Professional moving services have some remarkable skills. After years of practice, they can disassemble furniture, pack up boxes, and drive a moving truck with ease you'll likely admire. They're used to working around obstacles like children and pets -- but that does not mean they'll do their most efficient work when faced with these additional challenges. If you want moving day to go as smoothly and as quickly as possible, there are some ways you can make things easier on your movers.

Keep children out of the way.

Your children may mean well when they try to help the movers pack. They may only be asking the movers questions out of sheer curiosity. But as friendly as your movers may be in responding to the little ones, having to pause their work to do so will only slow them down.

Things will be a lot easier on your movers if you arrange to have your children stay elsewhere during the packing and moving process. Find a friend whose home they can visit, or at the very least, set them up in a spare room with some games and snacks to keep them out of the way. This is not just important for your movers' efficiency -- it's also important for your children's safety. You would not want them to get hit in the head with a table because someone didn't see them coming around the corner.

Keep your pets secure. 

Your dog may be the nicest dog in the world, but you cannot 100% guarantee he won't act aggressively towards an unfamiliar person who is packing up his furniture. And having to check to ensure the cat's not sneaking out every time they open the door is not efficient for your movers, either. Either close your pets in a kennel or single room, or send them to a friends' house during the move. 

If you have pets in cages, such as guinea pigs or lizards, take it upon yourself to pack up these pets and their items. Though some moving companies will do this for an additional fee, you know your animals better than they do.

Provide snacks and drinks.

You are under no obligation to provide snacks and drinks for your moving team. However, if you do offer these items, you'll likely save them from having to go off-site for a lunch or snack break. This will save them time, allowing them to get right back to work when they're done eating and drinking. Plus, well-refreshed, well-fed movers will be better equipped to carry all of those heavy boxes. And you're sure to score bonus points by providing snacks, making them more willing to go above and beyond with little extras like double-wrapping your mugs and packing your photos individually.

Have the valuables and personal items pre-packed when they arrive.

There are sure to be some things you prefer to pack yourself -- from your underwear to valuable family photos. If you have to follow your movers around all day and yell "Stop, let me do that!" whenever they encounter something you want to pack, you'll waste a lot of your time and their time. Things will go a lot faster if you have these items already packed up and ready to go when the movers arrive. Either put them in your personal vehicle so you can move them yourself, or appropriately label them (with words like "fragile" or "personal: do not open" and leave them for the movers to load into the truck.

When you work with a reputable moving company, it's their goal to make things as easy on you as possible. However, this interaction is a two-way street. By following the tips above, you make things easier on your movers -- which guarantees you'll get even better, faster service.