The Happy Flying Cat...
- Traveling is stressful for everyone these days, and of course its going to be on your cat. First, spend the money on a VERY good quality carrier, mine is made by 'DELTA' and is soft yet is never flimsy and never can be bent out of shape. Second, security, where you must remove your cat amidst all the commotion. Just breath, "ask"(be firm) if there are any special needs line, or one for premier flyers, normally you will be allowed. Be aware that those rollers you put your items on, makes a noise which will make ANY cat flip. It's always okay to ask people around you for some courtesy. Third, the worst is over, I sometimes upon landing/departing I will CAREFULLY reach my hand in to pet my kitty's head to let him know I'm with him. Little Tips: A worn shirt of yours smells like you, put it in the carrier for added comfort. **Any airport service desk, if asked nicely, has disposable litter boxes** (missed connection once). Water, food, few drops of lavender oil, love. You two will be fine
- —Guest Heidi
Be prepared for bodily fluids!
- Some cats get motionsick. We used to take my cat Spaz sailing with us. On the way to the boat, he barfed or peed on me at the same corner every time! My parents travel often with their cats and line the bottom of their kennel with towels for easy cleanup.
- —Guest Jennifer
travel with your cat
- i have not had a cat for 2 years because i got a job out of town so i stay in a mobile home 4 days and my boyfriend lives 3 hours away so i am away from home alot. I finally decided to try it and i havea 10 wk old kitten that i am teaching to ride in the car and stay at 3 different locations. We have been doing this now for 3 weeks and he has adapted well. no major anxiety. I have litter pans at all 3 locations and he seems to adjust to each location just fine.
- —Guest sandra
How NOT to move your cat...?!
- In late 1976, I moved from Bloomington, Illinois to Toronto, Ontario...in a half-ton pickup bought specifically for the move. Back then, I knew not of "cat carriers," so poor Qat (my Siamese) rode the whole 650 miles in the cab; usually trying to hide under the seat (when she peeked out, we were usually loudly passing an "18-wheeler." so she would dive back under the seat and hide! I'm not sure what would have ensued if I had used a carrier...?!
- —Guest Steven C. Barr
you think you know them
- from my friend, Melinda: When moving,she put all three cats who live in/out together in one big dog kennel. Not good. They wound up fighting horribly! In case of an emergency, have a kennel per cat.
- —Guest Joan
Didn't Use a Cat Carrier -Twice !
- I am embarrassed to admit that I made the same mistake twice ! The first time was when I was transporting my room mate's mama cat and her litter of 6 month old girls back from the vet after being spayed. I took them in a cardboard box with a lid but after their surgeries I assumed they would be as dopey as my cats had been and I left the top open. I was so wrong -kitties all over the car ! Fortunately it was a short trip. Less than a year later I took one of those girl kitties home with me to Houston. Had a good size carrier but the litter pan was full size so I put it in one floorboard, the food and water in the other and decided little Amber needed access to both so I didn't use the carrier. She didn't climb on me or claw me but she did decide that the only place she was comfortable was beneath the brake pedal. After 60 miles I gave up on trying to change her mind and pulled over and put her in the carrier for the remaining 250 miles. Since then all my cats always ride in a carrier !
- —catladyjane
Poopie Kitty
- I had received a stray from a friend who had no space for him. I took him to Petco for their luvmypet clinic to get his shots. I had my senior cat and this 6 month old kitty. The store has a specific time and it's first come first serve. My husband and I decided it would be a good idea to get there early. So of course, we were waiting in the parking lot for about half an hour. About 15 min. before the clinic opened, my husband noticed a stench coming from the back seat, where the cats were in their kitty cabs. It seems like the kitty got diarrhea and had soiled the whole cage. He got it all over himself too. The smell was very strong. I ran to Jewel's grocery store bought some baby wipes and a blanket. I WIPED THAT KITTY DOWN LIKE I WAS WAXING A CAR!!! Wrapped him up in a blanket and did what I had set out to do. Went in for shots. People in line were saying out loud: "whats that smell"? LMAO
- —bibi1983
Been coast to coast
- Traveled from VA to NV with 1 cat and had no problems. Came back from NV to FL with 5, in a pick-up truck! All were in carriers, and every stop meant 1 would get moved into the cab to get out and cool off. They did great, really! We only stopped once for an overnight, and I was smart enough to keep a lead on them all to drag around, this in case anyone got up under the beds and unreachable. They didn't eat much, or use the litter tray either that night, but I tried, and when we arrived they were sooo excited to see and do and be free of their crates! I have 9 cats now, and every year when we get hurricane warnings I know IF it gets serious I will put them all in the SUV and just drive. They have all been acclimated to their harness lead, and don't mind the trips we have to make for yearly checks at the vet. I guess I'm lucky!
- —mykinkstar
Moving with Cats
- We adopted Bailey at 7 mos. from the SPCA in April and the end of May we moved by car from Florida to Indiana. My biggest error was to worry! He did great. First we got him used to his travel crate, second, I taught him to walk on a leash (indoor only cat) and third we drove him around town for a week before we left! He did wonderfully. Enjoyed the ride, enjoyed the walks, didn't use his litter box or eat until we arrived at the hotel even though I took a portable pan and put him into it after each stop and walk. He came right into his new house, explored it from top to bottom and we never saw a monents unease. We have made two more short moves since then and he was the right cat for us because settles right in!!! I always leave his crate in the closet with the door open and lots of time I find him sleeping in it. I know we are so lucky to have found him, he is the love of my life!!!!
- —Guest Dayelilly
Long Distance Travel
- I moved from Northern Ontario to Southern Alberta with my four cats and one dog. The three cats I put in my dogs large crate and the fourth had a crate to herself (Patches was the last to join our family and the other three weren't quite as friendly with her at this point). I also got some tranquillizers for the cats just in case. I put collars on all the cats with my cell number on them and away we went. I snuck them into motel rooms (always took the end room). Five days of travel but we made it in one piece and none the worse for wear except for Patches. It was the third night and she was out of sorts so I gave her a tranquillizer...it was like having a wide awake drunk stumbling around the room, crying. I called her to the bed and helped her up beside me. This was the bonding we had needed. She was one of the most cuddly cats after that experience!!
- —kismutt
Car travel with 2 cats
- I moved with my two cats, Pud and Chubbers from Delaware to Florida last August. I drove the moving truck while my mother and sister drove my suv with my cats in the back. I had a large hard crate for each cat facing the front so they could see my mom and sister and hear familier voices. We put a small litter box in each crate and a bowl of water. We fed them at the regular feeding time. We spent the night in a pet friendly motel in S.C. and brought them in. They slept in bed with me just like home. All in all it was a pleasant enough trip but Im sure they were confused and frightened about the whole situation.
- —Guest Jeanne S
Check for pet policies
- There was no trouble taking my cat on a plane, but when we had to stay at a hotel before leaving, it said no pets. I had no other choice but to sneak the cat in. Then on the way home, the flight was fine, but the airport shuttle bus service (which didn't have a problem with the cat on the outbound trip) suddenly had changed their policy when we were on our return trip. I had to argue with the management on the bus driver's cellphone about them not mentioning No Pets anywhere on their site, and how they had let me on before, etc. They let me on after a while, but they won't allow it again. So, any transportation you're using other than flying you should call ahead to see if they allow pets. Don't rely on the website saying nothing about it, and then assuming it's okay.
- —Guest Wendy
Visit to the Vet
- The first time we brought my cat Whisper to the vet, we had a total scare. My stepfather was driving and had to drop his kids off before we went. I didnt have a xarrier at the time, but still had one of the cardboard ones that you use to transport a cat home from the shelter. After much fuss, we got her closed up and ready to go. On the car ride, we heard off noises in the box, like she was scratching at the cardboard, but we didnt see any damage on the box, so we discounted it. We assumed that she was just upset at being confined. We pulled up outside of my stepsister's house and he had to move the carrier to grab her bag. As he lifted it, the bottom fell out. Whisper had clawed a hole around herself in the bottom of the carrier! She landed on the pavement, hopped right back into the car, and ran to my lap. She then turned around and glared daggers at my stepdad. Whisper was perfectly behaved the rest of the car ride, and every car ride after.
- —Guest Holly
Kitty Got Lost
- When I was in college I took my cat with me to visit my boyfriend at another school. When it was time to go, my Kitty was not to be found. He escaped from my friend's apartment and we couldn't find him anywhere. I had to leave him behind, and he ended up liking living with my boyfriend more than he did with me. I finally got Kitty back when my boyfriend graduated and moved to a large city.
- —Guest JenniferODonnell
Roman Nightmare
- We moved to Italy with our cats and managed to get them there fairly easily. Three years later, we were not so fortunate. A friend drove us from our military base in Brindisi to Fiumicino Airport in Rome (4-5 hours at the best of times). The cats, in their carriers after a short night in a strange hotel, did not like driving in the dark. After we got to the airport, we had to give them their vet-prescribed tranquilizers - in the middle of the crowded international terminal. Keeping a stressed-out kitty inside a pet carrier while attempting to force-feed her a pill wrapped in goopy warm cheese does not work well. (Neither cat ever ate cheese again.) After struggling for a long time, we managed to accomplish the task and check our cats in. We landed at JFK airport in New York in bad, early-December weather. We dropped them off for flight #2, a miserable, icy ride to already-closed Norfolk Airport. When we retrieved the cats, their pet carriers were covered in ice.
- —Guest Nancy
Kittens & Cars a Bad Mix
- The stupidest thing I ever did was drove from my old home to my new, a distance of about 500 miles, with four loose kittens in the car. They, of course, did what kittens do, climbing everything, including the steering wheel, getting under my feet and fighting with each other. The capper was when one of them climbed up the back of my seat and clawed me in the neck! Time to pull over, wise up, and confine all the little critters in a cat carrier!
- —Guest Susan
Cardboard is NOT Catproof
- This is by no means my worst cat-travel experience, but it was my worst mistake. I adopted a kitten, but I had not been planning to get one so I did not have any type of carrier in my car. The best I could manage was a cardboard box, which we had to tape up because the kitten wanted out through the folded lid. It was a relatively long drive, so we poked airholes in the box and I left the top down on my convertible, figuring that would increase the air circulation. The kitten worked at the air holes and managed a near-escape on the highway, which would have ended badly, given the car. What should I have done? Gotten a cat carrier before taking the kitten home. In my defense, that is the only cat I've ever had that shreds boxes.
- —gemdragon
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