Moving? Have A Dog?

Back in my country, they say, "It is better to have a house burned down than to move." I bet most of you would concur. And you haven't seen our house!

Jerry has always a lot of projects going on and lots of supplies for each of them.

That makes the whole adventure that much more interesting. Lots of stuff ended up getting dumped and yet so much stuff was still left to package and load! If you think you can imagine how much stuff there really has been to tackle, trust me, you cannot.

You have no idea!

It was quite challenging and stressful. I was joking that there were two possible outcomes. Either we end up getting moved, or we end up getting divorced. Well, so far we're still married.

But what about the dogs?

How are the dogs handling all that? So far pretty good. We did everything we could to keep their stress to minimum.

We kept their routines as intact as we could. We made sure they got enough exercise to drain their energy and stress. They got some extra perks and goodies out of the deal. Hubby was not allowed to yell at me in front of them.

Should we have boarded them?

Apparently, a new study says that to dogs it is equal to a vacation. Well, perhaps, but I know that just being in the hospital for a day to get his dental done, JD was howling the entire time he was there. I think that our guys have a different idea of a vacation. One where we are all together.

So instead, hubby took them out for a whole day picnic during the main turmoil.

We could have done that because we needed to hire help to move all that stuff anyway. We hired two guys to do the loading. It could have gone faster and easier were hubby here to help but this was the best solution for the dogs.

They were surely surprised to come home and find some much more extra space to frolic!

With almost everything gone, the house looks much bigger now, has room to dance or play!

I said I liked the house much better this way and perhaps I should just stay. Well, all kidding aside, we have all survived mostly unscathed so far.

The guys already know Jasmine's ranch we're moving to, so that part will be very exciting and happy for them.

And they don't mind roughing it that way.

Whatever you're doing, don't forget the dogs!

Something like a move can be extremely stressful for them. Here is a good check-list of things to remember.

1. Completing process over time - we did that as much as possible.
2. Keeping daily routines as much as possible - check.
3. Taking care of IDs - check; also already updated microchip info
4. Keep them safe during the big day - check.
5. Taking care of their needs on the way - check.

The points that are relevant to arrival to the new place don't really apply here because the guys are already familiar with Jasmine's ranch. That part won't bother them at all.

But still, wish us luck!