Moving need help getting dogs adjusted to the change

[Lenore]

Hello

We are moving in a week or so. To a new house! Problem is this home does not have a doggie door. And it has stairs! We have 2 BC's one is 8 and the other is 2 years old. They have always had a doggie door and we never had to teach them to tell us to go out. We might have to replace a glass door to put in a doggie door. Just not sure yet. My main concern is getting the dogs adjusted to the new house and yard and the move in general.we will buy the house on monday and not move in till that weekend. I was planning on taking the dogs over once a day and letting them roam and check out the place. what else can i do to help them adjust. And the no doggie door issue!We have bets that the 2 year old will be afriad of the entire house and especially the stairs. He is the biggest scarycat.He is afriad of everything.I mean everything till he gets use to it.

Any helpful hints or advice please!

THanks

[Allie Oop]

Well, good luck to you! A move is always scary -- for everyone. If you are able to put in a doggie-door, I would do that as soon as possible, only because a move is traumatic enough without having to learn new things. (But we have never had a doggie-dog and Allie is quite good at letting us know she has to go out.)

 

I have found that animals are amazingly adaptable to new situations. I think that a roam around the new place a few times before the actual move would be a good idea. As to the stairs -- we don't have any, but recently we took our 1 yr. old pup to my Mom's house and she has three whole levels of stairs. Allie LOVED running up and down them. So, our worries were unfounded.

 

Good luck with your move.

[Allie+Tess&Kipp]

My dog is a scaredy dog as well. She is always terrified of new doorways and new floors.

 

I brought Tess with me to the house every time I brought a load of stuff (like 10 times) and she did not really adjust that well. But the day the movers moved everything in and I got it all set up and got her dog beds in all the right places, and her crate, and her toys, she was fine. It was like she'd always been here. And no more spooking in the doorways or about the floor.

 

For Tess, the bigger issue was whether she would go potty in the new yard. After 10 trips with an hour ride in the car, she did eventually decide the new grass was acceptable.

 

Allie + Tess & Kipp

[lucieluv]

I moved last June from Kansas to South Carolina. (And I still really haven't met any friends other than my vet!!!) Anyway, it was very hard on the dogs, and I only had three at the time. I put one in each car, well one in my car, one in my mom's car, and one rode with my dad in the cab of the U-Haul.

 

We had to stay in hotels for four nights which made things even harder. Pepper does not handle change well at all, but the vet gave me medication just in case he decided to have a mental break down. One of the things I did before I left Kansas was wash all of my bedding the day before I packed it, so I could still sleep on it one more time and it would be clean when I unpacked it in South Carolina. The dogs being able to smell the same scent helped by the time we got into the new house. I also took my blankets and pillows and their blankets and dog beds to the hotel so they had their own stuff and scent. I didn't wash their toys before we moved either. As for the door issue, I didn't have a doggie door where I lived before, I just left the back door open and they could come and go. I still have not solved that issue. My dogs are not outside dogs, they go outside to potty and then come right back in, they go nuts if they realize they are outside by themselves and I am not outside with them and they cannot get back in themselves. I'm still working on that issue.

[Dixie_Girl]

Cheyenne did not have a doggie door the first 5yrs of her life, but Jackson has always had one. The result is that Cheyenne WON'T go in the house unless I leave her for a very long time. Jackson will go in the house when he needs to go! He has no idea or probly capabilities, that sometimes he has to hold it. If that is the case with yours I suggest a doggie door immediately! If you have a sliding glass door or a door that has full length glass, you can install the door in the wall next to the door. Don't know your house lay out but that is just a suggestion! Familiar smells plus you being comfortable there will settle them in no time!

 

Good luck!

[Tammy525]

Scout grew up with a doggie door at his foster mom's and we don't have one and planned not to get one. He did fine pretty quickly. We took him out at regular intervals (like you would a puppy) and treated for going potty outside. The biggest adjustment areas were: he had separation anxiety about going outside alone for months, I think it made him nervous not to be able to come in whenever he wanted.

 

Then the second thing was, it took a while for him to understand that when he went out to potty, this was it, he wouldn't be able to go out whenever he wanted to. As I was home with him, or my mom was most of the time, this was only a real issue when we had to go somewhere without him. Intensive "potty training" with treats "go potty" then treat for doing so and he caught on. We had one accident in the house and one at the pet store, both times were early on and he wouldn't go when we took him out prior to leaving. He is fine now without the doggie door and understands to his business when he gets the opportunity.

 

I might take over a familiar item before their first visit (like some of their toys, blanket, etc.) Treats always help everything, maybe even hide some treats around the house before they go over so they can "find" the treasures and decide "hey this place is pretty cool, look what I found!!"

 

I have only had one dog who didn't adjust quicly to moving, he was psychotic anyway and the move made him worse.