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Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / July 2006My friend has a cat question
If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail to me: We are about to move to Iowa from north of Seattle, about 2000 miles or minimum 3 1/2 days of driving. We are driving a car and a van and towing a third car. We have 2 drivers and 2 kids and working A/C in all cars. We have 2 cats. One is about 2 1/2 years old and very active. The other one is about 11 years old and not nearly so active. We do not know what is the best way to move our kitties to Iowa. It looks like there are three options: 1. Put them in cat carriers and take them with us. Cons: They could escape at some point (both are chipped, but ...). We might have problems finding hotels that accept pets: we've been told "just put them both in the bathroom" but they are not fond of each other and I'm not sure our kids would leave them in the bathroom. What would we do while eating lunch / dinner if we stopped at a restaurant (can't leave pets in a car in the summer, they'll cook). One (the 2.5 yo) will meow incessantly for hours on end and we will go nuts. Pros: See cons for other option. Cheaper (but not nec. worth it to save that money) 2. Option 2: Put them in a cat kennel the day we move, and have a friend drive them to the airport 1.5 hours from our house, and fly them unattended to Iowa, pick them up at the airport, and then drive them 1 1/2 hours to our house. Cons: We have heard scary stories about how unattended pets are treated. Will my cats get squished or suffocated? They will have to change plans at least once as there are no direct flights to the areas where we are moving. Will our older cat have a heart attack and die when the plane takes off? We would have to impose on a friend and not sure anyone would be able to do this for us. Pros: See cons for other option. Any suggestions? Susan, if you have any experience or friends with experience or would like to post this somewhere where you feel I might get helpful feedback, I woudl be SO grateful. I am terrified that our cats will run away at a rest stop, or that they will meow in the bathroom all night and we won't get any sleep and we will wreck the car and die OR that they will be mistreated by the airlines where I can't see them and will die or that Whifferdill will have a heart attack when the plane takes off or lands. All other things being equal, money is a consideration too (did I tell you we are taking a 50% paycut to do this very expensive move?) but all other thinsg aren't equal. Thanks, SM I'd recommend getting harnesses and leashes for the rest stops and taking them along. Even if they aren't mistreated on the flight, cats can go astray just as well as other luggage, and they might not reach their destination. Changing planes increases that risk. Also, leaving them in a kennel and then shipping them on a plane with no familiar people or smells around them would distress them mightily. Meal stops would be a problem, but there are options. Buy fast food or take out and eat at a park, or eat in shifts so somebody can either walk them or drive them around with the AC going while others are eating. In motels, keep one in the bathroom and the other in a carrier in the bedroom, altering so they both get some freedom. I'd make it an absolute rule that the outside door is not to be opened after a certain time (say, 9 PM, for instance) or before the parents make sure the cats are safely confined in the morning. Then, I'd let the cats have the run of the motel room at night. Of course that's just my opinion, and I've never traveled more than a couple of hours with a cat. Others with experience may have better suggestions. Joy > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail to > me: [quoted text clipped - 56 lines] > > SM > I'd recommend getting harnesses and leashes for the rest stops and > taking them along. Even if they aren't mistreated on the flight, [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > sure the cats are safely confined in the morning. Then, I'd let the > cats have the run of the motel room at night. In my travels over the last few years I have noticed most motels are pet-friendly, in fact moreso to cats than dogs which may tend to keep other guests awake with their barking. There is usually an additional charge of $10-15 per pet. Much cheaper, however, than paying to fly the cats and risk the chance of them getting lost like so much luggage. Jill And then she sent me: Thanks. Left out the third option, which is to fly the active kitty and drive the lazy old one. The active one is a lot more likely to run off (or to have kids open her crate and let her loose) and less likely tohave a heart attack on the flight (she has previously flown WITH US trans-Pacific) (They adopted the kitten when they found it stray in Taiwan, where they were living for a year). Susan M Otis and Chester > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail > to me: [quoted text clipped - 56 lines] > > SM I'll take what's behind door number three. > And then she sent me: > [quoted text clipped - 70 lines] >> >> SM > And then she sent me: > Thanks. Left out the third option, which is to fly the active kitty > and drive the lazy old one. The active one is a lot more likely to run > off (or to have kids open her crate and let her loose) and less likely > tohave a heart attack on the flight (she has previously flown WITH US > trans-Pacific) Any possibility that one of the people who are planning to go on the road trip might be able to fly with the active kitty instead? That would be more expensive, of course, since you'd have to pay for that person's plane ticket, but some airlines will allow you to bring a cat into the cabin with you, so Active Kitty wouldn't have to be in cargo at all. If you have more than two adults planning to do this drive, it seems like you have one to spare. I wouldn't want to do that trip as the only adult, with 3 vehicles, plus cats and children, but if there are two adults driving and one flying, that might be manageable. Good luck! Joyce >And then she sent me: > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >Susan M >Otis and Chester Hi Susan, Do you know what type of van are they using - is it a moving van or their own? If it is a moving van, can they rent an RV instead, that way they could put the cats in the back bedroom with the door shut, and they would have more room for the kids to move around in. And, they wouldn't have to worry about finding a motel/hotel that takes animals. Just a thought. The other idea is that they get a "Kitty Condo" cage - that way they can just leave the cats in it - here is an example or 2: http://tinyurl.com/ndpgo ; this one is on casters: http://tinyurl.com/nsbv8 I wish her good luck! Mishi "Susan M" > <otis_chester_mom@yahoo.com> wrote: > > Do you know what type of van are they using - is it a moving van or > their own? If it is a moving van, can they rent an RV instead RV rental is enormously costly but maybe would partly pay for itself by saving on motels. > "Susan M" > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > RV rental is enormously costly but maybe would partly pay for itself by > saving on motels. Except that an RV is not the same as a moving van! If they're using a van to transport their furniture, I doubt they could do the same with an RV (even assuming the rental company would allow it). > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail > to me: [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > know what is the best way to move our kitties to Iowa. It looks like > there are three options: <snip> > Thanks, > > SM I have made many trips with cats, both by airplane and by car. I much prefer travel by car, and I would *never* send a cat in cargo. I did that a few times many years ago, before cats were permitted in the cabin (or I didn't know about it). My cat was sick, and it took time for him to be completely back to his normal self. Once I started to take cats in the cabin with me, all problems ceased. Even so, I prefer the car. However, the cats should be *kept in a carrier* at all times. There is no way they could "escape" if that is done. If the parents are concerned that their children might leave the cats out, then the carriers should be locked (for the protection of the cats but also for the children -- this will avoid any possibility of the cats becoming panicked and children possibly getting scratched). I never left my cats alone in the car for more than a *very few* minutes. That is particularly true in hot weather because a car can heat up to such high levels that death can occur in a short time. So, I only left my cats alone while I would quickly run in for the restroom and then back out. Other than that, I would use the drive-through window and pick up take-out orders. In your friend's case, one parent could take the children indoors and and other could stay in the car with the cat (and air conditioner running). They could take turns and alternate this process. Watch for motels that permit pets, so that will require some advance planning. I always traveled with a variety of motel directories for that purpose. The biggest risk will be once they are settled in the motel room, assuming that the cats have been kept in carriers until then. At this point, it is *essential* that the doors be kept closed until the cats are in a secure location -- in the bathroom or possibly back in the carriers (temporarily, while eating or out of the room). This sounds tedious, but it was really very pleasant for me. It just takes some extra precautions for safety. Of course, they will need to take food, water, litterbox, etc. However, my cats *never* wanted any of these things until we reached the motel. Then they immediately headed for litterbox or food as soon as we were in the room. MaryL If I were moving I'd want the cats with me. I'd put both cats in a crate in the back seat of one car and the kids in the back seat of the other. (Sorry but the law won't let you crate the kids) Unless one car has a cargo area you could use for the crate as that would be easier to access. The crate Kayla sleeps in would hold both our cats as well as a small litter tray. Motel 6 as far as I know allows pets at all their locations. We found with the kids that two cheap adjoining rooms in a motel 6 were better than one nicer more expensive room somewhere else. It would also allow you to have two bathrooms. One for people and one to put the cats, food water and cat litter in overnight. And for three or four days we would be eating fast food, take out, cereal in the room for breakfast, meals in shifts. We usually buy the stuff and make sandwiches at a park if we are traveling. Snack in the car. Eat breakfast and dinner in the room. I'd take cat carriers as well as the crate. And practice to make sure I could transfer cats from crate to carrier and back while inside the car with all the doors and windows closed. I'd also be asking by vet ahead of time about giving them something to help them travel quieter. When we had to evacuate with our dogs and cats a vet near where we stayed gave us some tranquilizers for our very upset cats. Jo > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail > to me: [quoted text clipped - 56 lines] > > SM Anytime I have moved long-distance with cats, they come with me. I let them ride loose in the car because they hate confinement. Usually they settle in a lap and keep quiet. At stops, I make sure to park in the shade even if it means a longer walk to wherever, and leave the windows down 3" all around. Put cats in carriers before opening doors to get out, of course, and get back ASAP. Stop at big rest areas and let them run around on the leash at least once a day. I let them spend the night loose in the car, so no worries whether a motel was cat-friendly or not, just gotta take extra care that they do not escape. Usually one person holds the cat while the other gets out, then other person distracts the cat while first person gets out. I would only let a cat fly as a last resort and would definitely want it in my carry-on bag. But I won't fly because my legs swell up, so it's not an issue. Best luck to your friends. > Anytime I have moved long-distance with cats, they come with me. I let > them ride loose in the car because they hate confinement. Usually they [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Best luck to your friends. Depends on the cat. I moved my son from Texas to Georgia and his cat would just sprawl across the top of the seat and watch the world go by. Others need to be tranqued and restrained in some way. Just realize these are conscious beings, just like us, only they understand even less of what is happening than we do. But they certainly understand trust and love. My wife lost her Manx in a car wreck because he wasn't restrained. Just my two cents .... Cheers H. > Anytime I have moved long-distance with cats, they come with me. I let > them ride loose in the car because they hate confinement. Usually they > settle in a lap and keep quiet. I have also traveled with my cats on a harness, although I suggested carriers in my earlier message. My cats traveled well and would curl up beside me, but I still kept them on harnesses and attached the harness to a seat belt. That allowed enough room to move around but *not* enough to get on my lap or reach my feet -- that could lead to disaster in the event of an emergency. However, I think the cats that Susan asked about should *definitely* be restrained by more than a harness because there will be children in the car, and the letter mentioned concerns that children might not leave the cats in the bathroom at a motel. In that case, just imagine what could happen if the children decided to open a car door or roll down a window while cats were loose in the car! MaryL > My cats traveled well and would curl up beside me, but I still kept > them on harnesses and attached the harness to a seat belt. That > allowed enough room to move around but *not* enough to get on my lap > or reach my feet -- that could lead to disaster in the event of an > emergency. I wouldn't want to drive with a cat loose in the car for that reason. It would be horrible if the cat managed to get underneath the brake pedal. (OK, that would have to be a kitten.) You'd be stuck between squishing the kitty or possibly having an accident by not using the brake! Not to mention what might happen if the cat freaked out for some reason and, I don't know, climbed on your head and started clawing you or something. You can't take control of a situation like that when you're behind the wheel. Joyce > It would be horrible if the cat managed to get underneath the brake > pedal. (OK, that would have to be a kitten.) You'd be stuck between > squishing the kitty or possibly having an accident by not using the > brake! There's always the hand/emergency brake.... I've had them try to get under the pedals but with persistence always managed to teach them to stay clear of that area. >> It would be horrible if the cat managed to get underneath the brake >> pedal. (OK, that would have to be a kitten.) You'd be stuck between [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > the pedals but with persistence always managed to teach them to stay clear > of that area. If another car has lost control and is headed right for you, you won't have time to use an emergency brake or try to extract a cat or kitten from under your feet. You need to be in full control. MaryL MaryL > If another car has lost control and is headed right for you, you won't > have time to use an emergency brake or try to extract a cat or kitten from > under your feet. You need to be in full control. In that case I would certainly not be putting on the brake, I would be steering out of the idiot's way. >> If another car has lost control and is headed right for you, you won't >> have time to use an emergency brake or try to extract a cat or kitten from >> under your feet. You need to be in full control. > >In that case I would certainly not be putting on the brake, I would be >steering out of the idiot's way. You could potentially have a situation where you couldn't pull out of the way. For example, the right lane is stopped, but you are in the moving left lane. The other side of the road also has all lanes occupied. Someone in the oncoming left lane swerves into your lane. Your choices are (a) hit the brakes but continue moving straight forward, (b) continue moving forward at full speed, (c) swerve to the right into the line of stopped cars, which may well cause you to spin into oncoming traffic, or (d) swerve left into oncoming traffic. You are most likely to survive if you do (a) hit the brakes and continue moving straight ahead.  SignatureJohn F. Eldredge -- john@jfeldredge.com PGP key available from http://pgp.mit.edu "Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all." -- Hypatia of Alexandria On 2006-07-23, John F Eldredge penned: > You could potentially have a situation where you couldn't pull out > of the way. For example, the right lane is stopped, but you are in [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > traffic. You are most likely to survive if you do (a) hit the > brakes and continue moving straight ahead. I can't imagine a situation in which I would find having cats underfoot as a driver an acceptable risk. I agree -- I need to have all options available, and I also need to be able to focus on driving the car without worrying about injurying any small bodies that might be moving about the cabin. Signaturemonique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her > e-mail to me: DH and I drove from Virginia to Colorado in a Celica convertible. The car was packed to the gills, including Oscar, who was in her carrier. I left her in the carrier for two reasons: one, I have a friend who literally lost a cat at a gas station near a noisy construction site; he never found her. Two, I was concerned that she would hurt herself trying to move around in the car with all the other stuff stacked up. She meowed every few seconds of all two and a half days of the trip. Oscar refused to eat, drink, or use the litterbox the entire time we were on the road; the moment we arrived at DH's apartment in Boulder, she apparently felt comfortable enough to do all of that, even though she'd never been there before. We chose hotels we could enter out of eyeshot of the lobby, and we just brought Oscar into the rooms without asking. She behaved herself, aside from pulling b*st*rd cat tricks like hiding inside a bed so that we had to lift off the mattress to pull her out. No messes, though. I guess I don't really have advice to offer, other than to point out that it would be heartbreaking to lose a cat because you were concerned about her freedom of movement over the course of two or three days. Signaturemonique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail to > me: > 1. Put them in cat carriers and take them with us. IMO this is the best option - I once spent a week driving cross country from California to Minnesota (and back again, three months later, no need to go into the reasons). The cats were no problem at all, really. During the drive, they simply slept, with no interest in food, water or going potty. When I stopped at night, I'd shut them in the bathroom with a disposable litter box, food and water, while I went to a restaurant for my own dinner. I gave them the run of the room after I returned for the night (but first put them both in harnesses, with leashes attached, so if necessary I could drag them out from under the bed when I was ready to leave the next morning). > Cons: > They could escape at some point (both are chipped, but ...). Don't let them out of the carriers where there's any posibilty of them getting away from you. They're more likely to settle down and adjust to the trip if you simply let them be until you're ready to let them out in a secure place. > We might have problems finding hotels that accept pets: we've been > told "just put them both in the bathroom" but they are not fond of > each other and I'm not sure our kids would leave them in the bathroom. Do you belong to the Auto Club? Their tour books not only list hotels and motels, but include such info as whether a particular place accepts pets. (It's been many years since my trip, but I had little trouble finding motels that accepted pets. (I'd suggest roadside motels en route, rather than hotels, since they are more geared to families - including the family pet - traveling by car.) > What would we do while eating lunch / dinner if we stopped at a > restaurant (can't leave pets in a car in the summer, they'll cook). Take a cooler stocked with lunch supplies and plan on picknicking in a "rest area" or park at lunch time - if your cats are amenable to harnesses and leashes, you can even give them a pottie break (although all mine wanted was to huddle in their carriers). But at least, that way, you can take the carriers out of the car and set them in the shade while you eat. > One (the 2.5 yo) will meow incessantly for hours on end and we will go > nuts. That's what I thought, too. However, I found that once the cats realized that complaining wasn't going to have any effect, they simply shut up and "escaped" into sleep until I stopped for the night. (And it was only the first day that they complained at all - after that they were resigned to the situation.) > Pros: > See cons for other option. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > them unattended to Iowa, pick them up at the airport, and then drive > them 1 1/2 hours to our house. I'd choose Option 1, no doubt about it! Not only cheaper, but more secure for the cats, and you aren't being forced to rely on strangers who may or may not share your concerns about your furry family members. > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail to > me: [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > See cons for other option. > Cheaper (but not nec. worth it to save that money) I would put each cat in its own carrier and put one carrier in each driven vehicle. I'd also split up the kids as that makes fighting less likely. Most motels we were at allowed pets, and if you plan out the trip well enough, you can reserve a room at a motel, knowing in advance that it will take the cats. The Red Roof Inn that we stayed at in Clarksville Tennessee required a damage deposit, which was refunded to us when we checked out. The other motels we stayed at were fantastic about not only letting the cats stay there, but one of them asked if we needed food, bottled water, litter boxes etc. I suggest that each cat have a small litter box in its carrier, that they take food packets and bottled water for each cat, and that each kid, if they're old enough, be put in charge of taking care of a cat. We also ate fast food (our cats loved Arby's) and planned out the trip so that we never drove more than 8 hours a day and that the kids and cats were under as little stress as possible. Pam S. who's done that trip across country a few times. Pam S. > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail to > me: I moved from IN to NC, then from NC to CA and then from CA to OR - with two dogs, two cats, three snakes and a turtle. Put the cats in individual carriers, plan the trips carefully and stay at Residence Inns - they accept multiple pets and have 2 BR suites that can hold an entire family, leitter boxes, etc. Google this topic for more detailed info - there is a ton of advice already posted. -L. > If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her e-mail to > me: [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > One (the 2.5 yo) will meow incessantly for hours on end and we will go > nuts. <snip> > SM When Soncek yowled for 3 consecutive nights because the sound snow-plows made was upsetting him, the vet gave some tranquilizers for Soncek after she (the vet) tested Soncek's blood to see if his liver is ok (it is). Best wishes, Polonca and Soncek >> If any of you have any ideas, she'd be most grateful. Here is her >> e-mail to me: [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > Best wishes, > Polonca and Soncek With the temperature forecast to rise to 38°C in Ljubljana by Saturday, I doubt that Soncek will be bothered by snow-plows again in the near future. ;-) SignatureAdrian (Owned by Snoopy and Bagheera) Cats leave pawprints on your heart. http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk >>When Soncek yowled for 3 consecutive nights because the sound >>snow-plows [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > doubt that Soncek will be bothered by snow-plows again in the near future. > ;-) No, but he might melt :) - and so will the rest of us! Best wishes, Polonca and Soncek |
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