Moving with two anxious cats

[clouds56]

We are due to move house in a couple of months and I have two 6 year old cats who are both very anxious little girls and don't deal well with having strangers in the house, the door going, lots of activity etc. So I'm getting really anxious as to how they will cope with the move. I've had them both from kittens (they were abused before I rescued them and I think this is why they are both such anxious girls that especially don't like men).

Any tips on how to move them with as little stress as possible? Any products you can recommend like the cat plug ins for anxiety etc?

I am considering hiring a removal company to help with the move so there will be strangers in the home on the day of the move.

Thanks.

You may want to consider a cattery for a few days, if that fits in with the logistics of the move.

Otherwise, apart from getting a Feliway or similar going now I would start giving them Zylkene about a week before and keep going throughout the moving period. Get one room cleared near enough completely beforehand, then shut them in there with litter tray, food etc when the removers come in (ideally get them used to the room beforehand).

They WILL work out that something is going on, so if they usually go out I wouldn't let them from the night5 before at the latest - last thing you want is cats going out then staying out!

Thank you @Allergictoironing we considered a cattery but honestly I think they would be just as anxious there if not more so than they would be at home moving so I'd rather them stay with me throughout the process.

I will look into Zylkene, never heard of it before.
One thing I have done is start putting blankets down on the sofa at night (which is where they both sleep) so that I can transfer them into the cat carrier with them and so that they have them in new house.

We have two very nervous house cats and moved a few months ago. We didn't do much and they seem to be ok.

On moving day we shut them in a bathroom with food and litter with a do not enter sign on the door. Then after the movers had gone and the house was empty we got them into cat carriers. Then we did the same again with a bathroom at the other end.

The worst bit of the whole process was one of them going missing after a viewing. We thought despite copious notes on the file to keep windows and doors closed due to indoor cats she must have got out. We had Facebook posts and searched the neighbourhood. She eventually turned up in one of the eaves storage areas - a viewer must have left the door open and she got shut in there. We found her a day and half later.