Image above: Zara grazing in her new yard.
We moved to a new house this past week. We had been living in a one bedroom townhouse with a very tiny fenced “yard” for the past year and since we got Zara in December, that has been the only house she’s ever known. We didn’t really want to move, but our friend bought a house recently and since his job takes him overseas often, we had discussed the idea that Chris and I would rent from him as a way to save money (so we can buy our own house someday) and to have a bigger place with a real yard. He bought a house with a fenced yard about 5 minutes away from where we were living in a nice neighborhood so we ended our previous lease and moved most of our stuff in on Tuesday.
Riding in the car to the new place.
I had heard that moving can be stressful on dogs and I was a little worried that Zara would be upset. Thankfully, she has been a champ through the whole process. She was definitely curious when we were dragging out all the items from storage and packing things into boxes but she didn’t seem particularly concerned. She seems very comfortable in new environments and will march into anyone’s house we go to like it’s her own. When we went to the new house for the first time, she smelled all around and checked the whole place out. When it came to the yard, you could tell she was loving in. The front yard is fully fenced with a nice grassy area in between two mature trees with flower beds. She was romping around, picking up sticks, and rolling in the grass. I think she thought it was her own personal dog park since she didn’t have to be on the leash.
We had a moving company move most of belongings last week. That day, I had Zara attached to me almost the whole day using her Ruffwear leash. (We have gotten so much use out of that leash and we haven’t even used it for running yet!) I had her on the leash to keep her out of the way of the movers. The hands-free leash was perfect because I could still carry little things back and forth.
Zara encounters the hose for the first time. She wasn’t a fan!
We haven’t been in the new house for a full week but we are getting close to being fully unpacked. Chris and I both hate clutter and boxes, so we try to unpack and organize everything as quickly as possible. I don’t think Zara misses the old place at all. The neighbors have also been very friendly and many of them have dogs as well. Despite the hassles of moving, we are glad to be in the new place.
