Well my 13 year old male cat made the trip from Washington to Kansas in good
shape.  Partly due to the great information I received here on this
newsgroup.

We did get some tranquilizers just in case but didn't have to use them
except for a couple motel nights when he was restless.  Otherwise he rode
well in his large carrier that we kept on the back seat of my truck with the
air conditioning going.  We never took him out of his carrier except for
when we were in our motel room for the night.
Then and only then did we feed him.  He had water on the trip and didn't
mess in his carrier either which was a blessing.

Now in the new home he is staying under beds and hiding.  It's all new to
him.  He's never moved before in his life except from the pet store to our
home.  We keep his harness on him with our number, etc, just in case he
should run out of the house.

We arrived last Tuesday and now it's Sunday.  He is easing up a bit, looking
out the window, etc.  His litter box is in the basement and he knows where
it is.  We keep a light on down there, not only for him, but in case we need
to evacuate for a tornado warning.  Hope we keep electricity.

We plan to make him accustomed to having his home in the basement - food,
water, litter box, toys, and bed.  He should be rather comfortable where we
have him.  The floor has some carpet and it's not hot nor cold down there.
Just right for him.

After about a month or so, we will let him go outside on his own to see what
he does.  If he sprints over the fence, we will keep our fingers crossed
that he knows his way back home.... THIS HOME.  There is a Greyhound farm
next to us (never hear them barking), so maybe he will stick close to here.
We want him to be an outside cat as he has always been free to go as he
pleased.  We have spent over 1K on his injuries from cat fights.  He's the
only son we have living at home now.

On the same note, our dog, a small Shizu "Bianca", did very well on the
trip.  She just stayed in her carseat in the back next to the cat carrier or
laid on the seat.  We would take her out at rest stops along the way too.
We never left them in the truck alone while we stopped for meals.  One of us
was always in the truck with the air going.

At one South Dakota rest stop, while walking Bianca, I noticed a pile of
bones and a clump of fur.  It appeared to be those of a small dog that had
probably died on a trip and it's owner just left it in the Pet Area of the
rest stop.  They could have at least buried it if they didn't want to take
it and dispose of the remains properly, but then the bones were a warning to
others what could happen on the road with pets.

Thanks to all for your input.  It helped make our trip bearable.  Now I'm up
to my a.s in packing boxes and packing paper, unpacking.  My wife and I have
just entered into a new phase in our life. We are both fully retired now and
relocated to be near our grandkids.

Cheers. -