Moving day in San Diego is loud, the front door stays open for hours, and strangers carry large objects past a dog who wants to help and a cat who has found the one box that is about to be taped shut. Most of it is avoidable with a plan made the week before.
Short answer: Pets never ride in the truck; they ride in your car, in a carrier or clipped in with a harness. On moving day keep them out of the house entirely, at a friend's place or a neighborhood daycare, or shut them in one emptied room with a sign on the door. Update the tag and the microchip phone number before the move, check what the new landlord or HOA allows in writing, move fish and reptiles yourself, and give a cat one closed room to settle into before it sees the rest of the house.
Not on the truck, and out of the crew's way
The cargo box of a moving truck is not ventilated, it is not climate controlled, and the load shifts in a turn. Nothing alive goes in it, not even a crated cat "just for the drive across town," and no crew you would want to hire will load one. The pet travels in your car, on the day, and is the last thing out of the old place and the first thing into the new one.
The best plan for the hours the crew is in the house is for the pet not to be in the house. A friend's place or a daycare in the neighborhood works, and daycares fill up on weekends, so book it. If that is not possible, pick one room, empty it before the crew arrives (a bathroom is ideal for a cat), put the water, the bed and the litter box in it, and tape a sign to the door that says which animal is inside and not to open it. Then tell the crew lead the same thing in person. Once the room is loaded and the truck door is shut, the pet goes in the car. At the new place, the pet goes into another closed room before the first box comes off the truck.
Heat in the car and in the new place
September is still warm here, and inland is warmer than the coast. A move from Ocean Beach to El Cajon or Escondido is a move into a different climate. Never leave a pet in a parked car while you sign paperwork or grab a key, however short that seems. At the new house the air conditioning has probably been off for days and the place has been shut up, so run it before the pet comes in, put water down first, and set a fan on the closed room. Watch the pavement too. A dog's paws on a driveway or a Mission Valley parking lot in the afternoon sun is a bad start to a new address.
Tags, the microchip, and what the landlord or HOA wants
Change the tag before moving day, and put your cell number on it rather than the new address, because the number is what a finder uses. Then update the microchip registry, since a chip is only as good as the phone number filed against it. Update the county license when you have a chance.
Before you sign a lease, get the pet terms in writing: number of animals, weight caps, breed lists, and the deposit. HOAs in planned communities have their own layer, usually leash rules, where dogs may and may not walk, and sometimes a limit on how many pets a unit can hold. A downtown high-rise may add a relief-area rule or a service elevator rule for dogs. Our apartment crews see a different version of these rules in every building.
Fish, reptiles, and the small animals
Move these yourself, in your car, on the same day. A fish tank travels empty; a full one cracks at the seams on the first bump, and movers will not carry one with water in it. Bag the fish with tank water, keep a portion of the old water to restart the new setup, and set the tank up before anything else at the new place. Reptiles need their heat kept up during the drive, so use an insulated container and set up the enclosure first on arrival. Birds, hamsters and rabbits go in covered carriers in a quiet corner of the car, and at both ends they go in a different closed room from the cat.
Settling in: a cat is not a dog
A cat let loose in an empty house on the first night finds a gap behind the water heater or an open door and is gone. Give it one room for the first few days with the litter, food and a familiar blanket, then open the door and let it expand the territory at its own pace. Keep an indoor cat indoors for several weeks at the new address, longer than feels necessary. Cats attach to a place, and the old one is still home to them.
A dog orients by you, and by the walk. Take the first walk the evening you arrive, on the leash, even if the yard is fenced, and check the fence line yourself before the dog is off it. Walk the same route for the first few days so the block becomes familiar. A dog moving from a Ramona property to a North Park sidewalk has a lot to take in: other dogs behind gates, traffic, the coffee shop with the water bowl. Let the route be boring for a week.
Long-distance: drive or fly, and the hotel stops
If the move is to Phoenix or Portland, drive if you can. The pet stays with you and nothing goes in a cargo hold. Plan the hotels in advance from a pet-friendly list, then call each one to confirm, because listings drift. If you are flying, the airline sets the rules on carrier sizes, cabin versus cargo, and which breeds it will carry, and those rules change, so read the airline's own page and call. Some states and airlines want paperwork from a vet before travel; ask your vet what applies to your route. The crew handling the long-distance load will not have the animal at any point, and the long-distance prep list covers the rest of the house.
When you are ready to book the move around the dog, the cat or the tank, request a free estimate and tell us which room the pet will be in.
Common questions
Where should a dog or cat be while the movers are working?
Ideally not in the house at all, at a friend's place or a neighborhood daycare booked ahead of time. If that is not possible, shut the animal in one room that has already been emptied, with water, a bed and the litter box, and tape a sign on the door so the crew knows not to open it.
Can a pet ride in the moving truck for a short local move?
No. The cargo box is not ventilated or climate controlled, and the load shifts when the truck turns. Nothing alive travels in it, even in a crate and even across town. The pet rides in your car, in a carrier or clipped to a seatbelt with a harness, and is loaded last and unloaded first.
What should I update on my pet's records before moving?
Put your current cell number on the tag before moving day, since a finder calls the number rather than visiting the address. Update the phone number in the microchip registry, which is the one people forget, and update the county license when you can. Ask the new landlord or HOA for their pet rules in writing before signing.
How long should a cat stay inside after moving to a new home?
Longer than feels necessary. Give the cat a single closed room for the first few days, then let it explore the rest of the house at its own pace. Keep an indoor cat indoors for several weeks at the new address, because cats attach to place before people and will try to head back toward the old one.
Planning a move in San Diego?
Free estimate from the crew that works these streets every week.
