Moving with Pets: Tips for Keeping Your Furry Friends Comfortable

Moving with pets can be a stressful experience for both you and your furry friends, but with proper preparation and planning, you can make the transition smoother. Whether you're moving locally, across state lines, or internationally, keep these tips in mind as you prepare for your furry family member’s next adventure.

Understanding Your Pet's Needs During a Move

Understanding your pet's needs during a move is crucial for ensuring their safety, comfort, and well-being throughout the transition.

The Emotional Impact of Moving on Pets

Moving can be stressful for pets, so it's essential to address their emotional needs. Provide comfort and reassurance throughout the process and keep familiar items like toys, blankets, and bedding nearby to help them feel more secure. Consider using pheromone sprays or diffusers designed to calm pets in stressful situations.

Pre-Move Preparations for Pets

In addition to providing emotional support, there are several logistical considerations to make when planning to move with pets. From acquiring vet medical records and paperwork to purchasing identification tags, it’s essential to set aside ample time for various crucial pre-move steps.

Veterinary Check-ups and Travel Documentation

You want to make sure to prioritize your pet's physical health by scheduling a visit to the veterinarian before the move. Ensure they are up to date on vaccinations and obtain any necessary medications or health certificates required for travel. If your pet has any pre-existing health conditions, discuss with your vet how to manage them during the move. During this time, make sure to request a copy of their medical records, including vaccination certificates and any necessary medications.

Acquire Pet Identification and Microchip Technology

If you haven’t already, be sure to make sure your pet has proper identification, such a license and ID tag as well as a microchip. ID tags are a crucial and easy first step to improve the odds that your pet will be returned to you if they should somehow get lost. However, ID tags and collars could fall off your pet in certain circumstances.

Microchipping your pet by inserting a small, painless transponder device under their fur adds another layer of protection. Most vets and rescue organizations will automatically scan a lost pet for a chip, and this technology may even be required for international moves.

Packing for Your Pet (Expand)

As you continue planning, make sure to also pack a travel kit for your pet. This kit should include all their favorite and essential items, such as food, water, bowls, medications, toys, blankets, and any other comfort items. These items should be kept with you either in your car or in your pet’s own “suitcase” to ensure they are easy to access and readily available. Having familiar items nearby can help reduce your pet’s stress during the journey, so you don’t want them stuck in a box on a moving truck.

Tips for Safe and Comfortable Pet Transportation

It is important to prioritize your pet's safety throughout your move, especially during any physical travel period. To start, ensure they are properly restrained during transportation using a secure crate or pet seat belt when traveling by car and comply with airline regulations if flying. Keep your pet's collar with ID tags and put the collars on your pets whenever possible.

In addition, make sure that you consider your pet’s comfort. Be mindful of temperature changes during the move, especially if traveling long distances or across different climates. Ensure your pet is comfortable and protected from extreme heat or cold by adjusting the temperature in your vehicle or providing appropriate bedding and clothing.

Quiet and Safe Spaces

Especially if your journey will take several days, prioritizing time and space for your pet to decompress is essential. This means finding or creating quiet, safe spaces in the car, at the airport, or in hotels. One easy way to do this is by placing your pet in a crate or carrier that you can cover on most sides to make it feel like a cave or den. This type of safe, secure environment will help your pet avoid overstimulation and feeling overwhelmed. It basically serves as a safe “homebase” for them throughout your travels.

Familiar Scents and Comfort Items

In addition to considering the space itself, it’s important to think about specific items you can add to their safe space to promote comfort and calm. Familiar items from home, such as a favorite bed or blanket, for example, can provide warmth and familiar scents for your pet. You may also consider placing an item of your clothing in the space to provide additional familiar, comforting smells.

Another option to help calm your pets through scent is by using pheromones. Available in a variety of forms, such as diffusers, sprays, and even wipes, pheromones can help physically calm your pets in a time of stress and are easy to carry along with you to spray or otherwise disburse onto bedding or collars.

International Moves with Pets

Moving internationally with pets requires thorough preparation and adherence to various regulations, especially if you are flying with your pet. However, with careful planning and attention to detail, you can ensure a safe and smooth transition for your furry companion. This starts with being proactive in researching and fulfilling all the necessary requirements for an international move with a pet.

Travel Documents and Regulations

Different countries have specific regulations regarding the importation of pets. Research the requirements of your destination country well in advance to ensure compliance with regulations related to vaccinations, microchipping, health certificates, and quarantine periods.

Then, be sure to obtain any required permits, import licenses, and documentation needed for transporting your pet internationally well in advance. Note: Some countries may require specific forms or certificates issued by government authorities or accredited veterinarians.

Settling into a New Home with Your Pet

Once you have arrived at your new home, establish a routine as quickly as possible to help your pet adjust. It’s important to carefully set up your home with your pet’s safety and comfort in mind.

Making Your New Environment Pet-Friendly

Set up a designated area in your new home where your pet can feel safe and secure. This could be a quiet corner with their bed, toys, and water bowl or a private room, such as a guest room, where they can retreat in silence. Also, be patient with your pets as they acclimate to their new environment. It may take time for them to feel comfortable, settle in, and act like their old selves. Provide plenty of love, patience, and understanding during the adjustment period.

Promote Exploration

When your pet has recovered from the initial stress and exhaustion of moving, take steps to slowly help acclimate them to your new space and encourage exploration. Open the home to your pet slowly, one room at a time and stay with them as they explore. For young or skittish animals, you may even want to use a leash or carry them in your arms into each new space so that they feel safe and connected to you. Much like when you first adopted them, it’s important to encourage playtime and personal contact so they continue to feel secure and connected.

Maintain a Consistent Routine

Finally, as soon as possible, get back into familiar feeding, walking, and playtime schedules to provide a sense of stability for your pet in this new space. Predictability can help lower your pet’s anxiety. In addition, if possible, take your pet on walks around the neighborhood or set up “playdates” with neighborhood animals in a park or other neutral space to familiarize your animal with other people and pets and the environment around them.

Ready to Move with Your Pet? Let Mabey's Help!

Are you (and your pet) ready to make a move? At Mabey’s Moving and Storage, we offer residential moving services that include everything from moving across town to moving across the country to moving across the globe. We offer full-service packing, moving, and storage solutions that can help make your whole family’s experience easier and less stressful. Contact us today to get a quote.