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Travelling with a cat
Kate of Lokys
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
My boyfriend and I are heading down to the US during my reading week, to visit his friends and family. It's an easy 10 hour drive, we've both driven it a dozen times before, it's no problem. However, this time, there's a complicating factor: we're bringing Aleph, my kitty. There's nobody in my building over reading week who I would trust enough to look after her, and it would be inhumane to leave her entirely alone for that long, so she's coming on a road trip. What I'm looking for is advice on how to make the trip as comfortable for her as possible.
She has a fairly small cat carrier right now, but I'm planning on getting her a much bigger one, so she'd have room to lie down comfortably and turn around. I'll put her favourite disgustingly hair-covered towel in there, and a couple of treats for her to find, and I'll make sure she has access to water. She's a good traveller, from what we've seen so far - we took her on a three-hour drive back to my parents' place over Christmas, and she just curled up and slept for most of the trip. There was no yowling or whining at all, and even when she was awake, she was just kind of chilling out and looking around calmly.
My big concern, though, is the duration of the drive: she's probably going to have to use her litterbox at least a couple of times. Our tentative plan is to have the litterbox filled in the trunk (I drive a station wagon, so it's roomy and flat), then stop every two or three hours, park the car, let her out of the carrier, and show her where her litterbox is so she can use it. We'll spend some time petting her while she's out, too, and telling her that she is the best kitty. Will this work, or should I look into other options, like maybe getting a *really* big carrier and just putting a small litterbox inside it? Will it be impossible to catch her again to put her back in her carrier when it's time to get back on the road? Should I harness and leash her just in case she gets out somehow, or should I let her be comfortable?
The last issue is the border crossing. She's in good health, and I have her Humane Society papers showing the dates of her vaccinations for rabies and FVRCPC. I also have the name and address of her vet here in town. Do I need anything else? When I crossed with my parents' dogs last February, there was no trouble at all, they barely even looked at them, but some of the stuff I've been reading online is talking about physical inspections - should I call ahead to the crossing point to ask them for details? It would really suck to show up at the bridge at 7pm and be told "Sorry, the staff vet's gone home for the day and we can't let your animal in, you'll need to come back tomorrow after 9am."
Anything else I'm forgetting?
She has a fairly small cat carrier right now, but I'm planning on getting her a much bigger one, so she'd have room to lie down comfortably and turn around. I'll put her favourite disgustingly hair-covered towel in there, and a couple of treats for her to find, and I'll make sure she has access to water. She's a good traveller, from what we've seen so far - we took her on a three-hour drive back to my parents' place over Christmas, and she just curled up and slept for most of the trip. There was no yowling or whining at all, and even when she was awake, she was just kind of chilling out and looking around calmly.
My big concern, though, is the duration of the drive: she's probably going to have to use her litterbox at least a couple of times. Our tentative plan is to have the litterbox filled in the trunk (I drive a station wagon, so it's roomy and flat), then stop every two or three hours, park the car, let her out of the carrier, and show her where her litterbox is so she can use it. We'll spend some time petting her while she's out, too, and telling her that she is the best kitty. Will this work, or should I look into other options, like maybe getting a *really* big carrier and just putting a small litterbox inside it? Will it be impossible to catch her again to put her back in her carrier when it's time to get back on the road? Should I harness and leash her just in case she gets out somehow, or should I let her be comfortable?
The last issue is the border crossing. She's in good health, and I have her Humane Society papers showing the dates of her vaccinations for rabies and FVRCPC. I also have the name and address of her vet here in town. Do I need anything else? When I crossed with my parents' dogs last February, there was no trouble at all, they barely even looked at them, but some of the stuff I've been reading online is talking about physical inspections - should I call ahead to the crossing point to ask them for details? It would really suck to show up at the bridge at 7pm and be told "Sorry, the staff vet's gone home for the day and we can't let your animal in, you'll need to come back tomorrow after 9am."
Anything else I'm forgetting?
Kate of Lokys on
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"Litterbox in the trunk" is probably the best idea. You don't want kitty to have a litterbox in the carrier, otherwise kitty may think that litterbox equals carrier. Or vice versa.
Feel free to have her "free" without harness/leash, but just keep all the doors closed until she's safely back in her carrier. Oh, and park in the shade, don't leave her unattended for long periods, etc etc. :P
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Not necessarily. One of my cats travels very, very well. She hates me afterwards, even if it's just a 30-minute ride to the kennel, but the trip itself is fine.
The other cat though bitches the whole way through the trip.
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The other one just sat there. Our third just pooped. For 2 hours straight.
It really depends on how they react. I wouldn't let a panicky cat out, for fear they'd wedge themselves under the pedals or something.
Our cats don't ride in a carrier when in the car, we put a blanket down in the back (I have a Toyota Matrix so it's a station wagon of sorts) and let them lay back there. They typically don't move out of fear, and sometimes they'll find a spot under the seat if they're really freaked out. But as long as your passenger knows the location of the cat at all times it's safe (cue nightmare of cat jumping on your head during heavy traffic).
Our dogs, on the other hand, don't travel well, typically. They get nervous or motion sick... so they throw up every 5 minutes. We have to stock small plastic bags and keep them on our laps so we can always be ready for them to puke in a bag. Your cat might do that, too, since car motion is harder on smaller bodies than it is on us.
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Since she had no inclination to go near the front, on the way back I skipped the harness and leash and there weren't any problems. The car smelled kind of bad afterwards, but I left the windows open for a few hours to air it out and it was fine.
It really does depend on the cat. I have one cat that went OMGOMGOMGOMG and crawled everywhere (including over my head) when I took her for a 15 minute ride. My kittens I have now just sit there and are chill.
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She meowed once in a while, but mostly just sat wide-eyed and super scared looking.
It sounds like your kitty is much more chill during car rides, but if the length of the ride starts to get to her and you feel comfortable doing so, you might try talking to her to calm her down or consider taking her out of her carrier and holding her as I described.
Like other said, keep the car cool if you stop somewhere, and I think it can last more than 2-3 hours for litter breaks. Make it 4-5 and you don't have to stop as much especially if she's just sleeping.
No, not really. A seatbelt through the carrying handle should keep them sufficiently secure in anything short of a rollover; and while hitting the side of their carrier might be quite unpleasant for Kitty, it's going to beat the shit out of hitting the windshield, dashboard, or anything else.
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We always carry an extra blanket for him and some moist baby wipes. If he decides to go, he often ends up stepping on his own poo as he tries in vain to bury it in his blanket.
If it happens, pull over, shake out the blanket. Wipe off the paws and carrier as required, pack the soiled blanket in a plastic bag, put new blanket inside the carrier and be on your way.
Baby wipes are excellent to have in your car anyway. Hopefully your little girl isn't nervous and figures out the rest stops.
As long as your cat's had a rabies shot within the year then you're ok to cross the border. They won't give you trouble. Where are you crossing to/from?
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