2 Cats Vs 5 Hour Drive On Thursday Pls Help

[sam12]

Hi Guys!!
So I have 14 year old Molly (very nervous) and 3 month old Richard (attention seeker) both of which have little experience with cars and I have little experience with transporting cat via car.

I'm moving to a new city and I'm Australian so every freakin city is ages away especially if you grow up rurally (like me)

So I'm going to by 2 cat carriers and I have cat harnesses so I can let them out of the car hourly but please can I have tips on transporting cats for a long amount of time?

Also, because of the whole small town thing please take into account I will not be able to buy sedatives or wacky products from speciality stores (we have like 2 grocery stores and only one pet shop) or ship anything because it wont arrive on time (The move is sudden [double rent life ])

THANKS

 

[Cat_mediator]

Hello, I have quite a few experiences on traveling with cats.... long flight and long drive. And yes, it is stressful for the cats especially if they are not used to it. Make sure you buy spacious carriers since they are going to be in them for a long time. I won't recommend giving them any sedative. It could be dangerous. I'd put anything familiar in the carriers, like their sleeping bed (don't know if they have any at home) or use a towel and rub it on their bodies, so it got their scents on it and put it in the carrier. You can even put their favourite toys and treats in it. The idea is to make it as familiar to them as possible. I'd even put the carriers in the main area of the house a few days prior to moving, leave it open all day and put treats and their sleeping bed in them, so they would get comfortable before the big day. Once they mark their friendly pheromones in them, it will be so much easier for your cats to stay in them. Good luck!

 

[sam12]

Hello, I have quite a few experiences on traveling with cats.... long flight and long drive. And yes, it is stressful for the cats especially if they are not used to it. Make sure you buy spacious carriers since they are going to be in them for a long time. I won't recommend giving them any sedative. It could be dangerous. I'd put anything familiar in the carriers, like their sleeping bed (don't know if they have any at home) or use a towel and rub it on their bodies, so it got their scents on it and put it in the carrier. You can even put their favourite toys and treats in it. The idea is to make it as familiar to them as possible. I'd even put the carriers in the main area of the house a few days prior to moving, leave it open all day and put treats and their sleeping bed in them, so they would get comfortable before the big day. Once they mark their friendly pheromones in them, it will be so much easier for your cats to stay in them. Good luck!

Thank-you! Neither of them have beds (they usually just sleep on my bed or in my cupboards even tho I brought them expensive beds :/) But Molly has a cooling mat that she really likes and its summer here so its probably a good idea And I'll put Richards toys in with him and give them one of my blankets each since they sleep with my things

Their both wearing their harnesses now so they get used to them (Molly is NOT pleased and constantly thinks somethings touching her back and hissing)

Do you have any suggestions how many times I should stop to let them out too pee and give them water and how to prevent them from doing their business in the carriers? Should I line the bottom with puppy pads?

Thanks!!

 

[susanm9006]

I don’t know that letting them out of their carriers every hour is a good idea. I think it might stress them more than leaving them in. Maybe every few to check that their bedding is still dry and to use a litter box and eat if they will. If you are going to take them out, even with a harness I would not take them out of the vehicle and make sure all doors are closed before you do. And yes, I would line carrier with puppy pads in case someone urinates or throws up.

 

[sam12]

I don’t know that letting them out of their carriers every hour is a good idea. I think it might stress them more than leaving them in. Maybe every few to check that their bedding is still dry and to use a litter box and eat if they will. If you are going to take them out, even with a harness I would not take them out of the vehicle and make sure all doors are closed before you do. And yes, I would line carrier with puppy pads in case someone urinates or throws up.

In that case I may only let them one once or twice and only in the car just because I cant afford too carriers (molly dosent like Richard so they can't be in one together) large enough to also house a litter box but I'll take one with me
Thankyou!

 

[sam12]

They survived the drive! Both of them slept the entire way and were totally fine! Thankyou guys!

 

[EmmiTemmi]

Congrats on making the drive smoothly!

Do you have any advice now that you've made the trip? Things you did that worked well/things you'd do differently next time? I have to take my two boys (they'll be 11mo) on a 7hr road trip in a couple months. I'm already trying to mentally prepare, so anything you learned would be great!

 

[duncanmac]

They survived the drive! Both of them slept the entire way and were totally fine! Thankyou guys!

All that worry and they disappointed you by taking it in stride!

Glad it worked. I'll be moving cats soon enough but only a short distance and am curious how that will work.

 

[sam12]

Congrats on making the drive smoothly!

Do you have any advice now that you've made the trip? Things you did that worked well/things you'd do differently next time? I have to take my two boys (they'll be 11mo) on a 7hr road trip in a couple months. I'm already trying to mentally prepare, so anything you learned would be great!

Hi! Here's basically what I did;
Before trip:
I prepared for the trip by first getting them used to their harnesses about a week prior, Richard not caring and Molly ending up a hissing and spitting mess but eventually she DID come around I also introduced some mats that I planned to use in the cat carriers I was yet to buy in their favourite hiding spots (mainly molly's cause she's the problem child) I did sprinkle catnip on the mats as well but I'm pretty sure it doesn't affect my cats anyway haha. I also left the harnesses next to the mats so they got used to its scent.
I got the cat carriers a day before and I took the tops off them and put the mats in them and then put them back in the cats hiding spots again overnight.
Moving Day:
I prepared a cat travel bag containing a zip lock bag full of their regular dry cat food, a collapsable bowl, a bottle of water, a kitty litter shovel, dog poop bags, 2 leashes, cat litter tray liners, flee powder, an extra harness (I had an extra because Richard was too small for this one) and their comb.
I also sifted their litter that they had at my old home then wrapped kept it and wrapped it up in A LOT of fragranced bags haha. This is because it helps them find the kitty litter in their new home if you use their old litter.
I lined the bottom of the cat carriers with puppy pads and put the mats in the and Richards toys in his (he just followed them in) and I put Mollys usual blanket in hers on top of the mat she had been using (she was already sitting inside the bottom half so I just put the lid of)
The Trip:
Molly complained for a little bit about being trapped but otherwise they both settled down quickly although Richard did scratch at the door of the carrier for a while and we had to cover up the front of his cage and when I wound down the window the wind would blow in Molly's face and she would complain but both slept most of the way (they really enjoyed the aircon on the 32 degree Celsius day).
First stop:
We stopped 3 hours in, we attempted to get them to eat or drink outside the car but they where both to nervous. I did also unwrapped their litter to see if I could get them to go to the bathroom but neither were interested in that either. I ended up giving them shallow bowls of water and a handful of dry cat food each to eat. In hindsight I think I would just give them the food from the start and not stop and try to feed them outside their carriers.
At the end of the trip, Molly did have a pee but I just washed her blanket a threw out the mat and the puppy liner (which she had clawed to sheds)
I also think because of the amount of time they spent in the carriers they were even more keen to get out and explore once we got home and the saw me setting up their scratching box, litter and food mat.
2 days later, Richard is roaming the house freely, but he is a kitten and this is only his first ever move. Molly is still very hidden, but that was expected. I left the carries out in the lounge room (I released them here because it is a smaller apartment anyway that is very similar ins size snd shape to my old one) and at night I lock them in their carriers incase someone forgets were the litter is and pees somewhere bad but there hasn't been any accidents yet
Hope this helps!!!

 

[susanm9006]

Awesome preparation. Sounds like you were ready for anything!