Moving with Autumn....

I will be moving around the end of this month. How can I make it easier for my kitty. Any suggestions would be helpful. It's unfortunate since she's only been here since last December where I rescued her from a shelter. Now she will have to get used to another new home, I'm concerned about this. Thanks.

I haven't moved a cat for 19 years, but before that I moved Shasta three times without any problem. To my mind there are three basic elements:

Preparation: In these days/weeks before the move, talk to her lots about it, with whatever is her favourite kind of attention. While you are packing, she may be feeling anxious about this unusual activity, so interrupt yourself often to cuddle and reassure her.

The Day: Make sure her things are in the new place and settled, before she arrives, in a room you can confine her in for a day or more -- your bedroom is best especially if she sleeps with you. Have her things there -- her bed if she has one; your bed with the same linens that you took off it if she does sleep with you -- you can have fresh linens once she knows she is "home"; her litter; her food and water. She should go to the new place on the last trip there, so that you both stay. Spend a little time with her, before you tackle the chaos in the rest of the house.

In the new home: Keep her confined in that one room for whatever time seems appropriate. It could be as little as a few hours or as much as a few days, depending how soon she relaxes and gets curious, and how soon the rest of the house isn't a safety hazard for her. Then increase her territory and let her explore. During her confinement, spend time with her frequently and talk to her about this great new place that you are going to enjoy together.

I'm sure there are a bunch of threads with moving advice, and that others will have advice as well. To my mind, the single most important thing is to "keep her in the loop". Even though they don't understand every word we say, I believe they take their reassurance from our communication with them, and do pick up the concept that, while the upheaval is distinctly not nice, the world is not about to end and all will be well. Shasta always moved well -- in fact, each time it was easier than the last.

Good luck to both of you!

Thank you so much for your input, I will keep all of this in mind and hope Autumn will be a happy kitty in our new place.

I would really like to know when a thread is moved, where it goes. I wish the mods could tell us where it was moved since I can never find it again. I have no idea where my thread was moved too.

I don't think this thread has been moved. If it's another thread that has been moved, there is usually a redirect in the original forum that you can follow, unless it has been removed from the board altogether for some reason, but in that case the OP is generally notified for just this reason. Can you identify the thread in question for us?

I have moved with my cats 3 times. Each time I put them in a room that no one else is allowed to go into (when I had movers do it, I put them in my walk in closet), both when I moved from and wherever I moved to. Make sure that they have something familiar with them-- I had Pepper's stuffed cow and a couple of Petunia's bananas with us. Depending on Autumn's temperament, she may handle the move really well or badly. Petunia handled it very badly the first time-- she peed in the crate and cried the entire time. Pepper just cried.

The second time was when I had movers come in. They both did great! This was about a year after the first time. I moved 330 miles with them in the car and stayed in 2 different hotels with them and they were wonderful! Pepper was a little apprehensive in the hotel, but Petunia was exploring everywhere and she is usually very shy.

The third time, TBH, I don't remember very well-- it was a very bad point in my life, but I do remember that they were each in their own car (my sister helped me to move), with their own kid , and started exploring as soon as I shut the door to my new apartment.

If you have any questions about the particulars of moving, PM me. I would be more than happy to help you!