moving dont know what to do :-(

Hey Everyone,

Well I'm going to be moving in like a month. And I have to wonderful cats. Apples and Higgins. Well the issue is I'm going to be getting two roommates. However one of them has a 2 yr old son. And i'm really worried about my cats getting out. Apples is declawed, and Higgins is not. I dont want to keep them in my room all day because that is not far to them, and not to mention my room is small. And I'm just worried that living with two other women and a 2 year old that my cats will get out of the house, and we live real close to the road. Do you think I should spray like citurs spray around the doors to make not want to go near it. But then I like to walk them as well. I also want to keep them calm so is their any other suggesting for moving day as well. Thanks in advance

Well, I think the absolute FIRST thing to do is to sit down with your two new roomies and have a very candid discussion with them about your cats. They will need to have a complete understanding of your expectations. One thing that really bothers me - Has the two year-old ever been exposed to cats? Will the child be at home during the day with his mother or caretakers? If so, while it might not seem fair to the cats, it would be better for ALL concerned if you ~did~ confine your cats to your room and shut the door while you are out. If this child pulls a tail or in some other way treats the cats harshly as kids will sometimes do, he/she could be bitten or scratched and that creates a WHOLE new topic for debate and take my word for it, you won't win it in the eyes of this child's mother.

For advice, once you move in, I would work on introducing the cats to the child SLOWLY and make absolutely certain the child knows the meaning of the word NO. If you tell him/her to leave the cats alone, then make certain he/she obeys you. You are going to HAVE to work this out with the child's mother in advance. If you think there is a potential for the child to hurt the cats and possibly suffer a bite or scratch from it, then you will need to make sure that Mom understands the cats are REACTING not ACTING. It isn't their fault - and she needs to make her child understand the dangers of treating animals harshly just as much as she needs to make the child aware of the risks of a hot oven or other common household danger.

I don't envy you this position - best of luck and let me know how it goes.

~gf~

I would be terrified in your position, both for the cats and the child. Forgive my comment, I am sure there is a good reason, but have you really thought this through? I mean, I would never move anywhere where there was danger for my cats, I have always put them first when choosing a new home. Do you have to do this?

When I moved from my first house to my second, DH and I put the cats in carriers and left them in our truck (in the front) while we went to settlement on the first house, and then checked back in on them, and went to lunch, and then went to settlement on the second house. They were in the carriers for a full eight hours (we had no choice, there was no where else we could put them) and they did wonderfully. A little bit of shedding (due to a bit of anxiety) but other than that, when we got them into the new house, everything went smoothly. (Don't know if you were asking about the actual physical move as well).

As for getting out. I've had cats before my kids were born, and basically raised two kids up to the ages of 5 and 8 so far, and they've never been let out accidentally. It's really never been a big deal. If you are worried about the 2-year-old getting along with the cats... cats are smart... they know they don't have to put up with anyone they don't want to. They just get up and move away. My cats, however, seemed to tolerate my kids very well (of course I always taught my kids to respect animals)... but my daughter would put the cats in her cradle and stuff for her baby dolls and they just tolerated it... would go to sleep in there and she would put little blankets over their backs... lol! Now they sleep with the kids every night because they love the kids so much... and the kids love them... it's so sweet... Peka will share the pillow with Erynn at times, and Boss gets under the covers with Barrett...

Make sure you put tags or ID the cats in some way so that if they do get out, they can be identified and returned... but I really don't think that would be a problem if you tell your roommates they aren't to let the cats out. I would think adults would be responsible AND responsible for the two-year-old... (but then again, with the people I dealt with yesterday... arggh! some people don't take responsibility with their children which I think is awful and inexcusable and please don't tell me that kids will be kids and some kids are more "trying" then others... still no excuse. Kids need to be taught to respect animals AND adults... ggrrr... it's how you raise healthy, happy, and respectable human beings who are good citizens in the world....off my soapbox for the moment.)

I spoke with the mother and she said that both her son and her are used to cats. So he is not really that scared of them, but I know little boys could be ruff sometimes so that kinda has me worried. As far as moving out, I have thought about it over and over again. And for the situation that I'm in right now, it is the best one. I'm thinking of only staying there for a year. But alot can happen in a year. And I told one of my other roommates that I really dont want my cats to get out, and I dont know if she knows how serious I am. I have been having dreams about my cats getting out, and me running around trying to find them. And she told me that I'm worrying to much. But I was thinking of keeping them in my room when i'm not there,and when i'm there i will let them out. Do you think that is a good idea. And higgins he is so sweet,but when he plays he does like to bit, so if you put ur fingers anywhere near his mouth he will play bite you, not to mention play with your fingers(with claws). I dont know how to make him quit doing that. But then I guess I can make my room as comfortable for them, when I do leave them in there. Plus they sleep majority of the time to right. I'm really stressing over this :-(, thanks for all of ur comments and advice.

Nicole

Good luck with it all. I am sure you will come to the right decision - you then have to convince your room mates of your intentions.

This is not a living situation I would have chosen for myself and my cats. Roommates and toddlers. Ugh.

Good flippin' luck. My best advice is live alone.

I find it hard to fathom why ANYONE does roommates. Coupled with toddlers, the situation seems anathema to me.

Good luck.

Are your cats prone to trying to get out of the house right now? I'm not sure what you could do except make your two roommates aware of the cats and remind them to be extra careful when entering/exiting the house.

As for the two year old being rough on the cat, you could see if the mother would teach him the one hand rule - only one hand can touch the cat at one time. That means the kid can't pick up the cat and run off with him, etc. Also, maybe see if she'll emphasis how to play with the cat and how not too. If you have a cat tree maybe that could help them escape from the toddler if he's feeling a bit rambunctious?

As for keeping them calm on moving day - I've read that you should keep them in a bathroom, close the door and make sure that they are not disturbed. You leave them there while you are moving everything. Then when you move to the new place, put them in another bathroom (or small room) where you've plugged in Feliway diffusers and have already set up so that they can get used to the new place one step at a time.

Sorry I don't have any better advice - with my Baylee whenever we moved, we just moved her and she was fine. I'm sure other people know more than I though! Good luck to you!

Originally Posted by portdevoix

I find it hard to fathom why ANYONE does roommates. Coupled with toddlers, the situation seems anathema to me.

Good luck.

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I was never a fan of living with someone, I do better by myself. But sometimes you have to, in order to save money or at the very least, be able to afford rent and such. While having a roommate can be a pain, it can also be necessary at times.

Originally Posted by pinkdaisy226

I was never a fan of living with someone, I do better by myself. But sometimes you have to, in order to save money or at the very least, be able to afford rent and such. While having a roommate can be a pain, it can also be necessary at times.

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If you HAVE to live with someone, you need to be extremely picky about your roommates. Letting yourself be foisted into living with a toddler doesn't seem to me like a very well thought out plan, if you have cats--and even if you don't.

I had to keep my first cat, Abigail, locked in my room for about 9 months. She always tried to run out of the room when I came home. Abigail never got to go beyond my room or the room of my roommate who lived upstairs next to me because a girl downstairs hated cats. When I agreed to move in the landlord had me meet my future roommates- who had 2 cats and literally said "the more the merrier." When I showed up I had three totally different roommates! Had I known I was living with different women I would have never moved in there. It was really only a problem because she never got to get out. She got used to it after a while, but when I moved I could tell she was a lot happier. I moved out several months before my lease ended because of this.

I think it would be fine to keep the cats in your room when your gone and to let them roam when you are home if it became an issue. The cats do fine when I visit my mom and they are kept in a bedroom when we are gone.

I've been in your situation & can relate. Sometimes you have to have roommates & deal with the consequences -that's the reality of life. Not everyone's lives, just like having a "disabled" child doesn't happen to everyone either. I found that keeping the cats locked up & putting up a hook&eye lock way up high on my bedroom door helped out. As for taking them outside, you could try the spray, and then transport the cats in their carriers through the doors & to the start-off point for the walk. I frequently take my 6 mos. olds for drives & for visits to Grandma's. My mom lives next to a street, so the kids are carried in their carriers into her house. (The cats have a caged area in the vehicle so they aren't crated the whole time). You are wise to take no chances with the road. My prayers for a successful move & living situation! I moved my sister's 4 cats from CA to TN via I-40 last summer, and I found that a little catnip in the carriers seemed to calm them down (my daughter uses it for her cat, who hates a car ride).Please let us know how it works out.

Originally Posted by gemini52880

Hey Everyone,

Well I'm going to be moving in like a month. And I have to wonderful cats. Apples and Higgins. Well the issue is I'm going to be getting two roommates. However one of them has a 2 yr old son. And i'm really worried about my cats getting out. Apples is declawed, and Higgins is not. I dont want to keep them in my room all day because that is not far to them, and not to mention my room is small. And I'm just worried that living with two other women and a 2 year old that my cats will get out of the house, and we live real close to the road. Do you think I should spray like citurs spray around the doors to make not want to go near it. But then I like to walk them as well. I also want to keep them calm so is their any other suggesting for moving day as well. Thanks in advance

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i want to thank you all for your advice and support, I will keep you guys updated, thanks again

Nicole