Traveling with cats

A good way to distract cats in motel rooms and new homes (I've never tested it on a car trip) is to put a little butter on their front paws. They are so busy cleaning it off they don't notice where they are.

Cats are also comforted by scent, so wear a T-shirt for an hour or so, and put it in the carrier.

quote:

Originally posted by pcdiva

I'm hoping to make it from MI to the KY border or Northern TN the first day and make it to Warner Robins the 2nd. If it were just me, I'd keep going until I was sleepy, but I prefer to make a reservation at a pet friendly hotel this time.

You can make Kentucky in about six hours (maybe seven from where you are in Michigan), no problem at all. Tennessee should take another 3-4 hours, depending on how often you stop. Seems like I drove for about 11 hours and was less than 15 miles from Alabama going straight down I-65.

Of course, that depends on how much the cat makes you crazy, I guess. My best hope with mine if I'm travelling more than a couple of miles to the vet is that he'll become so terrified he freezes and stops yowling.

Good luck!

Only partly relevent, but I want to add in here a word of caution. We travel with our dogs a lot. They are good travelers and frankly it is cheaper to take them with us on trips than to board them in a kennel or 'doggie resort'. This coming weekend we are going to do a 3 day ride down to Dillard Georgia to visit with Sundancer and Poverty Pete and eat a bit. We will pay the boarding fees for the dogs only because of the constant hot and humid weather that makes it the "Wrong Thing to Do" to keep them for any length of time in the truck or other non-ac area.

I know your situation is different--moving rather than vacation--- but please be sure that you take into consideration the local climate at each stop. Our dogs are free to move about in the crew-cab, but find that sometimes even when the cab seems to be comfortable, the direct sunlite on their black-fur cause overheating , especially on McDuff, who has extra dense fur. They both love to play with and chew ice-cubes, so we try to have them available at each rest stop if the climate warrants the treat.
Good luck with your move!

quote:

Originally posted by Al-The Mayor-Bowen


Only partly relevent, but I want to add in here a word of caution. We travel with our dogs a lot. They are good travelers and frankly it is cheaper to take them with us on trips than to board them in a kennel or 'doggie resort'. This coming weekend we are going to do a 3 day ride down to Dillard Georgia to visit with Sundancer and Poverty Pete and eat a bit. We will pay the boarding fees for the dogs only because of the constant hot and humid weather that makes it the "Wrong Think to Do" to keep them for any length of time in the truck or other non-ac area.

I know your situation is different--moving rather than vacation--- but please be sure that you take into consideration the local climate at each stop. Our dogs are free to move about in the crew-cab, but find that sometimes even when the cab seems to be comfortable, the direct sunlite on their black-fur cause overheating , especially on McDuff, who has extra dense fur. They both love to play with and chew ice-cubes, so we try to have them available at each rest stop if the climate warrants the treat.
Good luck with your move!

Thanks for the tip Al. Since I will be travelling South, I bet the climate will only get warmer. I plan to take water from "home" in a cooler so they will have cold water to drink and to reduce temperature if that (shudder) should be needed. I am planning to limit their food though unless the vet tells me otherwise.

I am really hoping that they will sleep during the daytime since that's what they normally do anyway being cats, and will just stay in their carriers in the shade and A/C. But I really don't know what they are going to do. I don't plan to let them get too active unless it's in the motel at night. The cab of a U-Haul just isn't all that big.

Thank goodness cats don't need walks like dogs do to stay healthy and happy. I'll just have to be extra careful when it's time to put out the litterbox. Maybe I'll only let one cat out at a time. Probably while Paul is getting food, I'll deal with that. When he comes back, I'll go wash up and eat.

We aren't planning to leave them in the truck for longer than it takes to refuel without the A/C running.
That's one reason why I shanghaied my friend Paul into helping me drive! One of us could get fuel in the truck while the other did whatever s/he needed inside, then we could switch. We won't be eating Roadfood, but I have a responsibility to my girls that I won't ignore.

I hope you have a great trip to GA. I just wish it was going to be the following weekend so I might be able to at least stop by and say "Hi" to everyone as I head to Mom's house. I haven't eaten at the Dillard House, but I know where it is. I hope it is a nice meal, and I know the company will be great! Pass my greetings on to everyone. Maybe I can join in a similar outing once I'm settled!

Thanks again!
Alice

Hi folks,
We made it. No kitty valium needed, though it was avalable. Roxy meowed for about the first hour and a half, and Chica chimed in as she felt like it, but after that, they calmed down and napped off and on. Chica escaped her carrier to get under the seats, but showed no interest in leaving the truck. The second day they both seemed to take things in stride and onlyu a few meows were added when a big bump or a loud noise startled them.

Thanks for all the tips and good wishes. I'm glad to be safely at Mom's house and off the road for a while. Now wish me luck in the job hunt and I'll be all set!

Alice

Glad it went well for you and your kids. Good luck with the search.

Alice,
Congratulations on the successful transplant!! Report in when you can.

Glad to hear all went well, diva. Best of luck in the job search!

I have enjoyed reading all comments and have gained some useful knowledge.  I am going to be moving from LaGrange GA to Olean NY and am renting a budget uhaul truck and towing car.  I will have 2 cats with me and am trying to figure out how to best travel with them.  Not sure if I can buy a cage big enough for both cats and fit under my feet as im not too sure putting them in middle of seat between me and driver is advisable and enough room.  Other option is putting them both in their separate carriers and 1 on floor and 1 on seat or both on floor but then they wouldnt have much room to move around.   I am going to start getting them used to a harness and my car for rides and will be contacting vet about something to give them to help calm them.   Any other advise or suggestions would be welcome!  I think I might take a ride over and look at truck to gage room space as well.  Im particularly concerned about bathroom issues.   Do i bring out litter box at periodic stops to see if they go and hope they wont have accident?   I know not to feed 4 hours before we leave and little on trip.   
    Not sure what route we will be taking yet,  less hills the better!  And weather will be an issue as well most likely hit snow (yuck)!
 
 
Look forward to hearing your comments and meeting you all!
 
Jamie

Jamie,
Good luck with your move. There are several good tips in this thread for how to help your pets survive the journey. At least you are not going to have the hot weather to deal with....that really is a major factor.
   If space is a real issue, consider putting the cat carriers in the car you are towing. Just check them every time you stop !

Wow, I don't know how I missed a page and a half of postings that I never recall appearing in the postings since last visit list. Maybe that was a good thing.
 
Regarding the tranquilizers. Our vet was only about 8 miles away, so we had some kind of oblong shapped green pill that we fed the cats 1/2 of a tablet just b4 taking them that the vet gave us towards the end. Whatever the stuff was, it didn't knock them out, just buzzed them enough that they were a bit lethargic for a while and made it easy to get them in the kitty carrier and they didn't freak out during the ride over or visit.  I have no idea what a long trip would have been like although it probably wouldn't have went well.
 
I mentioned traveling to one of my girls and she reminded me of a lady we knew that used to travel between Union City, NJ and Miami on a regular basis with her cat in a minivan. It was one of those rag doll or rag muffin type cats. Huge cat by comparison to ours and apparently traveled very well.

Dawn, yep that was a Rag Doll cat. Interesting history concerning the breed.
 
I wonder what that pill was? Sounds like it worked well.
 
I used to show cats, Rex and Manx,  and traveled allot w/ them. Some liked to travel and some didn't. I would give them treats in their carrier days ahead of time. And get them used to the towel or blanket used in their carrier. I never gave them any kind of tranquilizers since some of them had to travel so often.
Joe

We often travel with our cat in our camper van motorhome. She makes her displeasure known for about the first 50 miles and then settles down. We have been on the road as much as six weeks with her. The biggest concern would be heat but so far we have traveled mostly in the spring or fall when temperatures have been below 80 degrees. The camper vans bigger volume helps in not overheating like a car. We keep a litter box, food and water available at all times. She is free to roam about but generally just rides in the back of the van under blankets.

Back when my husband & I were young & dumb, we loaded up our 1977 Toyota Corolla staion wagon with 3 kids-8,4,18 months(I was pregnant with #4) & our kitty Charkie for a trip from Indy to WV
Charkie would have been OK if we had not ran the Toyota through the carwash on our way out of town.  She dived under the driver's seat, meowing, shivering.  We could not get out from under the seat, she stayed there the  7 hour trip & then when we got the WV we enticed her with sardines to come out.
Never go through a carwash with a cat in the car!!!!