We recently helped Ramona, a beautiful Labrador Retriever, move from Mexico to California, and when Relocation Coordinator Kelcey checked in to see how she was doing after the trip, Ramona was kind enough to send along this fantastic update!
My name is Ramona and I just moved to Los Angeles, California from Mexico City. This is the story of my relocation.
A few months ago, my pawrents told me we were going to move to another house and I would have never thought it would be such a big change. As you can imagine, my mom and dad were very concerned with all the arrangements that needed to be made before our big move, but the nice people from PetRelocation were there to guide us in every step of the way.
First and foremost, we needed a kennel, since the one I had was from when I was a puppy and even though I could fit, it wasn’t big enough for travel (tip: it is required for a travel kennel to be bigger than the dog so we can stand, lay down fully and turn inside it).
When we finally got the kennel, my pawrents knew that I wouldn’t want to go in and stay in it, since I was never trained to do so. That’s when my trainer came and help us through positive training (which meant lots and lots of treats for me) and they trained me for more than a month until I got used to the kennel.
The day before my first flight ever, I had to say goodbye to mom and dad while the agents from PetRelocation played with me (and also other dogs, which was very fun), made the final travel arrangements and then took me to the airport around 4:00 a.m. Meanwhile, I got lots of pictures taken for my pawrents, which I believe reassured them that I was OK and ready for our big adventure.
When my flight landed and someone from PetRelocation picked me up, they let my parents know that everything was fine and we’d be on our way once we cleared all the processes of entering a new country. By 3:00 p.m., I was out of LAX and the driver took me for a little walk (so I could stretch and go to the bathroom) before taking me to my new home. Around 4:00 p.m. I met my mom and dad and was very happy to see them!
Even though everything was confusing, they tried everything to make me feel at home (with my old toys, my blanket and my food). By the third day in Los Angeles, I was feeling way less stressed and already making new friends.
In the end, with the help of PetRelocation, all worked out perfectly and my pawrents could focus on other parts of the move while trusting someone else would take great care of me with lots of love and eagerness to facilitate everything.
Now, we’re more than ready for our biggest adventure yet! If you are in L.A., come say hi! (and bring treats).