Short answer
Keep the pet away from moving day: a friend, a sitter or a closed, labelled room with water, a bed and a sign on the door. Update the microchip and tags before the move, pack a pet bag that rides in your car, and set up one quiet room at the new home before letting them explore.
The week before
- Update the microchip registration and the tag with the new address and your mobile number.
- Book the vet if you are changing clinics, and ask for the records.
- Keep routines: same food, same walks, same feeding times. Boxes appearing everywhere is enough change.
- Let cats sit in the open boxes. It makes the boxes normal.
- Pack a pet bag: food for a few days, bowls, medication, leash, litter and tray, a blanket that smells of home, a favourite toy.
Moving day
The safest place for a pet on moving day is somewhere else: a friend, a sitter, a daycare. Doors stay open for hours, the house is loud, and a frightened cat will find the one gap nobody knew about.
If they must stay:
- One closed room, emptied first, with water, a bed, the litter tray and a sign on the door: Pet inside, do not open.
- Tell the crew. Ours will work around a closed door all day; they just need to know which one.
- Move that room's contents last, once the pet is in the car.
The drive
Cats in a carrier, dogs harnessed or in a crate, never loose in the car. No pets on the truck, ever; the back of a moving truck is not ventilated and not safe. On a long distance run, plan the stops and never leave an animal in a parked car in summer or winter.
The new home, first day
- Set up one room first: bed, water, food, litter, the blanket from home. Let the pet settle there while the crew unloads.
- Check the fences, the gates and the window screens before a dog goes into the yard.
- Cats stay indoors for a couple of weeks. Let them learn the house before the neighbourhood.
- Keep the old routine from day one. Walks at the usual time, food at the usual time.
Things people forget
- The pet bag goes in your car, not on the truck.
- Fish travel badly; ask a pet store how to move a tank.
- Birds and small animals need a covered cage and a warm car.
- If the new building is a condo, check the pet rules and the elevator etiquette before the move.
What the crew can do
Not much about the animal, but a lot about the day: an agreed start time, a crew size that finishes inside the window, and a closed door that stays closed. Tell us about the pet when you ask for a quote and we plan around the room. It works the same on house and condo moves, whether you use our movers in Toronto or a crew anywhere else in the GTA.
Questions people ask
Can my dog stay in the house on moving day?
It is safer to have them elsewhere. If they must stay, one closed room emptied first, with water and a bed, a sign on the door, and the crew told which door it is.
Can pets ride in the moving truck?
No. The back of a moving truck is not ventilated or safe for animals. Pets travel in your car, in a carrier or harness.
How long should a cat stay indoors after moving?
A couple of weeks is the usual advice, so the cat learns the house as home before it learns the neighbourhood.
Do I need to update the microchip before moving?
Yes. Update the registration and the tag with the new address and your mobile number before moving day, when a pet is most likely to bolt.
