Our 10 moving tips

Tip 8 - Moving with your cat

If pets are a part of your family, remember that moving down the block or across the world can stress them out too. Anything we can do to make it easier on them can make recovering from the move easier on us. Dogs are more adaptable than cats , let us make you know a few pointers about moving with a cat then.

During the packing day, make plans to confine your cat to one room. It's hard to pack and keep an eye on your pet. The ideal is a spare bedroom where your pet isn't going to be disturbed, outfitted with food and water, a litter box, a scratching post and toys. Confining your cat or dog also prevents him from slipping out, which is a danger at both the old and new home.

Your cat should be confined in his safe room before packing begins, be moved to his new home in a carrier, and then be confined again in his new safe room until the moving is over, the furniture arranged and most of the dust settled.

During pet pit stops, always keep the animal on a leash or in its carrier even if you know your pet would never go anywhere without you.

When you get to your new home, put the carrier down in the safe room, open the door and let your cat decide when to come out.

After he's a little calmer, don't rush him and don't drag him out -- you may be bitten or scratched. Leave the carrier, with its door removed, in the safe room. It is the most familiar place in your new home in your cat's mind and will likely be his chosen spot for a few days until this new house becomes his new home.

If you've been contemplating converting your cat to indoors-only, moving is a great time to do it, by the way. He'd carry on like crazy in your old home if locked in, but in new surroundings he'll accept the change better. Part of the reason cats don't like to convert is because they've marked the outside as part of their territory and have a natural desire to revisit and re-mark. A newly moved cat will come to accept the territory he has been offered, and if the outdoors isn't part of it, he won't miss it so much.

Above all, don't rush your cat. A slow transition with a period of confinement is also good for avoiding behavior problems that might pop up with the stress of moving. By limiting your cat's options to the litter box and scratching post in his safe room, he will quickly redevelop the good habits he had in your old home.