Written by Dr. Hanna Ornoy and published with her courtesy.
An employee who is faced with the decision to relocate or go on a mission is aware of the difficulties or problems that may stand in his way, and of course, his family members as well. Our pet is an integral part of our family, but sometimes complex decisions are required in preparation for relocation, as in the following case:
I received an offer for relocation as one of the first employees on the team established in a virgin destination for the company. My family included a large dog. After the move was approved and arrangements began for departure, I spoke with the company’s contact person and to my astonishment he told me: “In the residential area designated for you, it is not possible to bring an animal. And we cannot rent you another apartment.” Upon hearing this, the entire family was in a state of emotional turmoil. For us, the dog is an inseparable part of the family. How could we even think about giving up a disabled dog that we had adopted and had accompanied us for so many years? Finally, after conversations with various parties in the company, and understanding that there was no chance of arriving with the dog, we canceled the move to the destination.
Or in this case:
I received an offer to relocate with my family and dog. From my inquiries, it turns out that moving a dog to a new destination is not a simple task, and certainly not cheap, and has become a cross-continental operation. After weeks of diligence, I found a solution by contacting customs agents in the destination country and in two other countries. The procedure for bringing a dog to a new destination is very strict and includes blood tests and procedures that do not exist in almost any country, in addition to the requirement to fly the dog as cargo and not as baggage. At the end of the day, the costs amounted to about 6,000 euros, all of course at my expense, since the workplace refused to contribute even a single shekel.
In both of these examples, the families struggled not to give up on including the animal in the mission.
However, there are cases in which the family is forced to leave the animal behind in Israel. This is a painful process for all family members, especially the children.
If it is still necessary to move without the pet, it is recommended to prepare the children for the separation:
- Start the process early
- Explain why there is no choice
- Choose the adoptive family for your pet carefully.
- After delivery, allow children to visit the animal and see that it feels good and is acclimating.
- Speak positively but also in a balanced way about the destination country they are traveling to, and the positive experiences they can expect there.
- Identify relaxing things that will make them happy and that they like to do, such as a family trip to Israel before leaving.
- During the relocation, be in contact with the person who adopted the pet to hear reports and request photos.
