Room by Room Guide for Pet Proofing When You Move House

Are you moving with a pet? After your Removalists have unloaded and left the building, your best friend may have some particular needs to keep them safe, happy and healthy.

In some ways pet proofing your home is very similar to child proofing it, and in certain cases you use the same products! If you and your fur baby, feathered, finned or scaly, friend have just moved into a new home chances are you need to undertake a few customisations to keep them safe, protect your house and allow them to be free to explore their environment.Obviously, there are lots of different pets, but we will attempt to list some of the common ideas for designing pet living once Removalists have moved you into your new pad!

Kitchen

• Be familiar with any human foods that can be harmful for your pet and make sure they are not left around for curious noses and tongues to experiment with, one point of contact in this sense can be the trash can, so make sure it is secured.
• Keep poisons in locked cupboards or up high.

Lounge room

• Take precautions to protect furniture if you need to, such as lounge and floor coverings and the legs of chairs and tables, particularly if they are wooden.
• Keep electrical cables hidden and tucked away neatly.
• If you have a fireplace, a protective screen can help.
• Make sure you don’t have any indoor plants that can be poisonous for your pet if they happen to ingest them.

Bathroom 

• Keep medicines or chemicals out of the way. If you pet has a habit of drinking the toilet water, don’t use in-bowl or in-cistern deodorisers and disinfectants. Or just keep the toilet lid down all the time (yes mum!)

Bedroom 

• Take precautions to protect your furniture.

Laundry 

• Keep the washer and dryer closed at all times.

Doors 

• Install a lockable “pet flap” in one of your doors so your pet can come and go as they please, lock it at night to keep them from getting out.

Garages 

• Keeps chemicals and sharp tools in locked cabinets or out of reach.

Fences

• Make sure your fences are pet proof if you need to restrain your friend within the confines of the property. Ensure your gates are self-closing and lockable. Do you need a “beware” warning sign for your visitors?
• If you have a pool make-sure that your regulation fencing is also pet-proof.

Lawns and garden 

• Be mindful any chemicals you use in the garden such as pesticides and fertilizers are non-toxic.
• Remove any plants that are poisonous.
• Keep the grass clipped to keep out snakes, spiders and reduce fleas and ticks.
• Make sure there is enough access to shade and water, or likewise, warmth and shelter.

Insects, other animals 

• Be mindful to check your pet for ticks and fleas regularly if they spend time outdoors.
• Keep your pets inside at night so they are not roaming the neighbourhood and hunting or fighting. Some pets can be devastating to native wild-life or your pet could sustain an injury that could result in an infection, or worse, never come home.

 Cats gonna cat ... 

• If you can give them their own room, just do it – you know they want it.
• It is a really good idea to get a cat tree.Cats like to claw things to keep them sharp, and if they don’t have a cat tree, they will claw sometime else that you own, or the carpet.
• If your cat is an indoor cat, make sure their litter tray is out of the way of humans as best as possible and keep it clean.
• Cats can meander over all surfaces at all heights, so don’t burn candles where they are likely to expose your kitty to a naked flame. 
• Be careful to keep wool, cotton and hair ties off the ground as cats like to use them as toys and sometimes swallow them which can cause them great harm.
• Cats have a great reputation for landing on their feet and having nine lives, but that won’t guarantee that they will survive falling from a 3rd floor apartment building window, so make sure you have screens or bars if your windows need to be opened.

Dogs gonna dog … 

• Use child-proof locks on cabinet doors to stop prying paws.
• Dogs like to chew and sometimes swallow small and strange things, it’s like having a toddler.
• They may like to try to “play” with the other smaller pets, so make sure they are secure.
• Blind and curtain cords can be a choking hazard.
• Dogs love a comfy dog bed, and if your pal spends time outside, they may like a kennel placed somewhere in the yard preferably gets some shade. 
  
  

Whether you have a four-legged friend, a guinea pig, a tarantula, or a ferret,you will know that the individual care of your particular friend will be dependent upon their unique traits. How far you customise your home to accommodate those needs is really up to you and your budget.

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