In two weeks, I am moving across the country. We will be driving from Arizona to Maryland, with two cats in the car.

I've read some things about traveling with cats -- and it is so contridictory. Should I cover their carriers? Should I get drugs? Should I let them out to roam in the car from time to time? Should I keep them in their carriers for all 8-10 hours of driving every day? And so on. Every source says something different.

Can anyone share PRACTICAL experiences they've had traveling with cats? I need help! :)

-- Anonymous, June 05, 2001

Answers

Not a good deal of practical car experience here, but I have flown cross-country with my cat. I have almost universally heard to avoid tranquilizing them unless they *really* can't handle the trip -- might be best to get a 'just in case' prescription but intend not to use it.

My cat is the kind who's happy to curl up and sleep in her secure little carrier, and is quite frightened of the big scary world outside of it, so I never felt the need to give her out-of-carrier time. We were talking something less than eight hours, though. I've found http://www.i-love- cats.com/meow/ramblincat/ to be a wonderful resource. A lot of it is about international travel, but you may find http://www.i-love- cats.com/meow/ramblincat/faq.html#cartravel useful, and there's plenty of other stuff there as well.

-- Anonymous, June 07, 2001

I drove from Washington state to Chicago with 2 cats in carriers - hard driving, 10-12 hours a day. We 'sedated' them with copious amounts of catnip. Don't open the carriers unless you are in your lodging for the night - I can't tell you how many rest stops I have been to in my lifetime that featured a few people in the parking lot, crying, and calling out for their dog/cat, after it bolted from their car and disappeared. Cats sleep about 20 hours a day - they will be fine in the carrier. Also, it is never safe to have an unrestrained animal in the car.

If you fill a water dish and freeze it, you can leave it in the carrier with them to drink from as it melts, without sloshing water everywhere. Make sure they are wearing some form of Identification that lists a contact number where you are moving to, not your old telephone number.

-- Anonymous, June 07, 2001

I just drove 15 hours with my two cats. I sedated them, since they get really horribly upset (and car sick). They did great! The sedation took the edge off, so they could sleep (but they were still awake and responsive when they wanted to be...it's like kitty valium). The drugs wore off more or less after 8-10 hours, and by then they were used to driving and looked around out the windows. I know you're not supposed to let them out, but they were happiest when they could curl up on my lap, and get cuddles.

-- Anonymous, June 07, 2001

My boyfriend has done the driving-several-hours with cats thing. He found that one of the cats really needed to be tranquilized or she would yowl and race around and try to get under the brake pedal. The other cat was okay left conscious, mostly in his carrier, but let out every so often.

Another thing that might work if you're travelling with someone else, is getting a cat harness and leash. That way the cats can take turns being out of their carriers, and they can have some freedom, but your passenger can hang onto the leash and keep them from getting anywhere they're going to get in the way of your driving.

I've only personally taken a cat on a plane, for a short hop from Pittsburgh to Newark. I found that the magic trick there was to bring along a bag of roast beef and slip him a little bite every time he started doing the little questioning squeak that might lead to a full-on yowl. Really he was very good except during takeoff and landing when he got freaked out and had to be fed lots of roast beef to shut him up.

-- Anonymous, June 07, 2001

I'm the quintessential dog type, but ditto what Kristin said about people calling and crying at rest stops.

Anytime you open the door to your car when you're out and about with a pet, your pet should be wearing a well-fitted collar with identification and a restraining device (or be in a crate).

Howard is a pro in the car, but sometimes something catches his attention or enthusiasm overcomes him and he wants to bolt. A leash to grab as he's on the way out is oh-so-handy.

-- Anonymous, June 07, 2001

Chicken McNuggets made my cat happiest. I've traveled with two cats, and it's no picnic, but I kept them in the carriers. They never did stop yowling, but they survived. I didn't sedate them because:

1) I felt bad about drugging them up, much in the way I think it's very wrong for people to give thier kids a dose of Nyquil before a roadtrip so their little darlings don't bother them too much, and

2) The vet gave me some pills to try to sedate them, but I'm not very good at shoving anything into their little cat mouths. So you see, I was going to give in to my (heh) moral convictions, but in the end, it still didn't work out.

When I travel in the car with just one cat, we usually let him out of the carrier if we're going to be driving for an extended amount of time (he winds up sleeping on my lap, no, I'm not the driver), and then put him back in when we need to stretch or whatever. He also has a cat leash and is more than happy to get out at rest stops as well and scowl at the other animals.

And yes, I know that the grease from the nuggets is probably doing more damage to the cat than the sedatives would. Good luck. Have lots of patience.

-- Anonymous, June 07, 2001

Kris --

I agree with Kristin's suggestions. The longest I've had my cats in the car was 6 hours. They didn't like it, but they survived. I kept them in carriers the whole time that were facing each other, so they could at least see and sniff each other.

One thing I try to do is remember to put a harness on them with a leash attached even when they're in the carrier. That way if they - do- happen to get loose, you have something more to try to grab onto than just fur.

I would also recommend not letting them out of the carrier until you're in a closed room.

But I'm repeating what most have said.. the ice in the water dish is also a good idea. And I keep kitty treats handy to give to them when they're yowling. Sometimes it works.

After the six hours (I was moving) I set up the litter box and then let the cats out. Both, -both- of them sat together inside the litterbox for about 2 days before they would venture out to explore the new house, so don't be surprised if they act freaky for awhile after the trip. :)

-- Anonymous, June 07, 2001

At the beginning of April, I moved my cat (who HATES!!! cars, with a passion) from Ohio to Winnipeg. I spent three days alone in a moving truck with my cat. A few things to remember:

1. Cats do not go hoarse.
2. Get a carrier. It's safer for the cat, safer for you, and in some states you could get pulled over for having a cat sitting on your dashboard.
3. I got drugs, but didn't use them. The vet recommended that I give the pills to her while she was calm, but she was never calm. The vet said that tranqs work great for some cats, and "you might as well have squirted goats milk in their ears for all the good it does" for other cats. (His words, not mine. =)
4. Try to keep the temperature comfortable, and never leave a cat alone in a locked vehicle... Even if the cat is in a carrier. I *did* leave my cat alone in the truck for 15-minute increments (while getting gas, grabbing a bite, etc), and I'm a very bad cat mommy for doing so. The temperature outside was cool enough that I wasn't that concerned. But since you're moving during the summer...
5. I put a towel over her carrier to keep it sort of dark in there, and to muffle the truck sounds a bit.
6. Cats do not go hoarse, no matter how much you pray for them to go hoarse.
7. SECURE THE CARRIERS. I can't stress this enough. If you just have the carrier sitting on the passenger seat, or have them in the back seat... One hard stop could send the carriers flying through the air, injuring you and/or the cats. It doesn't have to be pretty or elaborate, just make sure that the carriers won't be moving around.
8. Offer your cats food and water halfway through each day. Don't worry about a litter box, because they won't use one unless they're comfortable, and when you're at a rest stop you don't have time to make your cat comfortable. =)
9. The only time I opened the door of the carrier while on the road was to offer her food and water. The last thing I wanted was for her to climb into some part of the truck cab that I couldn't reach. Also, I only opened the carrier door when all the other doors on the truck were tightly shut - didn't want her getting lost in North Dakota!
10. Get some AAA books that show which hotels take animals, or reserve your hotels in advance.
11. I got two of those disposable litter trays, with the litter and everything in a plastic tray. My cat settled right into the hotel rooms and used the litter box without fail both nights. Your milage may vary. When my husband moved across Canada with his two cats, both cats "held it" all the way from Vancouver to Winnipeg.
12. Pack familiar food, and water from home. Also pack a first aid kit for emergencies. Pack old newspaper to put under the water and food dishes, and under the litter box. If they have a special cat bed that they sleep in, you might want to pack that, too. Anything from home with their scent on it would help.
13. Cats do not go hoarse.

That's all I can think of right now. My cat survived the trip, and after shedding about half her hair, is now settling in. =) Good luck!

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Also, when you get where you're going, be sure you have a lot of stuff with your scent on. I brought the linens from my bed, including the comforter, in the car with us so that the bedroom would quickly smell like home. I put the food and litter box in the bedroom and confined them there for a few days---no matter how much they thought they wanted to explore, I wanted them to feel comfortable in one room before I let them wander around (plus there were too many boxes and fragile things stacked everywhere!). Really, they did a lot better than I thought they would. Just give them tons of love, and they'll soon be happy to be with you.

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Red Roof Inn's take pets.

Though my usual technique is just to pretend Howard is some humongous giant piece of luggage when I walk to our room. Oh, this? Yes, haven't they made an improvement over those loud wheels? Though the exaust system on this one could use an upgrade.

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Drove in reverse, from Alexandria, VA to Emeryville, CA with 5 cats in the back.

We gave ourselves plenty of time to make it across so that we wouldn't have overly long driving days. Drove an average of 8-9 hours per day, except for the first real day of traveling when we did 11 hours.

The cats seemed to be able to handle 8 hours. They'd whine for about an hour and then settle down and go to sleep.

I put them all in separate carriers and covered them with a quilt for shade, in the Nevada desert, but made sure they had good airflow all around at the same time so they'd be comfy breathing. I didn't use the blanket the whole way either -- just when the sun was really strong and falling full on the carriers.

I gave them sips of water off of my fingers every couple of hours if they felt up to it.

We stayed in pet friendly Best Westerns all the way across, and got into a ritual: arrive, check-in, set up food, water and a litter box on a tarp in the main room for the quartet and set Pearl's stuff up in the bathroom. Unload cats carriers into room. Unload human's gear into room. Let cats out. Flop on bed and groan for a while, during which the cats ran around, drank, ate and peed.

When the fuzzies were all settled, put do not disturb sign on door and go out for human dinner. Come back, go to sleep with a carpet of cats on us.

Pack up cats first thing in morning, then load up all the gear, get in car and go again.

I did not wind up letting most of them roam around the car 'cos we couldn't open the carriers that were behind us -- not enough room in the seats. I did let Tiger out once and he settled down quietly on my lap for a while, then went back into the carrier of his own accord.

On a shorter trip once upon a time, I had all three kittens in my lap or on the floor, or on the back of my seat throughout the drive.

It can be hard to round them all up again when you get where you're going 'cos they can fit under the seats and you can't unless you open doors and they can dart out and get lost if you're not careful of course.

If you're keen on letting them stretch their legs -- leash train them. Put harnesses on both before you put them in the carriers. Then you can take them out for walks when you make potty breaks. Just open the carrier, clip the leash on and take kitty out like you would a doggy -- but try to stick to a quietish area for this.

Mine were fine doing 8 hours a day though. All 5 of them with very different personalities and none the worse for wear. Just make sure they don't dehydrate -- offer them water periodically if they've been breathing heavily.

I brought along a sedative the vet gave me, 'just in case' but we didn't wind up needing it. If you're worried, bring a mild sedative along to help take the edge off for the fuzzies. You can give them a whole or a half dose of some sedatives. I'd have used it if the cats had been whining and throwing themselves at the carrier doors past 2 hours in the car. So I'd use that as a gauge -- if they're still very upset and thrashing about violently after about 2-3 hours, give 'em something to take the edge off so they don't tire themselves out and dehydrate. Pinch the backs of their necks to check if they're hydrated enough -- if the skin 'stands' a little before settling back down, they're dehydrated and need a drink.

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001