tightly closed. Leave food, water, toys, and blankets in the room, so familiar and favorite items surround them.

If there is no extra room to place pets, another strategy is to pack slowly and deliberately. This way, pets see boxes being added slowly and likely won't notice as much since they'll have ample time to explore and poke around boxes as they are added one at a time.

During the actual move, if moving from a small home where space isn't plentiful to stow pets in a separate room, use the bathroom as a safe space during the actual moving of belongings so pets can't accidentally slip out.

Prepare the New Home for Pets

To ensure a successful move with pets, humans should make an effort to prepare the new home as best they can for their pets' arrival before they are transported. Set up a safety plan for pets which involves:

• Leaving food and water in a designated place
• Placing familiar items in the home for their arrival
• Establishing a "safe room"

Essentially, make an area where a pet can feel safe and comfortable. Over time, once boxes and furniture are all inside and hazards removed, pet owners can slowly start introducing pets to their new surroundings.

Make Your Pets Comfortable in Their New Home

One of the best approaches to successfully moving cats and dogs is to start making plans sooner rather than later. This way, changes are made incrementally, and pets are less likely to become anxious or rebellious about an upcoming move. Taking careful steps to keep them safe decreases the chances they'll try to run and increase their ability to adjust to the move with more ease. The more carefully you prepare your move with pets, the sooner you'll be enjoying all of the pet-friendly attractions in your new area.