Moving to a house where a dog lived?

Question

We're moving to a new house in about a month.

The house has a white Labrador living there at the moment - I have no idea of the age, gender or temperament. I don't know where in the house the Lab sleeps, but her bed was in the garage when we've visited for open days.

My dog Pete is a 6 year-old Bearded Collie crossed with Huntaway. He's a neutered male, and while he used to chew things and dig as a puppy, he hasn't done that for a long time. Pete sleeps on a low mattress in our combined living/dining room.

Question: What do I need to do or prepare for when we move in?

Should I try to reduce any scent from the previous dog by excessively watering outside and scrubbing down inside? Or am I anticipating non-existent problems?

Related but not dupes

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Answer 1

I'm pretty sure you're anticipating a problem where there is none. The scent of another dog is just one in a million unfamiliar scents your dog will be exposed to when moving into a new home, beside tons of other new impression the dog has to get used to. As long as the two dogs don't share some negative experiences with each other, the scent of the other dog will be neutral to him as it is with the scent of another dog at the lamp post in front of your house or on your clothes if you've interacted with another dog during the day. The most I would anticipate is your dog is sporadically looking for the other dog for the first few days.

The only thing that might cause an unwanted behavior in your dog is, when the other dog used to pee inside the house. This could lead to your dog also peeing at the same spot. You might ask the previous owner about it and eventually cleaning that area with vinegar or a special spray to remove scents. You can find such sprays in pet stores.

Further information: How can I eliminate set-in dog urine scent from a carpet?

Answer 2

One answer that came up at work was "be wary if moving a puppy"

Apparently Parvo virus can hang around outside, and its viable for many years. So if a puppy or an unimmunized dog moves to a new house, best to get on with the immunizations/shots beforehand.

Consider it the same as taking a 3 month old puppy to a park when the innoculations have not had full effect.