Helping Your Pet Adjust To A New Home

1. Visit The Potential New Home Before You Buy
2. Making Move In Day As Stress-Free As Possible
3. Be Patient
4. Be Consistent

Moving on your own is stressful enough, but when you have to accommodate the moving process to your furry friend’s needs as well, it can be all the more challenging and overwhelming. As much as we love them, pets are notorious for being high-strung and easily stressed out at any small change in its daily routine. Take the following tips to heart so you can understand what is going through your pet’s mind, and how you can ease the transition of a move for them as well as for yourself.

Visit The Potential New Home Before You Buy

It would be ideal if both you and your dog were able to check out the new home and surrounding neighborhood before you make a final decision. Take your dog on a walk around the neighborhood, and see how he or she responds to the environment. This is also a good time to check to see if there are any aggressive or unattended pets near your potential new home. If this is the new home you choose to move into, then your dog will already be somewhat familiar with the new surroundings, which will, in turn, ease its stress.

Note: This tip should only be used if you have a dog, as cats are notorious for being incredibly attached to one living environment, and get incredibly upset when moved between potential homes.

Making Move In Day As Stress-Free As Possible

Here are some tips to making the move-in day easier on your pet.

• Keep all windows and doors closed and locked. In all of the confusion of the day, your pet might try running out of the new home out of fear. This will only further aggravate your pet.
• Bring familiar items. Make sure that one of the first things you unpack into your new home are familiar items for your pet, including beds, blankets, food and water dishes, and toys.

Be Patient

Let your pet adjust to its new surroundings at its own pace. If your pet goes into hiding, do not force it to come out. It needs to ease its fear on its own time. Eventually, as it sees you unpacking and moving around the new home, it will learn to explore and see that there really is nothing to be afraid of.

This is also why it is important to keep your levels of stress as low as you can. Pets will naturally follow their owner’s lead. If you are stressed or frazzled, your dog or cat will pick up on these emotional cues and it will be much harder to keep them calm. Remember, animals are incredibly perceptive.

Be Consistent

Pets absolutely thrive on their daily a routine, so be sure to get them back into a certain living pattern as soon as you are able to. This will keep them calm, happy, and stress-free, once they realize the move will not interrupt their comfort status.