Conference misery::feline

    
    
    	It will take time for her to get acclimated to her new
    	surroundings.  I've moved three times and my furfaces have
    	adapted to the new apartments fairly easily.  If you have 
    	a scratching post or a kitty bed or something she likes to
    	sleep on, make sure to bring them with you and don't wash
    	them or anything.  They will have her scent on them and that
    	will make her more comfortable.  She'll have something of "hers"
    	in the new place that she can go to.
    
    	JJ
    
    	

    I have moved twice with my 2 cats. Both times they went off their food
    for a few days, and tended to hide away somewhere quiet, but they
    settled down fairly soon. Just give them lots of cuddles, and be patient.

    June

    
    We put ours in a cattery as we were going on holiday shortly after the
    move. By the time the kitties got to the new house, I think they were
    so fed up of the cattery, they were glad to be anywhere different. Both
    thoroughly explored every room, I pointed them to the litter tray and
    their food, then they went to sleep on the bed!
    
    After a week we let them out thru' the catflap, and they didn't wander
    much from the door, but after a month or two they had shouldered their
    way into the local feline community.
    
    I think its basically a case of food, bed, litter and a few
    recognisable smells.
    
    Andy

    I don't think the cattery is a good idea... just to make her not good
    to accept gladly the new flat...  
    
    Move her with droping her the meantime at your parents' as you said.
    Moving into the new flat she will perhaps hide and refuse food the
    first time (as mentioned). But the advices given are good, with 'her'
    bed etc. And your idea with the old vet who is known to her is also
    good. As you said, she is familiar with your parents and their flat, I
    think she'll get easy used to the new circumstances. 
    
    As I moved, I took Smokey to my mom's flat (same situ as you) and as I
    was ready with the move, I brought her home into the new home. It took
    her half an hour to accomodate! Main thing is you are near, so if you
    move the cat in, be with her the whole day if she needs it, that means
    do the 'catmove' from your parents to the new flat on a weekend.
    
    
    Keep posted!
    
   Nat&Smokey

    
    	I have moved with Nilla 3 times!  I also left her with
    	my parents during the moves.  (I leave her with them when
    	I go on vacation too so she "knows" the place well)
    	
    	Nilla hates her carrier, so she usually bolts right out
    	when I open the door.  When in a new place she bolts out
    	and stops short...then starts sniffing around, as said
    	before, point out the litterbox and food..I also usually
    	try and move her in around feeding time...and put food down
    	for her right after I let her out on every occasion, she has
    	spotted her food eaten it..gone exploring then settles in
    	on her favorite corner of the bed.
    
    	I have moved her from a small apartment to a larger apartment
    	into a 4 level townhouse...the townhouse move had her shook
    	up for a little while but after she located everything she
    	was fine.  But she did crave attention from us for a long time
    	and follow me from room to room to room but once she found
    	where the bed was...she left me alone.
    
    	Like others have said, point out the important things, then
    	let her explore....
    
    

    
    
    We've moved our kitties once, not including the times they "moved in"
    with us. 
    
    They adjusted to "our" move (from one house to another) ok, but not 
    without some mild trauma. Between the moves they had a 4 hr. car ride,
    stayed at my parents for a week (a strange house they didn't know with
    unknown people feeding them) and then another 4 hr. car ride. After all
    that they adjusted to the new house quickly. The first day they spent
    sniffing out the place and checking out the new ledges/corners/etc. The
    furniture was in but most of everything else was in boxes. They seemed to
    accept the new house ok until the workmen came. For that whole first
    week we  had workmen coming in every day (very early in the morning and
    making lots of noise). 
    
    We kept the cats confined to the master bedroom so they would be out of
    the way and couldn't get out the open doors. But, they pretty much
    stayed under the bed for most of that time, while people were in
    the house. Once the workmen left, it took another day or so for them to
    get situated. They liked climbing over/around/into the boxes.
    
    I think without the workmen noise/trauma they would have been just fine
    (they still don't like the doorbell). 
    
    As long as you have their food,litter,bed,toys around and you to talk
    and re-assure, and not a lot of other confusion the transition should
    be okay. It does sound like you are going to need more toys - old house
    sounds like kitty heaven!
    
    Good luck - and don't worry, they are very adaptable.
    
    janetb.
    owned by Merlin and Rascal

    When we moved from our previous house to this one, we kept the cats at
    our old house until we had all the boxes and furniture moved out and
    over at the new house.    That way, even though all the movement scared
    them and they hid, they were in a familiar place up until the very last
    minute.   Once we had all the boxes and stuff unloaded (not unpacked)
    at the new house then we looked for the cats (they were hidden real
    well) and put them in the carrier and took them to the new house.  
    Then when we got to the new house, we let them out of the cage and let
    them roam.  Since all the boxes were already in the house, the doors
    were no longer opening and closing, so they couldn't run if they tried.
    (Although they found some pretty good hiding places as well in the new
    house.)    They both got out of the carrier and snooped there way all
    over the house.  
    
    As to how they dealt with it, both cats reacted differently.  Buddy,
    who was an extremely nervous kitty promptly came down with an UT
    infection.  Shadow had no problems with the move at all.
    
    Since all cats have different personalities, it is really difficult to
    say how they will react to moving.   We knew that we would probably
    have problems with Buddy, just because we knew that he was a nervous
    kitty and was prone to UT infections.   We were relatively positive
    that Shadow would be no problem, because we moved her from Colorado to
    Mass when she was just 4 months old with no problems whatsoever.  So
    what we did was try to lessen the stress of the move as much as
    possible by keeping them in their familiar home until the last possible
    moment.   Of course we weren't moving such a far distance that this was
    possible.