Moving With Pets

Wow, big changes, for you and for the pets! One thing to keep in mind is stress issues. This will be a stressful time for you all, so you will need to be extra patient with the furkids (and with yourself too ;) ).

Thanks, I keep reminding myself to be patient with them. I find it if they're driving me nuts (more so the dogs, lol) that a little time in the crate for them lets us all calm down a bit. They've been pretty good though. The first few days were REALLY hard for Fynn (one of the dogs). Mike and him are very bonded, when Mike left, Fynn would only eat a very tiny bit and then throw it up for three days. Now Mike comes over every few days for the day and that seems to be keeping Fynn on track. Mike also has a set of keys still, so he'll text me and ask me if he can come over and walk the dogs while I'm at work or if I have to go out for a bit. 

Some thoughts -

This is a high-risk time for a pet to run outside in panic and get lost.

1. I hope all are chipped, and wearing collars with ID's. Better safe than sorry.

The dogs are chipped but Leiki is not. She does have a collar with ID on it though, I will make sure that she is wearing it when we start to bring things in and out. 

2. Make sure pets are in a secure room before the movers come in.  I'm not a dog expert, but for your cat, please have her secured in a carrier, or in a locked room. A room with the door shut isn't enough, as one of the movers may inadvertently let her out. Even with the carrier - I would put a sign on the door warning movers that there's a pet in the room

I have a very big closet at the new place where her litter box is going to go (I think it's bigger than my new bathroom, lol). I'll put her in the carrier in there, the dogs will also be in their crate in there too. There's a light and everything, so it's not like they'll be sitting in a dark closet. There is nothing that needs to go in there until after the movers have left - I plan on moving everything into there a day or two after I get my keys, so it'll be all set up. 

Acclimatization

Try and make this a gradual process. It's best to limit your cat to one room at first. Watch her to see how she's adjusting before letting her out of the room to explore. One concern is with her getting lost inside the new place (odd, I know, but cats have been known to get stuck in closets and even drawers)

She likes to sleep in my drawers already and LOVES closets, so I believe it. I'll limit her to my bedroom at first and then slowly move her stuff to the rest of the apartment. 

Feliway

It might be a good idea to use a Feliway diffuser for the first few weeks. This would help calm her down and make her feel like this is safe territory.

Addressing some of your questions -

Having familiar objects with their scent on them is going to help. Also, it's best to have your share of moving stress over with before dealing with pets. If possible, get stuff in first, put things in place as much as you can - set up the litter box, feeding area, everything that's related to your cat before bringing her. Again, try and limit her to one room at first. This will also give you a change to set up that one room first and keep her there while you're organizing the rest of the place.

I was already planning on setting my bedroom up first so that I had a place to go that wasn't full of boxes, lol, so that should help her too. I'll lend Mike a blanket to use for the week before I move and then it will have his scent around too. 

Not sure about the dogs' side in this. For the cat - assuming she's good with the dogs, this shouldn't be a major issue. The problem is more with the territory than with the dogs. I would just move them over at the same time - again, assuming there are no current problems. Going back to my initial comment, this is a stressful time for all concerned, so keep a close eye on their interactions to make sure no one is redirecting stress-related aggression towards a fellow pet.

The dogs were here before she was and never had a problem sharing their space. She sometimes will go into their crate and just hang out when they're not in there, or if they're hanging out in there with the door open. Both Sadie and Fynn are pretty laid back about everything - with the exception of Fynn when Mike first left. They are both used to traveling and moving, so I don't think they will be too stressed out, but I will keep a close eye on everyone just incase. 

This is a major safety issue and of all the things you brought up in your post, this is the one I'm most worried about. Basically, the way to cat proof a balcony is by turning it into a complete cat enclosure. Either that, or not allowing the cat out unsupervised - which would be a problem in your case because of the dog.

I actually suggest that you start a new thread about this topic alone - how to cat proof a balcony. I'd be interested in seeing the responses as well.

I'll start a new thread on it tomorrow when I get home from work. I would like to be able to leave the balcony door slightly open at all times, especially in the summer, but if it's not possible Sadie does give me enough warning to get off my butt and open the door for her most of the time. I plan on having a mat infront of the balcony door anyways, I'll just make sure that it's a cheap one at the start while she gets adjusted and we see how things go. 

Alicia, I'm sorry things are up in the air with Mike right now.  I'm also really sorry you had to rehome your pit mix I LOVE pits & hope to own one if I ever grow up & get a house.  Anyway, I hope you are able to get moved & settled in so you can get some peace of mind! 

Thanks, we both miss her a lot but we know it's what's best for her right now. She is in a very good foster home and the rescue is very nice. Thankfully I knew someone that worked there so they pulled some strings so that I didn't have to sign any surrender forms (which would ban me from adopting in the future from a lot of rescues) and they are keeping me updated on how she's doing. 

I'm moving with the kittens soon, too.  One piece of advice that was given to me in the thread I started that I definitely plan on trying is this: Take a shirt or towel, get it smelly with you, the dogs, and kitty (and maybe Mike if possible?), then when you're moving in, take the towel and rub it on baseboards, wall corners, furniture, etc. (anything at kitty height basically) so that when she is exploring around the house she finds comfortable, familiar scents everywhere she goes.  I can't afford the Feliway but it was recommended by several people in the thread so you could try that too if budget allows.

Feliway seems to be extremely expensive around here - I was thinking about getting some online and having it shipped, but honestly everything is costing SO much money that if I can avoid putting more on my credit card I'm going to. As I mentioned above, I'm going to give Mike a blanket to use for a week before we move, then I'll probably use it for a night or two and let everyone sleep with me. That way there will be something nice and smelly for them to sleep on and have around, and I can rub it all over everything. Or maybe I'll just tell Mike not to shower for a few days and then have him come over and roll on the floor, lol - just kidding. 

I agree with the others who've said you should move stuff first, pets last.  If you have the door open while bringing stuff in (even boxes or other small items) they could run out.  But I guess if the timing doesn't work out, you could lock them in separate rooms if you have them.

Leiki gets out in the hall all the time now, lol. There have been a few times that she's gotten out and we haven't seen her, then we'll hear her knocking at the door to come back in. Do you know how scary it is to hear knocking at the door and not see anything through the peep hole?! lol I always check the hall now after I come in, just incase she's slipped out.