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First, it’s important to have a plan. Are you moving with the help of friends or have you hired a moving company? Either way, let everyone involved know you have pets that are very important to you and make an introduction.

Move your pets last. This gives them more time in a familiar place while you make your new house a home. It also prevents them from getting under foot, injured or lost in the mayhem of moving.

On moving day, place your pets in an empty room with a yummy treat, their favorite toys and their carrier if you plan to use one. Toss a T-shirt you have slept in for a night or two in the carrier and your scent will help calm them in transit.

For anxious pets, this may be a good time to try a calming collar or pheromone spray. These products claim to mimic the pheromones given off by mothers to soothe their offspring and may help your pets be more relaxed during the move and help them acclimate to their new surroundings. In extreme cases of anxiety with long road trips or flights, a vet may prescribe a sedative.

If you have cats that go out, wait as long as you can before you let them out to explore their new surroundings, try for two weeks. While this can be very difficult, and with some cats practically impossible, it gives them a chance to become familiar with the inside and reset where their home is.

Once you settle in, take your dog for a walk along their new route and introduce yourself and your pets to the new neighbors. That way, if your pets get lost or get off leash, your neighbors will remember where they belong.

If you are moving across country, there are companies that specialize in moving your pets in a calm, safe environment so you won’t have to worry about them and they will be less stressed out when they arrive in their new home.