My suggestion is you do take your kitty in the car on road trips between now
and when you leave as much as you can.  And I'd make it as positive an
experience as you can -- talk soothingly to her; take something familiar
with her and/or your scent on it in the car for her to lie on that you will
have with you on the trip.

Some quiet soothing music could be helpful and you'll want to watch your
volume on your speakers if she's in the back, too. Maybe you could get one
of those small battery-operated fans to help circulate the air in your
car -- have your vents on high and travel when it is coolest.  Plan on
rolling your windows up if some big trucks are whoosing by; that can be
scary for them.

Hope these ideas help.
Christine

While I'm not in favor of routinely tranquilizing a pet, eight hours could
become a very long time if she decides to scream the whole way.  When we had
to evacuate for a flood we spent a week in a motel room with a normally
outside cat and two little dogs she didn't much like.  The second day I was
out looking for a vet and some pills.  They made her life and ours a lot
happier, and the vet even refused to take my money.

Jo

Well, I traveled from Los Angeles to Minneapolis, once, with
two cats in a carrier in my Honda (car not bike).  They
didn't show much interest in food or elimination or anything
but sleep until we arrived at our destination each night.
Then I'd set their (disposable)litter box up in the
bathroom, along with a dish of water.  I'd usually not feed
them until I got back from having my own supper (and
sometimes include a bit of fish or chicken from my human
repast).  We managed quite well, and I found I didn't need
to use the tranquilizers I'd gotten from my vet.

I didn't have A/C, either.  The trip to Minnesota was at the
end of May, the trip back (my plans to relocate didn't work
out) was the end of August.  I drove with the windows open,
of course, and never left them unattended in a closed car,
but it didn't seem to be a problem for them.  Actually,
cats' body temperatures are a few degrees higher than a
human's, so they are less likely than we to suffer from
temperatures in the eighties and nineties.  Also, fur
insulates against heat, as well as cold.  (Seems hard to
believe, but apparently it's true.)

Cats are pragmatists - once mine realized that complaining
had no effect, they settled down and resigned themselves to
the ride.  They complained vociferously on shorter rides,
but after the first half-hour or so of the long trip, they
quieted down and slept through most of it.

Depends on the cat. Of my three, Waffles travels fine, Francis too, but Marble
*howls* as soon as he's in a car. And he keeps on howling.... I've even given
him a tranquilliser from vet and he still howls, just in a slightly muted and
more pathetic way ;-)

How I take mine on a long journey is each in its own secure carrier. & attached
to the front is a small dish with water in it. I also take a litter tray, which
I keep in a footwell, but none have used it. They seem to "stick a bung in it"
until they get to destination and then you can hear collective feline sighs of
relief.

Best of luck,

Cheers, helen s

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If you do decide to use tranquilizers, be sure to try one on
her before you go and when you are home with her.  Cats sometimes
react unexpectedly to tranquilizers and you don't want to be
on the road if she is going to get agitated or upset.  Letting
her get used to being in the car for pleasant experiences will
probably help.  Give her treats or tuna after the ride.

Debbie
dberry@mitre.org

We used to take our cat, Ted, on a trip of that length quite often.
We would set up a comfortable bed on the back seat of the car and
would make sure we stopped every 90 minutes or 2 hours to check her
over thoroughly.  She would wail (ear-splitting) for the first 20
minutes or so, then settle down and sleep.  We only tried
tranquilizers once and it made things much worse for her - she was
much more distressed by the lack of control and co-ordination from the
tranquilizers than she was with the car's motion.  If you are
considering using tranquilizers, I would do a tranq trial-run before
the trip to check your cat's reaction.

Tish

At times because of travel constraints (flying) my guys have been cooped
up for almost 24 hours in a crate. The way I got around space issues,
was to buy a medium size vari-kennel (bigger than a normal cat carrier)
as there is room for a bed "and" a small litter box. My experience has
been that they don't use the litter boxes, however. Instead, I use vet
bed which absorbs liquid so that the surface is always dry. Plus, you'll
be in the car so will be able to change it. I wouldn't travel the cat
lose in the car, I really wouldn't - it's much safer for everyone
concerned if you use an over size carrier or dog crate. You only need to
stop suddenly, or open a door and your pet be scared and get out.

On the advice of my vet, I've not ever used tranqs for the cats, but
they have been flying, not driving, so your vet is the best person to
advise on this.

Good Luck - let us know how it pans out.

Helen M

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