Moving can be hard on your pet. Fortunately, there are ways to make sure that it does not traumatize them. Here are some of the ways you can help your pet settle into a new home.
Familiarize Your Pet with the Travel Crate
Before you move out of your old home, you must take some time to familiarize your pet with their travel crate. The best way to do this would be to put the crate in a spot they love. You can also place the pet’s favorite bedding and some treats into the crate. If you manage to ensure that your pet associates the travel crate with fun, then the big move will not be so stressful.
Slowly Introduce the Pet into the New Home
When you get to the new home, it’s important to slowly introduce your pet to the new environment. If you own a cat, it’s advisable to confine it to a small, quiet room. Keep the cat in the room for a few days so that it can feel like it owns the space. You must also place its food, water, and treats in that same room. Lastly, find some way to create an area for the cat to sleep and hide.
Keep to Your Pet’s Normal Schedule
Pets are like children in that they like routine and schedules. If you can stick to what your pet is used to and maintain what they know to be a normal day, settling into the new home will be a lot easier. If you used to take the pet for walks, don’t stop. You will find that by doing that, the pet will not be so stressed by the move. This will also help to make it feel more secure and at home in the new environment.
Take Your Pet’s Treasured Toys with You
If you can move with your pet’s favorite toys, blankets, and bed, it will be easier to create a somewhat familiar environment in the new home. The majority of pets crave normalcy. Therefore, maintaining familiar smells, things, and people will help them settle in quickly. You’ll be surprised how soon they will settle into their new home if you do this.
Allow Them Time to Adjust
When you get to a new home, and you want to take your pet outside for the first time, make sure you do so on a leash, depending on what animal it is. That way, you can control how much of the new environment they can explore. It’s important to introduce the pet to new areas slowly so you can also learn about who and what lives in the new neighborhood. If there are other pets in close proximity, they can startle your pet and make it more difficult to ease into the new home. Apart from that, your pet can also get scared and end up running away.
Spend Time at Home for the First Week
If you can manage to spend more time at home the first week of your move, it will give you time to ensure that your pet adjusts properly. As time goes on, you can start spending more time away from the home as you monitor how your pet reacts. Eventually, you will be able to spend the entire day away without worrying much. By that time, your pet will have fully adjusted, and they will be comfortable being alone.
If you can’t spend a lot of time at home, you can also arrange to have a pet sitter come to your home. They can also gradually start spending less time with your pet until they are used to being left alone.
Adjusting to a move is difficult for both humans and pets. It can be even more difficult for pets because they don’t see things from a human’s point of view and understanding. Therefore, it is important to set aside some time and make sure your pet is comfortable with your new home before you go back to your normal routine.
