Moving House With Pets: A Practical Guide

For a pet, a move is confusing: familiar smells disappear, furniture vanishes into boxes, strangers walk in and out, and then everything is somewhere new. Most pets settle well with a little planning, and the planning mostly comes down to three things: keeping them safe on moving day, getting them to the new home calmly, and helping them adjust once you're there.

Before the move

Start a couple of weeks ahead. Bring cartons out gradually rather than all at once, so the change doesn't happen overnight. Keep feeding and walking times the same. If your pet will travel in a carrier or crate, leave it open at home with a blanket inside so it becomes familiar rather than frightening.

Visit your vet before a long move. Ask whether your pet is fit to travel, whether any vaccinations or records will be needed for the journey, and what to do about travel anxiety or motion sickness. Your vet is the right person for advice about medicines; don't give your pet anything without their guidance.

On moving day

Moving day is the riskiest time. Doors stand open for hours, heavy furniture moves through narrow spaces, and a frightened pet can slip out or get hurt. The safest option is for your pet to spend the day with a friend, a relative or a pet boarding facility. If that isn't possible, keep them in one quiet room with water, food, their bed and a sign on the door asking the crew to keep it closed.

Tell the mover's crew that there's a pet in the home, and pack that room last. In hot weather, make sure the room stays cool; in the north Indian summer, a closed room without a fan can become dangerously hot.

Travelling between cities

Pets should always travel with you, never in the moving truck. For a short move, a car journey is usually simplest: a secure carrier or harness, water, regular breaks on longer drives, and never leaving the pet alone in a parked car.

For long moves, people travel with pets by car, train or air. Each has its own rules about carriers, documents and booking, and those rules change, so check the current requirements directly with the airline, the railways or the transport provider well before your travel date. Some people use specialist pet relocation services for long or complicated journeys.

Arriving at the new home

Before you let your pet explore, check the new home for hazards: open balconies, gaps in railings, loose wires, cleaning chemicals left by the previous occupants and plants that may be harmful. Set up one quiet room first with their bed, bowls, litter tray if needed and familiar things, and let them settle there before exploring the rest of the home.

Keep routines as close to normal as you can: the same feeding times, the same walks. Dogs may need time to learn new walking routes and get used to new sounds, such as traffic, lifts and neighbours. Cats usually do best kept indoors for a while until they're comfortable.

Societies and neighbours

Many housing societies have their own rules about pets, such as lift use, common areas, leashes and cleaning up. Ask your new society about them before you move in, and introduce yourself to immediate neighbours. A friendly start makes life easier for you and your pet.

After the move

• Update the phone number and address on your pet's tag
• Update microchip records, if your pet has one, with the provider
• Find a vet near the new home before you need one
• Find the nearest emergency vet and save the number
• Watch for signs of stress, such as not eating, and talk to the vet if they last

Cats

Cats are often the most unsettled by a move, because they're attached to their territory. Keep your cat in one closed room from the morning of the move until the last box is out, and transport them in a secure carrier. At the new home, keep them in one room with food, water, a litter tray and a familiar blanket for a few days before letting them explore the rest of the home.

Keep windows and balcony doors closed or screened while your cat is getting used to the new space. A frightened cat may try to hide or escape, and new homes often have gaps you haven't noticed yet.

Dogs

Dogs usually cope better with change as long as their people and routines stay the same. Keep walks and feeding times regular in the days before and after the move. On moving day, a long walk in the morning helps them stay calmer while the crew works. At the new home, walk the neighbourhood together so they learn the new smells and sounds.

Birds, fish and small pets

Birds and small animals such as rabbits or hamsters should travel in their own secure cages, covered lightly to reduce stress, and kept away from draughts and direct sun. Fish are the hardest to move: ask your local aquarium shop how best to transport your fish and set up the tank again, because tanks are heavy and fragile when full and need careful handling.

Moving in hot or cold weather

Temperature is one of the biggest risks to pets during a move. In hot weather, never leave a pet in a parked car, even for a few minutes, and carry plenty of water. Travel in the cooler parts of the day where you can. In cold weather, keep small or short-haired pets warm in transit and in the new home until the heating is set up.

Common mistakes

• Leaving pets loose while doors are open on moving day
• Putting a pet in the moving truck
• Forgetting to update the phone number on the pet's tag
• Letting a cat outdoors too soon in a new area
• Not checking the carrier's current pet travel rules

If your pet goes missing

Despite every precaution, pets sometimes slip out during a move. Act quickly: search the immediate area, ask society security and neighbours to look out, and share a clear photo with them. Contact local animal welfare groups and vets. A tag with your current phone number and an up-to-date microchip record make it much more likely that your pet comes home.

Our moving checklist covers the rest of the move, and our route guides cover what to plan for on the main routes between the cities we serve.