A little bit of advice for those who are moving this year. As we all know the abandonment rates are really high, (sadly we are the worst in Canada for this), but there’s also another phenomenon, and that is cats that get lost during the move. It’s incredibly stressful for pets to change environments so it’s important to keep them safe during the packing up of your old house, and unpacking in the new. The biggest mistake some people might make is letting kitty out to explore it’s new territory as soon as they arrive in their new home. Because the old location is so strongly imprinted, the cat then gets lost trying to return to it’s familiar territory. This can lead to the cat getting hopelessly and dangerously lost in between the two locations. It’s recommended to let your cat get used to the new house slowly, which can take weeks. It’ll probably demand to go out even more adamantly, but that should be all the more reason to resist. What he’ll do is rub his face on objects and furniture when he feels safe, leaving his scent. You can even help the process by rubbing your cats muzzle and head with a soft cloth and transferring the scent from his glands onto the new home, on doorjambs, walls and furniture that are at cat level.

And because there are a ridiculous amount of pets abandoned, especially in the summer, it’s all the more important to have a collar and tags on your furry friends, so that there’s no doubt as to your desire to keep them safe!