When you’re relocating to a new state, the logistics are already enough to make your head spin. Throw a furry family member into the mix, and things can get chaotic fast. Pets don’t have a say in where you’re going, how you’ll get there, or how long the journey will take. All they know is that their world is changing, and it’s your job to make that change as seamless and reassuring as possible. Whether you’ve got a high-strung cat, an aging golden retriever, or a perpetually suspicious gecko, moving with pets requires foresight, flexibility, and more patience than you’d expect.
Start the Paperwork Weeks Before the Move
One often overlooked part of moving with pets is keeping meticulous track of all the paperwork, from vet records and vaccination certificates to pet travel authorizations and adoption documents if applicable. It’s wise to create a designated folder—digital or physical—where every form, receipt, and confirmation can live without getting lost in the shuffle of boxes and bubble wrap. For extra convenience, use a mobile scanning app to quickly and easily capture any document from your device’s camera so you can convert it into a PDF. This saves time and stress later, and you can start by downloading this free scanner app to keep everything organized at your fingertips. This will keep you stress free when you need to access certain info.
Research the Laws and Quirks of Your New State
Some states have surprisingly strict regulations around pet ownership, especially for exotic or restricted breeds. Certain dog breeds may require registration or be outright banned, and even turtles can be illegal in places like Georgia. Make sure you know the specifics about leash laws, licensing requirements, and local animal ordinances. Beyond legality, consider the climate and geography of your new area; what’s safe and routine in Michigan might be a health risk in Arizona heat. Knowing what you’re stepping into allows you to prep your pet’s life accordingly.
Craft a Travel Strategy Based on Your Pet’s Personality
Every pet handles travel differently. Some dogs jump into the car with glee, while some cats may howl in terror for hours. If your move involves a long car trip, run test drives to observe your pet’s behavior and make adjustments. For flights, get clear guidance from the airline about in-cabin or cargo policies and consider direct routes to limit stress. If your pet is especially anxious, consult your vet about mild sedatives or calming aids. You’re not looking to knock them out, just to ease their nerves so the journey doesn’t feel traumatic.
Create a Familiar ‘Bubble’ on the Road
Helping your pet feel calm during a move starts with anticipating their triggers and responding with consistency, comfort, and attention. Keep their environment as stable as possible by surrounding them with familiar scents and routines, and consider using calming aids like pheromone sprays or anxiety vests when necessary. Just as important is keeping your own stress in check, since animals are remarkably attuned to your emotional state and will mirror your tension. Human anxiety, especially the kind driven by demanding jobs and long hours, can unintentionally transfer to pets and heighten their discomfort.
Don’t Unpack Them First—Unpack Stability First
Once you arrive at your new home, the temptation to release your pet and let them explore can be strong. Resist it. Set up a designated room or corner with their belongings before they enter. Give them a chance to sniff around, adjust, and settle in a contained space before letting them loose in the whole house. Slowly expand their access room by room, so they feel in control of the discovery process. Let them lead; they’ll tell you when they’re ready to explore more.
Find a Vet and Pet Network Quickly
Within the first week of moving, make it a priority to find a new veterinarian. Emergencies don’t wait until you’re settled. Scope out the nearest 24-hour clinic, find pet-friendly parks, and ask neighbors or local online groups for grooming or pet-sitting recommendations. Pets are more relaxed when you’re relaxed, and having those resources in place gives you the confidence to exhale. Introduce your pet to the new vet with a low-pressure wellness visit so they associate it with care, not crisis.
When you think about moving, it’s easy to get swept up in utility setups and cross-country logistics. But a successful pet transition isn’t measured in miles—it’s measured in how secure they feel at every step. You’re not just moving your belongings; you’re moving their entire ecosystem. So breathe, plan with care, and know that every decision you make shapes how your animal adapts.
Owning real estate, especially your own home, is a sure-fire celebration of independence. In today’s market, many homeowners really want to make a move but are finding themselves in a catch-22 – whether to sell first or buy first. They don’t want to end up getting stuck owning two homes or none at all. I am sure you will join me in saying we can’t blame them. I also believe that you agree that this is true for ourselves and others; homeownership is good for ALL. The more who can buy a home, the more who can sell a home, the more our economy benefits. And as Jimmy Carter said, “To be true to ourselves, we must be true to others.
Fortunately, I have a special program for Home Owners wanting to move and Buyers wanting to buy in Today’s market that turns the tables on this CATCH 22.
Over the last 12+ years of selling real estate, I have been able to develop and successfully implement a program that allows me to guarantee the sale of a property. Yep, you read that right. Actually guarantee in writing the sale of a home. Obviously, a program like this gives sellers GREAT PEACE OF MIND (a true celebration of independence from fear). I guarantee, upfront and in writing, that if their home does not sell at their price and within their time frame – I will step in and buy it myself.
The conditions are simple: the seller and I must agree on the price and possession date. Buyers benefit too because we are able to ensure they get the home they want and back up their purchase with a satisfaction guarantee: if they are not happy with the home, we will buy it back. This obviously is a win-win for all involved.
This is where you come in…
Your friends, neighbors, work associates, and family members who may be considering a move can now do so and celebrate true independence from the fear of getting stuck with two homes or none at all. And remember… Your referrals help the Children… As I share with you each month, we are on a mission to raise $25,000 for the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Helping Hands Fund. We do this by donating a portion of our income. Children’s does great work in helping kids overcome cancer and other life-threatening diseases. In fact, Kids under their care are 300% more likely to enter into remission IF they can get into the recovery center. BUT the Recovery Center depends on sponsorships and donations to keep rolling. So, YOUR REFERRALS REALLY DO HELP THE KIDS…
Who do you know considering buying or selling a home you could refer to my real estate sales team? Not only will they benefit from our award-winning service, but we donate a portion of our income on every home sale to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Helping Hands Fund. I want to make it easy to refer your friends, neighbors, associates, or family members considering making a move, so here are your options:
1. You can go to www.ReferralsHelpKids.com and enter their contact info on line or forward the link to who you know considering a move.
2. Of course you can always call me direct as well at 888-240-2500.
You and your referrals mean more than ever to my team and me. As we move forward in this new season, please know my team and I are extremely thankful for you and you’re being a special part of our business.
With all my appreciation.
P.S. The story of this young person enclosed may cause you to look at your loved ones differently. It did me. Check it out.
It’s easy to refer those you know considering buying or selling a home. Here are the Options Again:
You can go to www.ReferralsHelpKids.com and enter their contact info on line or forward the link to someone you know considering a move.
Call me direct or pass my number on 213-880 9910.
Why I Support Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles
I grew up right here in Los Angeles. Born right nearby at St. Francis Hospital. I remember when I first heard about a young person close to our family suffering from a serious disease and getting treated for that at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. It was then that I began to pay closer attention to the work they do at that hospital. Since then, I have learned that it is a collection of hard-working health care professionals, most making their home right here in the Los Angeles area, all coming together for a common cause. That cause is to help young people overcome unfortunate health issues that life sometimes throws our way. Being a Los Angeles area, California native, I take pride in supporting in any way that I can the good work these people do at Children’s. My team rallies around our annual goal of raising money and donating portions of our income to help Children’s Hospital in its quest to heal young people when they need healing. My team and I are committed to providing outstanding results for buyers and sellers referred to us by our past clients. I have discovered that Children’s Hospital Los Angeles shares similar commitments to their patients. And since their services survive on sponsorships and donations we are happy to contribute and proud to support them.
After Beating Leukemia, College QB Reclaims His Football Dreams
by Jeff Weinstock
Thanks to the support of his medical care team and his own dogged determination, Davis Warren’s cancer diagnosis was only an interruption, not an end.
Davis Warren had never even had an ear infection, his mother, Terri, says, so it was odd to hear him say he felt weak and couldn’t do his normal weightlifting routine. Plus, he had those inflamed lymph nodes on the back of his neck that had not receded for three weeks.
“Davis had never missed a day of school because of sickness,” Terri says. “It was just weird for him to say, ‘I don’t feel great.’”
This was March 2019, football season had ended, and Davis, a 17-year-old star quarterback in his junior year of high school, was being courted by several major college football programs.
Expecting to discover he was just rundown, Davis’ father, Jeff, took him to urgent care, where a blood test showed an abnormally high white cell count, including the presence of irregular myeloid cells, called blast cells—a marker for leukemia—which reproduce rapidly and overwhelm the body’s volume of healthy blood cells.
Urgent care sent Davis and his father right to the Cancer and Blood Disease Institute at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where a bone marrow test confirmed the diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
The bone marrow test, however, also revealed that Davis’ cancer had a favorable feature. It was the subtype called inversion 16, a more treatable form of AML that didn’t require a bone marrow transplant if Davis responded well to chemotherapy.
Under the care of hematologist-oncologist Deepa Bhojwani, MD, Director of CHLA’s Leukemia and Lymphoma Program, Davis underwent four rounds of chemo, each requiring a hospital stay of four to five weeks.
“He went home for about a week, then came back in again, and it repeated four times,” Dr. Bhojwani says.
Testing after the first round showed no presence of leukemia cells in his bone marrow, ruling out the need for a bone marrow transplant. The test was repeated after each remaining cycle of chemo and showed no leukemia cells all three times.
Through it all, Terri kept her feelings from Davis, including the devastation she felt for him. “The rug just gets taken out from underneath you,” she says. “You’re a 17-year-old kid, you’re an athlete, you have dreams and aspirations, and then it’s like, whoops.
“I remember walking into CHLA. Jeff gave me a hug and said, ‘We’ll get through this.’ From then on, you’re just strong for your kid. You have to be because they don’t need you to be a mess.”
A surge of inspiration from an unlikely source
A mild-mannered, calming presence for her patients and families, Dr. Bhojwani doesn’t typically take on the role of hype woman while handling cases inside the CBDI.
Yet when she met Davis in spring 2019, she took to rallying his spirit, exhorting him to believe in himself and his recovery and to know that he could again play football at his absolute best.
“I had a patient years ago who was in the same situation,” she told Davis. “He had leukemia. He was recruited to play college football and went on to play in the NFL.”
Test results had returned good news about the curability of Davis’ cancer, and Dr. Bhojwani urged him to stay positive. Don’t change any of your plans, she said.
“I told him that story,” Dr. Bhojwani recalls, “and I said, ‘Those dreams can happen. This is going to be over soon and then you have your whole life, so keep to that goal.’”
He would eventually go on to play in college for Coach Jim Harbaugh, famous for revving up his quarterbacks by pounding on their shoulder pads before a game. But on that day, Dr. Bhojwani’s motivational flourish was equal to anything Harbaugh could offer.
“When you’re in that position, you feel like no one understands where you’re at, what you’re going through,” Davis says. “I didn’t know anyone my age who had dealt with this. For her to bring up a tangible example, that was enough for me to realize someone’s been here before, someone’s done it. That made a big difference. Hope is an incredibly powerful medicine.”
Determined to return to football
Throughout his treatment, Davis says his emotions “came in waves.” He bounced from dark moments of questioning why this happened to him; to moments of fear and doubt, wondering whether he would survive, and if he did survive, would he play football again; and then to moments of defiant resolve, when he would vow to get back to football as good as ever. Ultimately, this third wave beat back the other two.
I threw a pass, a good throw, a 25-yard throw. I was 165 pounds and my hair hadn’t grown back yet … but that first play, I was like, ‘OK, I got it in me, it’s still there.’ — Davis on the first play of his return to football
“I wasn’t going to let cancer define who I was or who I wanted to be in my life,” Davis says. “As I got further and further from my treatment I learned how I could use it as a superpower to work harder to get to where I wanted to be.”
He worked diligently with CHLA physical therapists to get his strength back. The hospital provided him with an exercise bike, and he worked out on it as much as doctors allowed.
Through the connections of his high school coach, he received encouraging messages from a host of NFL quarterbacks, such as Trevor Lawrence, Tua Tagovailoa, Kirk Cousins, and Jared Goff.
Davis rang the ceremonial bell at CHLA in August 2019, signaling the end of his chemo treatments, and he was back on the field two months later. Those who came to see if the kid could still deliver got a quick answer.
“The first game I played in,” Davis says, “the first play, I threw a pass, a good throw, a 25-yard throw. I was 165 pounds and my hair hadn’t grown back yet. I was still working through a lot of things, but that first play, I was like, ‘OK, I got it in me, it’s still there.’”
Coach Harbaugh makes an offer
His talent got Jim Harbaugh’s attention. Then the head football coach at the University of Michigan, he called Davis with an offer of a roster spot in the fall of 2020. Davis accepted eagerly, gratefully—and determinedly. By that point, his backstory had gotten around, but he arrived on campus with singular intent.
“I didn’t want to be just the kid who had cancer,” he says. “That’s the last thing you want to be. When I first got to Michigan, I wanted to earn people’s respect for what I could do.”
He earned plenty more than respect—he won the starting quarterback job in 2024 after being a backup on Michigan’s 2023 national championship team.
After tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee in the team’s bowl game in January, Davis is rebuilding the knee with plans on returning for his final season of eligibility, having graduated with a business degree in May.
ACL tears usually take a year to rehab. Davis has a shorter timeline in mind.
“People said the same thing about the cancer,” he says. “They told me eight months of treatment and it was 4 ½. Part of my journey was speaking things into existence. I believe very powerfully in that. I think you’ve got to believe it first before you can make it happen. So if you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re probably right.”
Serving as a model for other kids
It took Davis a while to get to this point, where he wants to let his cancer history be known rather than conceal it so he can be a source of inspiration.
“I started to do more hospital visits and meet kids who were going through treatment,” he says. “I realized the opportunity I had to show them that you don’t have to be defined by what you’re going through, and you can get back to doing whatever it is you like to do. Once I realized the power that my story has, I could answer those questions of, ‘Why did I go through this? Why did I have to deal with this?’ That made my journey feel a lot more worth it.”
Story and photos courtesy Children’s Hospital, Los Angeles.
He’s in his sixth year of remission, and once you pass five, the likelihood of a recurrence is exceedingly low.
“Now we just monitor him for long-term side effects,” Dr. Bhojwani says.
That takes place in the LIFE Clinic, a CHLA program for pediatric cancer survivors where Davis’ heart function gets checked and his bone strength is tested, among other measures. But he will still have a presence in the leukemia clinic if Dr. Bhojwani ever needs to draw on it.
“Now if we have another kid who comes in and who has the same dream as Davis,” she says, “we’re going to tell them, ‘You know, we’ve had other patients just like you.’”
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