scrubbedexpat091

Animals may not have reference to flying but most are highly stressed when sent in the cargo hold.

I see animals almost daily and the stress these animals show is upsetting.

No doubt in my mind the cabin is less stressful.

While the hold is temp controlled the air circulation is poor.

And its really really dark inside the hold....

Dave_Pardew

Thanks Jsmth321 for the 'in-the-know', I definitely feel better now for choosing the cabin

Dave_Pardew

This is exactly where we are at the moment, we've cleared a corner of the living room which is designated as 'DON'T TOUCH THIS STUFF, DEAR REMOVALS DUDES! and will essentially be our space for placing what we'll be flying with on the day - so clothes and everything we'll need over the coming 8-ish weeks before our container arrives.

We're flying with a maximum of three suitcases (plus the cats in their soft carriers), so:
- our everyday clothes, toiletries and a spare pair of trainers (and not the full shebang of shoes!);
- interview clothes;
- laptop;
- essential paperwork, eg stamped Goods-To-Follow form from our soft landing previously in Vancouver so we can take possession of the container once it arrives; and resumes updated with our Edmonton address for job-hunting;
- cat bowls and some of their toys.

I'm not taking the cats' litter trays because they'll need them up until when we leave, at which point I'll dispose of them and the litter accordingly and buy new trays upon our arrival in Edmonton.

Same goes for the cat tree, which they've destroyed in three years, yet thanks to German engineering is still sturdy and used by them three times a day for napping Sadly my wife has banned me from shipping it due to its now Worzel Gummidge-esque appearance, so again I'll be picking up a new one once we arrive.

We're donating some of our electrical items to British Heart Foundation and the Council will collect our old sofas. Apart from these items, everything else in the flat will go into the container.

milly_m

As it turns out BA don't allow cats in the cabin anyway so thanks for making me feel crappy about that I guess?

Dave_Pardew - are you shipping lots of furniture? I'm getting more and more tempted to just embrace a minimalist lifestyle and take practically nothing, but mainly because I hate packing!! We don't have much furniture and what we do have isn't great quality and not worth shipping really. Plus I have no idea what kind of place we'll end up in Vancouver, but I have a feeling it'll be a lot smaller than our current 2 bed house and I don't want to be surrounded by stuff with nowhere to put it.

We may well ship our cat tree as it's fairly new and in good condition. We'll probably do the same as you in terms of litter trays etc. though. You aren't even allowed to take cat food into Canada! The poor mites will be ravenous. The logistics of getting from airport to wherever we're staying temporarily with our two cats and supplies for them is bending my mind a little, particularly as we land late in the evening. We may well see if we can buy some items and get them sent to our temporary accommodation before we arrive.

Siouxie

Are you able to get the same brand/type of cat food in Canada? If not, it might be worth seeing if one sold in Canada is available in the UK and introduce them to it for a while before you go.

Have you been able to secure temporary accommodation that will accept the cats? If you have, see if there is a Walmart Superstore close by - they are normally open late (some 24/7) and you may be able to order online for pick up, to save you having to 'shop'. (they have cat litter, trays, bowls, food, toys etc).

Dave_Pardew

We currently live in a 2-bedroom flat, which is what we've found in Edmonton, therefore it's a straight swap across for us, and we haven't got that much stuff in total, about 600 cubic feet, which is about two-thirds of a 20ft container. I feel your pain about packing, we're exactly the same (especially as we live on the second floor). All our packing and removing is being done by the removals company, they insist on packing it themselves for insurance purposes so we don't have any of that hassle. And then they'll take it down two flights of stairs and into their lorry.

Furniture-wise we're taking a small lounge table, dining table and chairs, dismountable bed frame and mattress, a canvas covered standalone clothes rack, bedside tables, wife's make-up table, some small IKEA corner tables and two computer desks.

None of this stuff is antique or has sentimental value, mainly IKEA stuff, however it's sturdy and we'd rather use it in the short- to medium-term, rather than going through the headache of getting rid of it all here for next to nothing monetarily, then having to buy it all over again in Canada at full price. It'll all get replaced at some stage in the future, I'm sure.

We're not taking the big sliding mirrors IKEA clothes wardrobe, firstly it's just too big to remove and AFAIK built-in wardrobes are pretty standard in Canada (definitely in the new flat). And the Council is taking our sofas here, we'll be buying new ones in Edmonton. And of course the Worzel Gummidge cat tree is getting recycled!

I'm buying a standard no-frills sofabed online from IKEA Edmonton, to collect after we've landed. I can just about cope with the craziness and fatigue of the whole day, but (not) sleeping on the floor after really would send me loopy!

I share your concerns about the cats, ours will be ravenous too once we land. We're flying next Tuesday so I'll keep you posted on how we managed to overcome that particular hurdle! #FingersCrossedPawsCrossed

Dave_Pardew

I've been feeding my cats Applaws for the last three years (sometimes begrudgingly mixed with the rubbish they put in those Whiskas pouches) because it's the healthiest food I found for them (80% proper clean meat, and 20% carbs from vegetables and not from grains), especially as they're house cats and prone to otherwise becoming overweight.

Unfortunately I couldn't locate any Applaws suppliers in Canada, and I don't know the market well enough to spot an equivalent, so yes, it's definitely a concern for me. I might contact Bitiba UK, who I usually buy the Applaws from, to see if they can recommend anything.

Siouxie

Here you go

https://www.petonly.ca/brand-applaws/
https://www.truecarnivores.com/produ...-food/applaws/
https://petcuisine.ca/products/applaws-cat-food

You can also find them on Amazon.ca but they are very expensive.

I know our local pet store has grain free, shredded real meat for cats (cans) as my son buys it for his cat - so I think you'll be able to find an alternative if the Applaws gets too expensive. Regardless, at least you know you can get it to start them off with and perhaps change to another once they get settled.

Aviator

Ours have Rodentia supplements, seems to work well for them. The extra exercise enhances the affect too. Very inexpensive.

BritBC

Hi, I moved here under the BC provincial nomination program a couple of years ago but originally came out here on the working holiday program, and live in Surrey, just outside Vancouver. If you have any questions I can try to help. Can call on skype if you want. I recently went through moving, finding a place, buying a car etc so may be able to help.

I recently made a video too on moving here but it won’t seem to let me post the YouTube link yet.

Chris

milly_m

Thanks Chris!

Unfortunately we've been delayed due to (in our view completely unnecessary) additional medical tests being requested. They do not make this process easy do they??

BritBC

That is annoying. I remember having to do xrays, blood tests etc but the process didn't take too much longer after that. So hopefully shouldn't be too much longer

When I applied under the PNP they gave a 2 year temporary bridging permit so could work still whilst the process was still going on.

milly_m

Yeah that's what we were hoping to do (go on a TWP). Unfortunately during our routine medicals my husband's x rays came up with something weird related to his trachea, and despite the fact that he's had blood tests etc. at the GP and never had TB they are making him do a series of TB tests that will take an extra couple of months. And they won't let us have a TWP until that's all complete, despite the fact that a medical isn't required for a TWP!

Oh well, hopefully it'll be worth it in the end

BritBC

Yep its definitely worth it in the end

Siouxie

I had to have similar testing for TB, despite the appointed TB specialist telling me that "You know you don't have TB, I know you don't have TB - but CIC thinks you do so we have to go through the motions"

As I couldn't produce sputum, I had the 2 step TB skin test and then a further xray, which cut down a little on the time it took. It may be worth asking your designated Panel Physician (or TB specialist) if this is an option.