Traveling w/ cats

[NYSUPstater]

So now we've added a cat to the mix and have a question for those who have cats w/ them while traveling and going long distances. Do you leave the cat loose in the coach while under motion or no? Unlike a dog, you cannot make a cat go when you stop and say toss the cat into the camper in hopes they will use the litter box. Due to work time constraint, we try to make the best use of travel time when we can and will go 10 hrs at a time, stopping only for fuel, bathroom or switch driver's. In doing so, let the dog do his thing w/o a problem. What do you do w/ cats in same situation?

 

[JohnD]

We travel with three Mainecoone's . . .



The orange one (Rusty) rides in the truck on the console between the front seats and the other two in a pet carrier in the back seat.

We will stop every three or so hours and let them use the litter pan.

We tried an experiment last year and let the cats ride in the bedroom/bathroom . . . big mistake!

One of them got scared and peed right in the middle of the bed (they all had their story straight and wouldn't rat on whomever did it . . . ) and it ruined a very expensive gel mattress cover.

Needless to say . . . we probably won't try that again.

 

[farside291]

What ever you do, don't think putting the litter box in the shower is a good idea. Rinsing clumping cat litter down the drain was a very bad idea. Had a heck of a time in my SOB cleaning that clog.

 

[danemayer]

Leaving pets in the trailer while towing is problematic. The ride can be rough and you don't know how they're handling bumps, noises, etc.

Also, take a look at the bedroom slide when pulled in for travel. Ours leaves a space for a cat or small dog to crawl into. It took opening a can of tuna to get our Gracie out so we could open the slide.

 

[cookie]

The people owned by our cat carry him out to the truck in his carrier. The carrier sits on the back seat with its door open so he can roam when he wants. Usually does not come out till we reach our destination.
A litter box, we use Feline Pine Pellets, food and water sit on the floor in the back.
And everything Dan said is correct about bumps and places to hide, not to mention possible high temperatures in the summer.

Peace
Dave

 

[JohnD]

We tried the pine pellet kitty litter when we went to the Alto, NM HOC Rally back in May . . .

And the kitties gave us protest poops . . . just outside of the poopie pan!

 

[porthole]

We traveled with a cat (and two dogs and a Blue & Gold Macaw) for years.

The cat only made two trips in the truck. After that it was in the RV - or not going at all.

He had free roam of the trailer and we would find him wherever he felt like being.
Cat box was in the bathroom as was water and food.
We used non slip bowls with a bit higher sides. Never had a problem with the bowls or box.
Lack of room between the toilet and wall dictated making a custom cat box out of a storage bin.
We used clumping litter for the convenience and it lacked of any odors.

And we have first person confirmation of his comfort in the RV while traveling

 

[BLR]

We travel with 7 cats and 1 dog
The cats travel in the 5th wheel we put them in the garage. I put blankets on the floorboards of our Maverick normally we have 4, 5 or 6 on the blankets. Some times we have them just sitting on the seats. We leave a cat littler box with them. And they have used it as we are driving. We try and stop every 2 to 3 hours to check on them.. Here is a photo of Cimarron

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[VKTalley]

We travel with a cat and she rides in the truck in a medium size dog carrier with a bedding pad. No, she is not happy being in the carrier and lets us know for about the first 15 minutes of our drive. She usually settles down after that, unless the road gets bumpy.
I agree with several others that a cat riding in the trailer is not the best option...too many hiding places, heat in the summertime, and things moving around. A good example...September 2015, we were involved in an accident while towing. Callie (our cat) was in her carrier in the back seat of the truck and was only shook up from the wreck. I'd hate to think what it would have been like if she had been in our rig during that wreck.

 

[DickO]

Re: Traveling w/ cats.

We have traveled with 2 cats for years. Because of being able to get behind the bedroom slide, they travel in the closet. They have their cat carries, food, water, and litter box. No smell. We have had other people check that for us. Don't worry about the heat. Cats love the heat. In the summer our garage is close to 100. When we come home with the truck, the cats sleep under the engine.

 

[TravelTiger]

We travel with our two cats, they ride together in a large carrier in the back seat of the truck. They do not get to come out of the carrier. They fussed some at first, but over time they've realized it's no big deal. They sleep the whole time, and never need a potty break. We've tried taking them into the trailer for a littler box break, but they don't seem interested, so we stopped that unless they are really making a fuss in the carrier and scratching the sides, which rarely happens.

We feel very blessed they travel so well! We almost forget they are back there.

How do we travel? When we stop at rest stops and for lunch, we always eat in the truck and take turns using facilities, so they are never left alone or in a hot truck.


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[terribruce]

We have a cat, never travels with us. She always acts like she wants to go, but not to sure. Well just here about a week ago, we traveled to
our daughters wedding taking the trailer. She had crawled up into the front garage checking things out, well got locked in. Not knowing she was in there for a good day or day and half. Went in to grab some chairs and SURPRISE!!!! She was scared, she darted into some bushing near by for cover. We thought we had lost her, but she did good and hung around the trailer. We had to go get her some food, since she
wasn't suppose to be coming on this trip, she rode back in the same spot home. By the time we got home, which was about 2 hrs she was glad to see familiar surroundings. Not sure if she will do that again.

Terri

 

[AnnaIvanZ]

If things go as planned, we will be Winter Texans for next winter. Our "problems" are our 3 felines. Well, we have 4, but old "Kitty" won't see another winter, I don't think. We have a site rented from Dec. 1st, 2018 till March 31, 2019. We would like to come home for Christmas. (we live in Wisconsin). The easiest, logistically, would be take the kitties with us when we go. But, since this will be our first time wintering in warmer climes, we will obviously not know anyone in the RV park and would have to have someone look in and feed the cats and scoop the litter boxes. The "sensible" thing would be bring the cats back with us after Christmas. Now, the conundrum in all this is we would not be driving our truck back to Wisconsin. The Spousal Unit is adamant that he will NOT put the truck on any road that has been salted. This leaves renting a vehicle, flying (no cats allowed), the train (no cats allowed, and let's face it, Amtrack's record lately has been less than stellar), or the bus (no pets allowed).

I'm sure we will figure it out, we have 9 months. And no, getting rid of the cats is NOT an option! We hate to have our son and his wife look after them for 4 months; he said "not a big deal, we have to feed the 6 outside ones, what's 3 or 4 more?" But still............

 

[BLR]

Check with the RV park.. They may have a service or know of someone that provides those services.

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[JohnDar]

Check with the RV park.. They may have a service or know of someone that provides those services.

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Check with local kennels that board cats. We used to board ours at a kennel when we traveled (prior to the BH). The past few years, though, we got lucky and have the daughter of one of the other FD officers come daily to take care of them. Pay her in cash half of the kennel rate and she's happy. Cats are happy because they don't have to live in a cage. And our local vet knows if she should need to bring one in for an emergency, it's covered.

 

[mlpeloquin]

If things go as planned, we will be Winter Texans for next winter. Our "problems" are our 3 felines. Well, we have 4, but old "Kitty" won't see another winter, I don't think. We have a site rented from Dec. 1st, 2018 till March 31, 2019. We would like to come home for Christmas. (we live in Wisconsin). The easiest, logistically, would be take the kitties with us when we go. But, since this will be our first time wintering in warmer climes, we will obviously not know anyone in the RV park and would have to have someone look in and feed the cats and scoop the litter boxes. The "sensible" thing would be bring the cats back with us after Christmas. Now, the conundrum in all this is we would not be driving our truck back to Wisconsin. The Spousal Unit is adamant that he will NOT put the truck on any road that has been salted. This leaves renting a vehicle, flying (no cats allowed), the train (no cats allowed, and let's face it, Amtrack's record lately has been less than stellar), or the bus (no pets allowed).

I'm sure we will figure it out, we have 9 months. And no, getting rid of the cats is NOT an option! We hate to have our son and his wife look after them for 4 months; he said "not a big deal, we have to feed the 6 outside ones, what's 3 or 4 more?" But still............

If you belong to Costco, rent a car and drop it off at your home town. Do the same for the return. It is cheep. We rented a car in Florida and had it for three months. No mile charge and put over 10K miles on it. Three months later turned it in in California.

 

[AnnaIvanZ]

Don't belong to Costco, but this might be worth the $75 membership! I will have to check it out.

- - - Updated - - -

Jeez, I just went and checked Costco Travel................a little over a grand to rent one for a one-way. We could fly home twice for that. LOL

 

[Oregon_Camper]

We are considering starting to bring our 2 cats, as our goal is to retire in ~5 years and they are only 3...so at some point they HAVE to come.

Anyone using something like this for inside the truck?

Link to Amazon

 

[cookie]

All cats are different so what works for one may be the worst experience another cat could have.
Ours spends most of his time in his carrier which is always open. He comes out once in a while to make sure my driving is alright.
If the carrier was locked up he would not be a happy camper.
Another important thing is that he has been traveling since he was a tiny kitten.
Good luck.

Peace
Dave

 

[BLR]

We travel with 7 cats In our Garage, We normally have the Maverick which they feel very comfortable in, we put blankets on the floor boards... we try and only travel 2 to 3 hundred miles a day..

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