# Moving Twice...Any Tips?



## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

I have bought a house that is being extensively renovated. It should be ready by August 15. In the meantime, I have sold my existing house and must move out by June 30. Between June 30 and August 15, the girls will be staying with my Mom. I can’t stay with my Mom the whole time, since she lives a 6-hour round trip commute from Toronto, where I work. However, I have arranged to work from my Mom’s house on Fridays and Mondays. I will stay at my Mom's from Friday to Monday. Tuesday mornings I will drive to Toronto, and will drive back to my Mom’s on Thursday evenings. From Tuesday to Thursday, I will likely stay in a hotel. 

So, the girls will be moving twice, first from our current home to my Mom’s at the end of June, and then from my Mom’s to our new home in August. I’m really excited about the renovations and the move, but I’m really worried about how my girls will react! I’m concerned about the territorial aspect…losing their current territory/home and being in several new houses. I’m not concerned about them being with my Mom. They know my Mom and she adores them. She will no doubt spend most of the day talking to the girls, playing with them, grooming them, etc., since that’s what she does when she visits me! My Mom lives alone and has no pets of her own.

Now to my questions. To those of you who have moved…how did your cats react? How long did it take for them to get used to their new place? Has anyone had to “move twice” as I do? Any tips to make this easier on Muffs and Abby? 

As far as the latter question goes, I can’t take too much to my Mom’s, but I will be taking a couple of cat trees, along with their litter boxes (obviously!) and toys…plus the bedspread from my bed and my personal items (clothes, etc.). The rest of our things will be in storage during the interim period.


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## Greenport ferals (Oct 30, 2010)

Congratulations on your new house, Susan. It sounds like you have the ideal stable situation for your cats until you move in. Moving your cats to your new house will be the big transition since so little will be familiar. Until then, it sounds like they'll really enjoy being spoiled by your Mom.


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## FurbyFace (May 13, 2013)

Congrats on the new house! Numly is 4 and on her 5th apartment. The first move was out of state when she was about 3 months old and we haven't stayed in the same apartment for more than a year since then. I've been told that it can take months for a cat to adjust, but Numly has never had a problem. She spends 2-3 a little skittish, then settles right in. By the end of the week she's in the middle of the living room showing off her belly.


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## Dumine (Jun 30, 2014)

Angel is six years old now, she's had 4 different houses. Since she is outdoor/indoor - that also came with four different territories around the house. 
We always make sure we move over a weekend so that we can spend at least 2 days with the cats in the new house so we can keep an eye on them.
People say it can take quite awhile for a cat to settle, but that's never been my experience. After day 3 they were walking around as if they were born there. 
As long as I've had their favourite beds and scratching posts waiting by the time they arrived, I've never had any problems moving my cats.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

Congratulations, Susan!

I've moved twice in the past two years and my girls were fine by the morning after the move. They spent a lot of time investigating, which was fun for them.


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

Thanks to all who responded! I'm relieved to hear so many positive move stories. Perhaps this will go more smoothly than I might have thought...fingers crossed!

Yes, Marie, I think my two will also have fun investigating! I took Muffs and Abby to our new house about 6 weeks ago. I had just sold our current house and the new owners were doing the home inspection. I decided to take the girls with me while the inspection was going on, because I was worried they might escape outside as the home inspector went in and out. So, I took them to the new house (construction had not yet started, so it was safe). They explored left and right, and had a real sniff-fest! Regrettably, they likely won't remember anything, because the house has since been gutted. So, everything will smell different when we finally move in.


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

When I moved here with Mow and Book I brought them down a few hours before the guys finished packing/cleaning the old place. They explored the empty apartment for ages and then I locked them in the bathroom until the guys from the van carried everything up. I let them out as soon as the guys left and they were wide eyed that all 'their stuff' was back. They explored all over again and weren't too worried at all....


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## littlecatblue (Sep 3, 2013)

I think if you are there, at least some of the time and their things are there, they will adjust pretty well. We had a similar situation in the last couple years when my husband was relocated for his job. We moved into temporary housing for 9 months before moving into our house. 

The temporary housing did not allow pets, so my mom and sister, who lived in the same city, took my two cats. I was worried about how the cats would take the move, as they are both older and always lived in our last house. 

The move to my mom's house did not go well. My Siamese hid for three straight months. I didn't know if I'd ever see her again. Eventually she came out and interacted with my sister, but would hide whenever I came to visit. She also didn't meow while there...and if you know Siamese, they like to talk. 

My tabby cat ran away from my mom's house and didn't return. I was afraid he was trying to find his way to our old house, but it turns out he was hanging out at a neighbor's house who had kids for four months. (We have three kids, so maybe he missed being around them?) We got him back and snuck him into our temporary housing for however many months we had left in there. He did fine with that. 

When we finally moved into our house, the tabby had already moved three times (mom's + neighbors + temporary housing). I was worried about reuniting the cats, because they had been separated for almost the entire nine months. 

They both did fine. I don't think the moves were traumatic for them as much as being separated from their family.


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

Thanks, Krissy...another positive move story!

littlecatblue: Yours was an interesting turn of events. On the plus side, I expect my temporary housing situation to last for about 6 weeks, or perhaps a couple of months if the renovations are delayed a bit...which is better than your 9 months. We do worry about the girls getting outside and, as you say, trying to find their way home. If they did that, they might never be found, since my Mom lives a 2-hour drive away from me. 

We've decided to take extra precautions to ensure the girls don't get outside. My Mom likes to sit on her back porch, but she's 81 and she's not too speedy these days!  She worries that the girls will try to sneak out while she's at the door. So, she's decided that, while the girls are there, she will get to the porch by going first from the house into the garage and then from the garage to her back porch. That sounds like a long route, but it's actually a relatively short distance, and if the girls try to sneak through her feet to get out, at worst, they'll only make it as far as the garage. My Mom also has a way to block their access to the front door when she has to use it. We're hoping these precautions prevent them from getting outside!


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## BotanyBlack (Apr 6, 2011)

My cats moved a total of 8 times between the ages of 4 years and 11 years. They OWNED each place from day 1. As long as they could find their food/water and litter. as well as our bed at night.. They were fine! 

Where you are may have a issue is... your mom will miss them after they move out! LOL.


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

Botany...8 times...holy smokes! But, it's gratifying to hear that they adapted so well!

LOL to my Mom missing them. I was speaking to her today and she's looking forward to having the company. She teased me by saying, "I might not give them back"!


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## Anderlie (Apr 22, 2015)

We're on our third interstate move in 3 years, including flights and boarding kennel stays for our older girl. She was a bit of a wreck after the first move which was surprising (she's generally very confident) but much better for the second. I suspect she had a better place to board for the second and it helped her stay calm. We fed her something tasty as soon as we got her inside, showed her where the litterbox was and then let her explore at her own pace. We kept very quiet and calm and gave her lots of reassuring pats, that seemed to do the trick.


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## BotanyBlack (Apr 6, 2011)

LOL Susan. I finally bought a house because I was tired of looking for rentals that would allow me to keep the cats. We gave up several NICE places to move in with family when they needed it. My mom went through Chemo , ect. We have lived in the current location for 10 years though. so it all worked out. 

Lots of luck on your move(s)!


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

Thanks, Anderlie...yes I will make sure I have treats on hand!

Botany: Yes, rentals can be difficult, although that's one good thing about where I am (Ontario). The rules are pet-friendly, not landlord friendly. General "no pets allowed" policies are unenforceable here. Also, I hope you're Mom is ok.


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## skyrun (Dec 9, 2014)

I've moved with my cats seven or eight times during their lives, including some short, temporary stays with family. My cats adjust pretty well- usually a couple of days of investigating and then it's back to business as usual. The only issue I've ever really had is that my male cat is a big scaredy baby, and is very creative when it comes to finding hiding spots. So I usually check everything pretty thoroughly to make sure I've blocked off places where he could get hurt.


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

Thanks, skyrun! I must say all of these positive move stories are making me feel a lot less concerned about my upcoming moves. Like your male, my Muffs is also a scaredy cat, and she too is creative about finding hiding spots. So, I will also make sure I block off anything that could be harmful.


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## Chris66 (Mar 26, 2015)

*Moving cats....*

Sounds like you are doing everything you can to help them acclimate. Over the years my experience is that cats hate moving and often hide for,days till they are,used to the new place. Best of luck!


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

Thanks for responding, Chris. Well, if hiding is the worst I can expect, that's not so bad. My Muffs hides on a regular basis...so I'm quite used to hiding!!


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