Moving + cats + leaving town how-to help needed!
November 5, 2008 7:30 PM Subscribe
Advice for moving to a new place, 1 hr. from the old place, with 2 cats, and leaving town 4 days later for Thanksgiving holiday.
I'll be moving into a new place with my boyfriend and two cats, about 1 hr from my old place. We're moving four days before Thanksgiving, and have far out-of-town plans for the holiday+weekend. I'm worried about my cats adjusting to the new place, our leaving town, and finding somebody to look after them while we're gone. We don't know anybody in the new town yet.
What are our options for kitty care? And should we be worried about the cats stressing out with the new place, and us not being there?
I'll be moving into a new place with my boyfriend and two cats, about 1 hr from my old place. We're moving four days before Thanksgiving, and have far out-of-town plans for the holiday+weekend. I'm worried about my cats adjusting to the new place, our leaving town, and finding somebody to look after them while we're gone. We don't know anybody in the new town yet.
What are our options for kitty care? And should we be worried about the cats stressing out with the new place, and us not being there?
I wouldn't leave your cats in your new home with or without a pet sitter in these circumstances. I think if you can find a good boarding cattery (cats only) and board your cats from the day before the move until a couple of days after you return from your out of town holiday trip this will give you a better chance of all going well.
Moving home for cats is shock enough without them being left alone without their family (you). After you return you can set about settling them into your new place. Make sure you take plenty of their own bedding to the new place and set up Feliway diffusers too. Your cats don't know wtf is happening when you move, if they are left alone or with a stranger (pet sitter) in the new home, they are going to be very stressed. They have no idea that you are coming back. This kind of stress can lead to a whole raft of cat health and behavioural issues for you to deal with.
Hunt around the vets at your new location and ask them to recommend a good cat only boarding place.
Good luck!
posted by Arqa at 8:59 AM on November 6, 2008
Moving home for cats is shock enough without them being left alone without their family (you). After you return you can set about settling them into your new place. Make sure you take plenty of their own bedding to the new place and set up Feliway diffusers too. Your cats don't know wtf is happening when you move, if they are left alone or with a stranger (pet sitter) in the new home, they are going to be very stressed. They have no idea that you are coming back. This kind of stress can lead to a whole raft of cat health and behavioural issues for you to deal with.
Hunt around the vets at your new location and ask them to recommend a good cat only boarding place.
Good luck!
posted by Arqa at 8:59 AM on November 6, 2008
I'm not a huge fan of boarding cats, but opposed to leaving them in a strange place it may be work calling around to the local pet hotels.
posted by RobGF at 10:49 AM on November 6, 2008
posted by RobGF at 10:49 AM on November 6, 2008
With you going away so soon after moving, boarding the cats seems the kindest thing to do.
I moved with my cat about a year ago, and he found being in a new home very unsettling. He hid under the couch for hours at a time, despite my attempts to coax him out for snuggles, and made sad little mews as he walked around. It took him about a week to return to his confident little self.
You might ask your vet if they do boarding. My vet has big, clean cages and playroom that they put each cat in by him/herself for an hour or two each day, and if anything goes wrong they have his full medical history right there. I'm not sure how much a pet hotel charges, but boarding at the vet is surprisingly affordable -- about $20 Australian dollars per day.
Good luck with your move, and your kitties!
posted by Georgina at 4:21 AM on November 7, 2008
I moved with my cat about a year ago, and he found being in a new home very unsettling. He hid under the couch for hours at a time, despite my attempts to coax him out for snuggles, and made sad little mews as he walked around. It took him about a week to return to his confident little self.
You might ask your vet if they do boarding. My vet has big, clean cages and playroom that they put each cat in by him/herself for an hour or two each day, and if anything goes wrong they have his full medical history right there. I'm not sure how much a pet hotel charges, but boarding at the vet is surprisingly affordable -- about $20 Australian dollars per day.
Good luck with your move, and your kitties!
posted by Georgina at 4:21 AM on November 7, 2008
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posted by jvilter at 5:32 AM on November 6, 2008