Hey all! I have a trip coming up in about a week (Ontario to Seattle.) I leave the house at 3am, have a flight from Toronto to Vancouver, then Vancouver to Seattle. I get to the apartment around 12 hours after leaving. After that, I have to immediately leave for the rest of the day, for a surprise birthday party for my husband.
I'm bringing my girl, and I'm really stressing over it. She's afraid of travel so much that she poops in her carrier even in a car. If you make a loud or sharp sound or a sudden movement and she's near enough, she jumps and skitters away. People in the hall outside my apartment? Hiding under my chair and watching the door. She's anxious when I'm not here, and I'm worried terribly for her.
She's flying in-cabin with me, so that gives me some peace of mind, but even still--my worry is about her being scared to death, or so stressed she gets sick.
I'm bringing her because I'll be gone for two months, and the only person who can watch her is my father, who...doesn't do a good job with it. He free-feeds her. (I travel frequently, she's 18lbs as a result of me trusting him to care for her. I'm taking her with me to continue working on her weight loss.) I've called to check in before and have been told that shes 'staying away from him right now' because she 'got in his space for cuddles and she was annoying him.' He told a 'funny story' once about how he left for work and couldn't find the cat beforehand, and when he got home and sat in his recliner, she bolted out from being trapped in it all day. A long story shortened: I am taking her with me because I don't trust him with her.
That said--will she be okay on the planes? Will leaving her alone after travel be okay? Should I stay with her for an hour or so after we get in, so she can calm down? Do cats actually get scared to death, or am I just misinformed and dumb from anxiety-brain? Any tips for me?
Sorry if this is the wrong place for this, I've been a lurker for a while, and decided to sign up to ask. If I messed up anything, please let me know. Thanks!
I'm bringing my girl, and I'm really stressing over it. She's afraid of travel so much that she poops in her carrier even in a car. If you make a loud or sharp sound or a sudden movement and she's near enough, she jumps and skitters away. People in the hall outside my apartment? Hiding under my chair and watching the door. She's anxious when I'm not here, and I'm worried terribly for her.
She's flying in-cabin with me, so that gives me some peace of mind, but even still--my worry is about her being scared to death, or so stressed she gets sick.
I'm bringing her because I'll be gone for two months, and the only person who can watch her is my father, who...doesn't do a good job with it. He free-feeds her. (I travel frequently, she's 18lbs as a result of me trusting him to care for her. I'm taking her with me to continue working on her weight loss.) I've called to check in before and have been told that shes 'staying away from him right now' because she 'got in his space for cuddles and she was annoying him.' He told a 'funny story' once about how he left for work and couldn't find the cat beforehand, and when he got home and sat in his recliner, she bolted out from being trapped in it all day. A long story shortened: I am taking her with me because I don't trust him with her.
That said--will she be okay on the planes? Will leaving her alone after travel be okay? Should I stay with her for an hour or so after we get in, so she can calm down? Do cats actually get scared to death, or am I just misinformed and dumb from anxiety-brain? Any tips for me?
Sorry if this is the wrong place for this, I've been a lurker for a while, and decided to sign up to ask. If I messed up anything, please let me know. Thanks!
