Getting Ready To Move For The First Time With My Cats, Needs Some Advice?

saleri

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So I'm planning to move back to my parent's house. My two cats, both around 1.5 years old, have only lived in my current apartment since I adopted them when they were around 12 week old kittens.

So some concerns. The drive from my current place to my parent's is close to a 9 hour drive. So worried that they'll probably need to use the bathroom at some point, and also the stress of a drive this long. Anything you think I can do about the stress of this long drive?

So my parent's house is obviously many times larger then my current studio apartment. The cats will have a lot more space. But one worry I have is that my parent's house is all wood or hard floor. My apartment is all carpeting and I feel like my cats won't enjoy the transition since they do like relaxing on the regular floors.

Anything else you think I should keep in mind?

Thanks!
 

shadowsrescue

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You might ask the vet for a sedative. I moved only an hour away ( but was transporting 6 cats and a dog) and the vet prescribed something to make them sleepy. It really helped them out.

They do sell small travel sized litter pans. Look on Amazon as 9 hours is a long time to hold it!

When you arrive, you will want to keep the cats in a single room for a bit. This will allow them to get used to their new surroundings. Bring lots of items with their scent on them. Scatter these around the new room and then after a day or so begin to expand their area. Scatter favorite toys, beds, etc.. around the house so they will smell their own scent.

I don't think it will matter about wood vs carpet. I have both in my new home and my cats really like the wood. You could always get a small area rug for them to enjoy.
 
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saleri

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You might ask the vet for a sedative. I moved only an hour away ( but was transporting 6 cats and a dog) and the vet prescribed something to make them sleepy. It really helped them out.

They do sell small travel sized litter pans. Look on Amazon as 9 hours is a long time to hold it!

When you arrive, you will want to keep the cats in a single room for a bit. This will allow them to get used to their new surroundings. Bring lots of items with their scent on them. Scatter these around the new room and then after a day or so begin to expand their area. Scatter favorite toys, beds, etc.. around the house so they will smell their own scent.

I don't think it will matter about wood vs carpet. I have both in my new home and my cats really like the wood. You could always get a small area rug for them to enjoy.
Are there any sedatives you're familiar with? Already sent an email asking about that to my vet. Just worried since it is close to 10 hours.

Okay my main worry was the hard floors.
 

shadowsrescue

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I would ask the vet for a recommendation. If the cats normally do ok in their carriers something like an antihistamine might work. Yet, if they don't do well in the carrier, gabapentin might work better as it would last longer. Gabapentin really makes them loopy and drunk acting. The antihistamine made my cats sleepy. That's a long drive. I would think your vet would be able to provide something for them as long as they are both in good health.

Remember to get your records from the vet too. Since you are moving so far away and will need a new vet, you will want to have the cats health records.
 
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saleri

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I would ask the vet for a recommendation. If the cats normally do ok in their carriers something like an antihistamine might work. Yet, if they don't do well in the carrier, gabapentin might work better as it would last longer. Gabapentin really makes them loopy and drunk acting. The antihistamine made my cats sleepy. That's a long drive. I would think your vet would be able to provide something for them as long as they are both in good health.

Remember to get your records from the vet too. Since you are moving so far away and will need a new vet, you will want to have the cats health records.
Yeah will do with the vet records. They both do well in their carriers, they mostly sleep in them at night.
 
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saleri

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Yeah my vet just recommended Gabapentin.
 

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We lived in a one bedroom apartment with two cats - including Trin, who was unfortunately declawed. We moved into a large house with all hardwood. They were mostly fine, although Trin has always been bad at absorbing the impact of a jump and seemed visibly uncomfortable jumping down from tables. We ended up getting a few area rugs on his main areas he would jump and he seems absolutely great. Our other guy Gohan was always quite graceful and never had any issues with hardwood floors.

We used a sedative (May have been gabapentin or something stronger) when we flew from SF to Denver. They were traveling for over 7 hours and didn’t need the bathroom at all. They didn’t even go right away when we got to our hotel, so I think your guys should be fine.
 
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saleri

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We lived in a one bedroom apartment with two cats - including Trin, who was unfortunately declawed. We moved into a large house with all hardwood. They were mostly fine, although Trin has always been bad at absorbing the impact of a jump and seemed visibly uncomfortable jumping down from tables. We ended up getting a few area rugs on his main areas he would jump and he seems absolutely great. Our other guy Gohan was always quite graceful and never had any issues with hardwood floors.

We used a sedative (May have been gabapentin or something stronger) when we flew from SF to Denver. They were traveling for over 7 hours and didn’t need the bathroom at all. They didn’t even go right away when we got to our hotel, so I think your guys should be fine.
Yeah I'm not that worried about the bathroom to be honest, both my cats really just go twice a day, although I'll keep an eye and nose on it and clean it when it happens. Okay I may just get some rugs as well.
 
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