Both humans and their animals go through a transition peroid after moving their residence. We humans find ways to deal with this and we get through much quicker than our cats would. What are some of the things that we could do to help our cats though the transition peroid? This is very scary to them.
Same way kids will not be happy about leaving a place they're used to, cats will have similar feelings. When moving, therefore, to lessen that trauma, keep your cat in a sealed, well-ventilated carrier of some sort.
Once you get to your new home, if there's is a room [doesn't matter if it's a bedroom] that you can lock most of the time, confine the cat to that room for about one week. That should be enough time for the cat to adjust to the new environment.
Once the one week is done, release the cat from the confinement room but ensure all exits [doors, windows and so on] are shut. The cat must then for the next one week get used to it's new home.
After that, let the cat roam free. . .
We moved a couple of months ago and we also moved our cats' favourite spot, which is just a cardboard box. They spent the first few hours looking a bit nervous and always running back to their box if there was a noise they didn't recognize. It seemed really good for them to have a 'safe spot'.
The next day they seemed adjusted already, running and jumping around like it was our old home.
Thank you Denis and Isopropanol. I think that taking the boxes on the move, is a good idea because they can connect them to their new space, a lot easier. Especially for those, whose cats own us.
(11-19-2013, 10:17 AM)Isopropanol Wrote: [ -> ]We moved a couple of months ago and we also moved our cats' favourite spot, which is just a cardboard box. They spent the first few hours looking a bit nervous and always running back to their box if there was a noise they didn't recognize. It seemed really good for them to have a 'safe spot'.
The next day they seemed adjusted already, running and jumping around like it was our old home.
The best way to get a cat or any animal used to a new place is to make it like their old place in some ways. So if they have a favorite spot to sleep, or if they have any toys or favorite things to do make sure that they have access to them and that they are relatively in the right place.
I think one's strategy should ultimately depend on the personality of the cat. I've heard the advice of keeping a cat in one room in the new home for a certain amount of time, and it worked great for my cat, Daria.
However, my cat Jane despises closed doors. They offend her whole existence. When we moved the first time, I tried to keep her in a closed room, and she clawed and cried the entire time. After about an hour, I gave up, and she bolted out. We didn't see her much for a day or two, but she was pretty well acclimated after seeing all the familiar furniture, and snooping out new nap spots.
Another drastic difference between my cats: Daria loves riding in cars, while Jane bawls and goes into a seizure if she even sees a car. So for Daria, I put her in my lap so that she can watch all the big trucks go by (she loves semis, for some reason
), and I put Jane in a fully darkened box or a carrier with a blanket over it.
It's weird how different individual cats can be. Moving tactics should reflect their unique personalities and emotional needs.