Upping sticks and moving house with pets in tow is never easy, especially when you consider all the other elements of home moving you have to think about. So, we thought we’d share some pointers and tips for moving into a new-build home with pets. 
Space for your pet
Hopefully you will have already taken into consideration the space available for your pets before buying your property. A lot of new-build homes have an open plan living aspect covering the kitchen and dining area. Will this be suitable for your pet? Or do you have a spare bedroom upstairs earmarked for your furry friends? If you have bought a new-build home with a utility room, this could be ideal for pet bedding as well as cleaning down dogs after muddy walks before they enter the rest of the home.
And if you’re a cat owner, think carefully about which external door will have a cat flap, if you choose to have one. Also, where will your pet eat, and where will the litter tray go? Remember, cat litter trays need to be kept away from the cat’s food. In the case of cats, you will need to keep your cat indoors for the first few weeks of moving into your new build, so that they adjust to their new surroundings and don’t seek to get back to their previous territory.
Get the right floor
When you buy a new-build home, you should think about the type and style of flooring you will choose. If you have pets, especially cats, dogs, rabbits, that will be roaming around the house, you want a floor that’s pretty robust to deal with claws, dirt, food spills, accidents, even fur!
The best flooring options for pets include luxury vinyl tiles (LVT) and laminate. Of course, which you choose ultimately comes down to budget.
LVT is exceptionally hard-wearing while being kind to paws and comes in a great choice of on-trend styles to complement the look you’ll be going for in your new home. It’s exceptionally easy to clean and can handle spillages without issue.
With laminates, there are plenty on the market with water-resistant, easy-to clean properties these days. You get the real look of wood while being able to clean up after messy pets quickly and easily. Plus, any pet scratches, if made, can be harder to notice in the surface of the laminate.
On-going construction work
An important point to consider when moving into a new-build home with pets, is on-going construction work. Of course, this depends on the size of the development you are moving to and its progress at the point you move in. If there are still many homes to be built and you are one of the earliest people to move in, then construction work will continue around you. This of course means the potential for noise during the day, which might prove stressful for your pet, in the first few days especially.
To combat any anxiety from construction noise, it might be worth creating a safe space in a quiet room for your pet, should they need to hide. Or you can try playing a radio at a low level during the day to help keep them calm. Natural calming pheromone sprays are also helpful for keeping your pet calm should the noise get too loud for them.
As well as the noise, with cats there’s the issue of letting them roam (once you’ve got through the initial couple of weeks of keeping them indoors to help them adjust and settle). Once your cat is ready to go out, if you have a lot of construction work ongoing around you, it might be best to wait until the workers have gone home before you let your feline friends out. Why? Cats are naturally inquisitive, and they might find themselves wandering into properties or other areas where they can easily get trapped, stuck or injured. By the end of the working day and when the construction workers go home, the element of risk will be substantially reduced.
Dog walks in your new area
Part of the excitement of moving to a new home on a new development is the opportunity to seek out different walks for you and your pooch nearby. A lot of new home developments come with their own walking trails, newly created green spaces, or with access to neighbouring countryside. But depending on how far along the development is in its construction, there might still be unfinished areas which are hard to access. That, and during the day there will be construction traffic around, so keeping your dog on a lead would be advisable.
Professionals also recommend, to get your dog settled in and accustomed to their new area, to keep them on a lead as you walk but to let them lead the way with their nose, sniffing out their route. Doing this will help them quickly become familiar with their new surroundings .
Microchip details
And if your pets are microchipped, don’t forget it’s your responsibility to keep their microchip up to date with the right information. Once you’ve moved into your new-build home, remember to contact the database to which your pet’s microchip is registered to and let them know your new address details. With dogs, it’s a legal requirement to ensure the microchip details are accurate. There might be a charge for updating your details, and this can vary depending on the database provider.
If you are moving into a new-build home with pets sometime soon, we wish you all every happiness in your new home.
But if you’re not at the moving stage yet and are still saving for or looking for your dream new home, get searching with us. We list new homes for sale across the country from housebuilders large and small. Start your search here.
