14 Hour Road Trip With Two Large Orange Tabbies

[MikeAW2010]

Meet Ginger
and
Mashmallow

Long story short, I'm moving from Atlanta GA to Austin TX for a job relocation. I can't put the cats on a flight so that is out of the question.

Both of them hate car rides, and Ginger ESPECIALLY gets travel anxiety / stress and becomes very afraid (yowls) in the car. When he was a kitten I took him cross country from Atlanta to Seattle, and back again..but it was much easier as he was MUCH smaller and he didn't cry as much. Today he becomes so scared he will literally pee the SECOND I get him in the kennel and take him outside and especially on the road.

Unfortunately, my car isn't very big. I got a kennel large enough for both of them but it takes up the entire back seat so I can't get anything larger than what I've shown here.

I can't rent a larger car because this is a one way trip and I'm moving so I need to take my personal vehicle, and lastly I can't put them on a airplane for several reasons..
#1 is I can't afford to as I'm already pretty maxed out as I have to buy a house as soon as I arrive, with that ontop of moving my furniture (going to cost nearly 2 grand) - I really can't afford it. (company isn't paying anything until I arrive and start working so all up front costs are on me.).
#2 I'll just be honest, they're not current on their vaccinations and I don't have enough money currently to do that (they're indoor only cats so I've never really prioritized this.)

So my question is, what is the best I can do to make this ride most suitable for them and also... How should I manage their potty time? In the past they were small enough where I could fit a small litter box in the kennel with them, today...I really don't think I can, or ...its going to be a long shot...

 

[MikeAW2010]

Ginger:




Marshmallow:




The Kennel:

 

[Willowy]

As an FYI, rabies vaccination certificates are required for interstate travel. It's unlikely you'll get caught unless you do something dumb and get pulled over, but it's not really worth the risk, as your cats could end up in quarantine, which is way more expensive than getting their shots. Is there a shelter in the area that does low-cost vaccines? They only need the rabies vaccine by law. If you could get them microchipped that would be good too, in case they escape.

It'll be a crummy drive, but it's doable. Do not EVER open the carriers unless the car doors are closed, or you're in a hotel room with the door closed. Not even a crack. You don't want to lose them 1000 miles from home. You can put puppy pads in the bottom of the carriers, that way if they go it'll all be soaked up.

They don't need to eat in that time (unless you stop somewhere for the night), but a small travel bowl of water would be good. Some people freeze the water bowl and then the slow melting provides enough water without spilling.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Welcome, and congrats!!
W Willowy is right, it's doable. I'm not sure but maybe there'll be something in these that might also help.
Traveling With Cats
How To Move With Your Cat To A New Home In A Safe Way

 

[foxxycat]

I take my girls on a 4.5 hour ride every summer- one cries like we are killing her-the more we do it-the better she gets-on a 14 hour drive-they will go to sleep I promise. Just play gentle music and DONT open those doors on the crate-does your backseat lay down or can you pull it out for more room?

I use a Tahoe for transportation. It's too bad you couldn't get one on loan for the trip. I bought a huge dog crate and a small wash pan for litter-I didn't put food in there-you can get a rabbit water dispensor that hooks to the wire door. And zip tie the sides of the cage together-trust me-things happen-so get some plastic zip ties=secure the crate in addition to factory ones-on a trip this long-you want to make sure that cage is secured-I suggest zip tieing the door shut and don't forget a pair of wire cutters to cut the zip ties when you arrive.

How many days away is the move?
you can take them in the crate for a car ride for 30 minutes to get them used to it. Some cats will cry=I found that the first 30 minutes is meow meow meowwwww then once on the highway-they go to sleep...as long as you stay at a steady speed=highway- it will help calm them down.

there's feliway spray you can get to put in their cage an hour before take off- it may help calm them down. spray the seat the cage is sitting on and the cabin of car... you can bring a blanket and cover the cage during transport.

Some cats like it dark and feel safer-like they would be hiding under a bed.

just remember DONT open that cage for any reason! They won't eat either if they are scared. They will be ok!!

Good luck with the move!

 

[rubysmama]

Hello and welcome to TCS. Ginger and Mashmallow are beautiful.

I've never road-tripped with my Ruby, so can't give advice from personal experience. But I'll post the below article which might have a few helpful tips for you.

36 Awesome Tips For Road Tripping With Your Cat

Once you're settled in Austin, please come back and tell us how everything went.

 

[di and bob]

I pity you, I went insane traveling for one hour with several kittens! When I transported my house cats for that same hour ride, they were both extremely against riding in a car, to the point of hurting their noses on the crate. I called my vet and he recommended Benadryl to calm them down, it worked like a champ! Of course you'll have to get the dosage for their weight, just weigh yourself first and then hold them on the scale. Be careful, I gave one a little too much and he was wobbly for a few hours. I would use the puppy pads too, they most likely won't want to eat/drink. Bless you for bringing them!

 

[Furballsmom]

Way way back in the day, I travelled from South Dakota to Denver, probably about 10 hours?, with a utterly darling 8 month old 1/4-siamese furbaby. I didn't do anything special, he roamed the car as he pleased.
He was so unique - nothing ever fazed him.
oh my goodness I really miss that little guy!!

 

[foxxycat]

Way way back in the day, I travelled from South Dakota to Denver, probably about 10 hours?, with a utterly darling 8 month old 1/4-siamese furbaby. I didn't do anything special, he roamed the car as he pleased.
He was so unique - nothing ever fazed him.
oh my goodness I really miss that little guy!!

Aww isn't it so cool when they hang out with you? My angel Floey was like that. Honeybee just sucks on her blanket and sleeps in my lap or sleeps ontop of the cage that pumps is in-which makes Pumps meow everytime Honeybee climbs on/off the cage..I put a rug on top of it so she has something to hang onto- Floey used to sleep in her soft house in the back-she slept most of the trip or climbed up on the door edge looking out the window or sleeping on this old dingy seat cushion on the floor in the front-which I didn't like-I wanted her out back on her bed. Pumps pees and gets so nervous that she would bolt so we have to crate her.

Honeybee is a ham and sleeps out back when she's not sucking on her blanket and kneading it. I spread it on the console or my lap and she prefers to sleep in my lap.

The first time I brought her home we caged her=she went completely nuts-mashing her nose on the cage door and digging. She did this again the next day to the vets=so I let her out to calm her down as she was having an asthma attack she got wound up so bad. But I don't recommend this.

Most cats rather be in a cage with blanket covering it but not Bee. Same with Floey.

Floey used to scream like a baby crying pulling on the cage door=so she also was let out. Once I figured out she preferred her cloth house then that's how I transported her. She wouldn't go in the cage but slept in her house=she also wasn't a scardy cat-she was my forest cat-she followed me in the woods and always stayed with me. But I don't recommend this for new transporting-until one gets to know how their kitty acts.

Oh and the looks I get as we roll by with Honeybee looking out the window on the passenger side with her tail wagging like a dog!

 

[Furballsmom]

Oh and the looks I get as we roll by with Honeybee looking out the window on the passenger side with her tail wagging like a dog!

 

[sabrinah]

I've been on a few long drives with my kitty. I keep her in her carrier with a puppy pad wrapped around her bed because she always pees/poops when she's put in her carrier at some point. It's easy to take the dirty pad out and put a new one in during a stop, but make sure all doors and windows are shut. I don't leave water in there with her because it would just splash out everywhere, but I always offer it during stops. Not once has she ever drank or eaten anything during a drive though. Even if she was comfortable enough to roam the car during a drive, I probably wouldn't let her. My dog is even put in a padded harness and seatbelt. There are too many horror stories of people getting into car accidents and the family pet becoming a projectile.

 

[foxxycat]

very true-thats why I wrote I don't recommend it- open the door and kitty GONZO. I usually have a passenger who puts her in the cage if I need to open the door. Most cats I would NOT recommend roaming the interior=too many texters and idiot drivers. I usually put a piece of cardboard up to keep them in the back. That's why I don't really like them up front with me. There's metal wire cage material you can install behind your front seats to keep them in the back. That's what I plan on doing this year so I can still stop and not worry about a cat escaping.

 

[MikeAW2010]

I completed my trip. I put them both in a large kennel lined with puppy pads. I gave them calming treats and I didn't start driving immediately. they cried for about an hour before they laid down..when they finally did..I started driving and for the the most part they didn't complain.

The difficulties I ran into were litterbox moments as I couldnt fit a litterbox inside of the cage without them making a mess of it so every other travel stop I would have to let them out in my car and put a litter box ontop of the puppy pads in the Kennel and hope they would use it. Marshmallow did, Ginger however refused to and went the entire trip (about a day because I had to stop for rest) without using the litter box.

Ginger panted like a dog for hours and it got me very worried. He wouldn't drink any water either so I ended up making a trip to the store and grabbing a can of tuna, mixing light amounts of tuna with cold water and giving it to him, that got him to drink it instantly. Same for Marshmallow.

 

[Furballsmom]

. He wouldn't drink any water either so I ended up making a trip to the store and grabbing a can of tuna, mixing light amounts of tuna with cold water and giving it to him, that got him to drink it instantly. Same for Marshmallow.

 

[rubysmama]

Thanks for the update. Glad there were no major issues.

 

[MikeAW2010]

new issue, my back seat smells like cat urine but I can't find the source. What would be the best way to address this?

 

[rubysmama]

Maybe try one of those black lights that will make the pee stains stand out.

They're mentioned in the below article.
Combat Cat Urine

Here's the other TCS articles on removing cat urine. Hopefully something in one of them will help helpful.

How To Remove Cat Urine
How To Remove Cat Urine Odor From Your Home
How To Get Cat Urine Smell Out Of Carpet: Effective, Non-toxic Solutions
How To Get Cat Pee Smell Out Of Clothes And Linens

 

[MikeAW2010]

They handled themselves pretty well.

When Ginger started crying (meowing / yowling) while we were driving (usually this would only happen when we just started moving again). I put my hand back there and he would lay his hand against my hand and stop until I had to remove it so I could keep driving.

I sat them in the center of the back seat and they had a clear view between the seats, including of me, the windshield and everything outside of it, and the passenger. When we were driving I couldnt help but look back at times and see what they were doing. Sometimes they were just curled up resting and looking out the front, other time they were sitting upright, or standing and watching traffic go by in the opposing lanes (wide eyes, heads bopping nervously as they watch cars fly by.)

but the cutest moment was this... We crossed the Mississippi river on I-10 in Baton Rouge and Ginger was awake. He watched as we began to approach the bridge and he was watching the girders come closer and closer and he stood still for a moment as this big bridge was coming right for him then he let out a "MEOW!" and his eyes were all wide and big and he just stood still.. and when we finally got to the bridge he watched the girders on all sides of us just start passing us and it just blew him away - he started looking left, right, started bouncing around trying to follow them...then he started yowling and started looking up trying to follow the overhanging girders (which disapear over the roof of the car as we pass them)... it was adorable.

 

[tinydestroyer]

but the cutest moment was this... We crossed the Mississippi river on I-10 in Baton Rouge and Ginger was awake. He watched as we began to approach the bridge and he was watching the girders come closer and closer and he stood still for a moment as this big bridge was coming right for him then he let out a "MEOW!" and his eyes were all wide and big and he just stood still.. and when we finally got to the bridge he watched the girders on all sides of us just start passing us and it just blew him away - he started looking left, right, started bouncing around trying to follow them...then he started yowling and started looking up trying to follow the overhanging girders (which disapear over the roof of the car as we pass them)... it was adorable.

I went to school in Baton Rouge (and I was born in Austin, incidentally,) and I know the exact bridge you're talking about! What a funny mental image. I'm moving cross country with my pets soon, so I appreciate all the tips. Glad to hear it all went well with your move!