Moving to A New House with Your Pet*

Whilst moving house is a stressful experience for humans, it’s also a stressful time for your pets too. Once your pet has settled and got used to one place being their home, they are very likely to feel disrupted and unsettled when you decide to move. Moving house can be quite overwhelming and scary for your pets, but by following the steps below, you can make the moving process slightly easier and less stressful for both you and your pets.

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Safety First
One of the most important things to remember when moving to a new house is to keep your pets secure throughout the move. You often find that pets try and hide when they feel threatened or scared and as moving can bring on these feelings, you don’t want to risk your pet sneaking into a moving box and being taken without realising. Make sure your pets are secure, whether that’s in a travel cage or perhaps in a crate, you can keep them settled and safe in one place. If you find that your pet gets stressed when spending time in their crate, you can find some great Feliway and Adaptil products online at Petwell, which will help to keep your pets calm and settled for longer periods of time. Or perhaps giving CBD oil for pets a go? I use it to help my anxiety and it works wonders when it comes to calming me down.

Focus on Them
When you get to your new home, the best thing to do is to unpack your pets’ essentials first. By taking their bed, favourite toys and blankets and placing them in the new home, your pet will instantly recognise their comfort items and feel slightly more at ease. They will be able to smell things that are familiar to them, which will encourage them to calm down and feel more at home in that space. It’s often beneficial to dedicate a room to your pet, as this way you can close the door and keep them safe whilst people are in and out of the house helping you with the move. Make sure you give them plenty of water and food or treats for them to graze on too.

Take Time Off
Spending some quality time with your pet in the new house is really going to help ensure they settle in properly. The last thing you want is to leave them alone when they’re unfamiliar with the area and feeling unsettled, so it’s always worth taking a few days off to spend at home. During this time, try to spend as much time with your pet as possible, whether that’s cuddling them or playing with them, to make them feel as normal as possible.

Update Their Microchip
Once you move house, your pets microchip will no longer be accurate. You’ll need to update your pets’ microchip and change their collar tag with your new address as soon as possible. It’s important to get this done as soon as you can, as your pet is more likely to go missing during the first few weeks of being in your new home.

Be Cautious
Taking your dog out for its first walk in your new area will be really exciting but remember they don’t know the area well and neither do you. Be sure to keep your dog on its lead for the first few walks, just incase they get distracted or spooked and decide to run off into the distance. This will help to familiarise them with the area, without any risk of them getting lost. Similarly, you need to be cautious when it comes to having doors open around your home. For both cats and dogs, an open-door sparks curiosity and you don’t want them to run out and into the streets without you realising. For the first few weeks, be extra cautious when entering and leaving your house, just to make sure no furry friends sneak out without you realising.