moving house with 2 cats.

[Lisajane2810]

hi we are moving house from a small 2 bed flat to a lovely big 2 bed house with lovely garden. our cats have never been outside as before us they also lived in a flat. i dont know how to make the move as stress free as possible. i was thinking about putting them in their carriers in the bathroom til removal men gone. do we just let them roam around the house after that? how long should we keep them indoors after? shall we take them in the garden on leads at first? feel so sorry for them know theyre going to be so stressed!

Moved house with 2 cats December last year.
They were the very last thing to leave the house, one hadn't been outside yet due to his age.
Once we'd moved we kept them both inside for 6 weeks then let them out. We watched them the first few times and they didn't go further than the garden.
They're now very adventurous

I used to walk the older cat on a lead but wouldn't suggest introducing it if it's new to them as it's just another new thing to adjust to

They don't always get stressed, ours was out of her carrier soon as we arrived, sniffed around, out in the garden supervised the same evening. Can they stay overnight with anyone till you've settled in if you're really worried. Take them in the car, put them in an empty bedroom, the bathroom may be too small. Put a litter tray, carriers, something soft to sit on and a bowl of,water. I bet they jump,straight onto the windowsill to look at the garden. Some people say they should stay in for 2 weeks but ours never have, they all wanted to explore outside, we put a blanket on the grass so they could sit with us.

Moved with 2 cats, one of whom hid in a box for two days at the new house. Kept them in for a week, during which they obligingly used a litter tray then they were out & about using a cat flap. No indoor peeing etc after that.