So, we are back from holiday only to be told by my mum (who was dealing with the buying of the property while we were away) that we are now moving on the 6th Dec! So we have ony about 10 days to pack up our flat and get everything organised for the move. Thankfully my mum is taking the dogs during the actual move, so that we can sort ourselves out and secure the garden etc...

However, is there anything we can do to make the change easier for Cleo and Solo? I have moved with cleo before and she was unsettled for about a week - but that is to be expected i guess - its mainly solo i am concerned about as he has problems adjusting even when he has only been away for a couple of weeks... Any suggestions?

Oh, and any body live near Twyford, in the reading area?

ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I live about 10-15mins away, depending on where in Twyford you're going to.

I'll email you my phone number and if I can help at all I'd love to - bearing in mind holly has Kennel COugh at the mo :(

Fiona
x x x

Yes, try not to make an issue out of it ;-)
If you behave *normally* then your dogs will think that all is well. If you start going out of your way to molly coddle them, then they will sense something is *wrong* and panic.
It is a stressful time, but as long as you stick to some sort of *normal* routine they will be ok. Good luck with your move.

Cheers Leigh,

Cleo keeps stareing at me as i pack boxes - she has been there and done that and knows when things go in bags or boxes then we are going away, sometimes with sometimes without her! With them going away after the weekend they should be spared most of the stress... but solo gets all weirded out if we even dare to move the furniture around! He starts looking all lost and whines in a very pathetic aimless way ;) :D

Just wondering if there was anything i could do once they come back after thier "holiday"? And to add to the stress we are going away at christmas to wales (St Davids) and can only take one of the dogs, the other of which will stay with my mum - poor souls that they are! One gets to go to the beach and the other to stay at the health farm!!! :D :D

Typical- she can cope- she's a female but Solo can't cope- he's male:rolleyes: :D :D :D :D :D Good luck with the move- stick some of his new *shades* on him- he won't be able to see then to get weird;)

Stacey x x x

Good luck with the move. Depending on your dog sitter I would try and get them out of the house as early during the move as poss, even a couple of days before
if possible and not have them back until all the frantic unpacking is done and the house is more or less sorted out. Have a great holiday, St Davids is beautiful - have you been there before?

Hi WL,

The dpg sitter is my mum! She is taking them from this coming monday until about a week after the move, and then she is going away for a couple of days and they come back to us. Then a week later we are going to St Davids (nvere been there before and looking forward to it very much, especially the beach!) via my mums, and dropping one of the dogs off with her. Coming back via hers also to spend my birthday withthem and then back home!! Alll very hectic at the moment...

Are there any things that we should make sure we do/visit in st davids?

Next comes the dilemma of which dog to take. Cleo loves the beach and settles quickly, but is also easier for my mum to have around at christmas with a full house, and solo has never been to the beach - he will be 8 months old - but is more of a handful to have around. Oh, decisions decisions :D

Hi Alex
good luck with your move!! I'm glad mine is all over, at least you've got pretty good notice of your move date, we exchanged 2 days before we completed and it was a nightmare, nearly didn't happen at all :(
I put the dogs in kennels near the new house which luckily had a huge kennel they could all stay in together, when we picked them up they were fine and all settled down quite quick, maybe because they had eachother for company. They did give us a fright on the first morinng though, we overslept and at 8.30am they all started howling! bet the neighbours were impressed :P 2 rotties and a singing Shiba doing the morning chorus is Not quiet!!!! :D
have fun :)
Jue

Hi, Well the Cathedral/Bishops Palace is a must! St Davids is a small village but there are so many beaches to choose from, might be worth planning a visit to a different one every day. There is the Coastal Path, but its very wet here at present and it might be a bit slippy in the steeper places. Dogs have to be on leads too so it rather depends on the weather. If you go up the coast to Newquay, you can see Dolphins there in the summer from a ridiculously cheap tour boat - but I'm not sure if they are there all year round. There is surfing at Newgale, further south if you are brave, but again not sure if it happens in winter. Some beaches dont allow dogs - but I expect you have checked this out. If the weather is kind you can do boat trips out to the different islands, Ramsey Island is the nearest, - Caldey island from Tenby - I cant remember where the Skomer boats go from, but neither allow dogs so it probably wouldn't suit. Cant really suggest much else, I'm guilty of the "residents syndrome", the visitors to the county often know much more about "where to go" as we "dont get out much"....aaaah!!! If you like thrills and spills then Oakwood theme park will not disappoint. Its quite expensive - but worth it if you are not a cowardly custard like me - I like my feet firmly planted on terra firmer and could think of nothing worse than flying hundreds of feet up on a length of elastic or doing the "bounce". Just make sure you pack every waterproof item you posses and lots of shampoo and towels for whichever dog you take!! West Wales is not renowned for dry weather this time of year!

WL, thank you so much for all the info - think you have probably helped me make up my mind about which dog to take also... I had assued that the beaches would all be open to dogs as it was the winter - but i will have to check that out now...

Dont think the theme park is for us either - i am petrified of heights, and agree whole haertedly that your feet belong firmly planted|!

Ahhh, just wrote long reply and lost it - soooo irritating!

Ours was the other way round - we weren't supposed to be going until the new year, but then my parents moving date was pulled forward which meant we had to pulll forward too as we are nicking a load of their furniture! Then their sale was postponed again! But ours had already exchanged - all very bitty - but at long last we are actually going to have out own house outside of london - oh joy!

Anyway, at least not having the dogs there gives me time to secure the garden and paint the place without solo getting his feet into everthing again. But the packing is definately going slowly - meaning to get a lot done this weeekend, but the jet lag refuses to lift, and the boilers broken which are very good excuses to put it all off until later!

You moved to Melksham didn't you? Is that anywhere near Marlborough - i was thinking of popping down there in the new year to see my old masters... :)

Oh, and know that it is really very boring to anyone else - but cos getting excited now, would anyone like to see a piccy of my new house! :P

I am now in Melksham and it's not too far from Marlborough, would be great to meet up! :D

You can send me a piccy of your house if you like, I still have a spy in the papers to see what my next house will be!!!

You have mail :p :D

Brewers yeast is excellent in helping them to deal with stress, I give it mine when they are starting to show and have used it in the past when we've moved house and had some good results.

Good luck with the move by the way, I did 9 in 7 years in the military the dogs used to just walk into the new kitchen and choose their spots so the dog beds were always last thing out and first things in lol.

This will be my 5th move in the last 5 years, though only 1 in the last 3, and didn't have any dogs or a bloke to move to before!

If i let the dogs choose their sleeping place we would end up sleeping on the kitchen floor!

Thanks for the tip about the yeast too - i will probably use that with solo when showing too - he does get very stressed as stffies tend not to be the quietest dogs when benched right next to each other! How much would you give to a 15 kg dog?

When we moved 2 years ago, I went on to the new house with Molly and my cats(cats in cage!) we waited for the removal firm to come then I went out side with Molly so she could see what was going on (luckly in the summer so nice and warm she layed in the shade) and watched us all running around like we were barking! Molly has always slept with us (right or wrong?) she just went were she wanted too and was with us in her bed at the end of ours and have never looked back. If your calm (laugh if your moving hey?) or help the to be calm I should say things will be fine. Good luck with the move. :) Julieann