I've moved with cats many times, and have a few suggestions that may help. First, make sure everyone is microchipped. Then start getting your guys used to car travel by taking them on short trips that are NOT to the vet. If you put catnip in their carriers before you put them in, that should help. I did that with all my cats when traveling. If you are taking several days for that trip, I you will be staying in motels along the way. If the cats have been sleeping all day, they will probably want to play all night, so just be aware of that. You may have to confine them during the hours you yourself want to sleep. I have had to put some of them in the bathroom and close the door on occasion. Obviously I did not use tranquilizers other than the catnip.
Second, it is upsetting to some cats to see their home being disrupted and watch their furniture leave. A good plan is to set up ONE ROOM for them with a bed, litter boxes and food and close them in it from time to time before you really start moving things out. Then when the movers come to take the furniture, close them in there and do not change anything in there until you actually pack them up to leave. Don't let them roam around and see major changes in the house. If the room is your bedroom and there is a bathroom attached, move them to the bathroom before moving your bed out. Cover the cat carrier before you carry it out to the car through the empty house also. That way, it's just another car ride to the cats. After my bed was moved, I made them a “bed” the same size with quilts and pillows on the floor and then let them out of the bathroom. They didn’t freak out too badly and slept on the makeshift bed until we left the next morning. (I slept on my camping mattress.)
I used incontinence pads (cheap at Dollar General) to line their carriers. I had two cats per carrier when I traveled with 8 or 10 cats, one cat per carrier when I traveled with 4 or less. None of them peed or pooped in the carrier and even when we got to the motels, they took some time to use the litter box at night. In the morning, I fed them and they lined up to use the litter box. They were much calmer the second day and went right to sleep.
Choose your motels ahead of time, make sure they accept cats (you do not need to tell them how many cats) and choose those that have direct access to ground level rooms so you don’t have to go through a lobby. I always asked for rooms in the BACK also, telling them I wanted the quiet, but mostly I wanted the least visibility! I did make reservations ahead rather than just grab something when I got tired. In the motels, be sure to make sure there are no escape routes for the cat -- check air vents, windows, holes in the wall, rips in the box springs they could climb up into etc. Keep the door locked and put out a DO NOT DISTURB sign. Do not open the door for any reason unless the cats are is locked in the bathroom or in their carriers.
Finally, when you get to the new home, set up another room for the cats that is as much like the last room you had set up in the old house and confine them there until you get the rest of the house somewhat set up. Again, you can start them in a bathroom, then expand to include your bedroom, and later, when the home looks like a home, open the door and let them explore the rest of the place. The bedroom will remain their safety zone and they will return there whenever anything startles them (doorbell, visitors, noises outside etc.) until they feel safe in the rest of the house.
The following is a 15-minute Video Blog of Cole & Marmalade's move from Florida to California. It's amusing and also informative. Even the commercial leading into it is amusing, but you can skip it if you like by clicking the skip it arrow. There are only two cats involved, but you could double it to four. These cats are very well socialized and calm, but if yours are more timid, you may want to follow some of the suggestions I made above, about keeping them confined and not aware of the moving process as furniture starts to leave, etc.
Second, it is upsetting to some cats to see their home being disrupted and watch their furniture leave. A good plan is to set up ONE ROOM for them with a bed, litter boxes and food and close them in it from time to time before you really start moving things out. Then when the movers come to take the furniture, close them in there and do not change anything in there until you actually pack them up to leave. Don't let them roam around and see major changes in the house. If the room is your bedroom and there is a bathroom attached, move them to the bathroom before moving your bed out. Cover the cat carrier before you carry it out to the car through the empty house also. That way, it's just another car ride to the cats. After my bed was moved, I made them a “bed” the same size with quilts and pillows on the floor and then let them out of the bathroom. They didn’t freak out too badly and slept on the makeshift bed until we left the next morning. (I slept on my camping mattress.)
I used incontinence pads (cheap at Dollar General) to line their carriers. I had two cats per carrier when I traveled with 8 or 10 cats, one cat per carrier when I traveled with 4 or less. None of them peed or pooped in the carrier and even when we got to the motels, they took some time to use the litter box at night. In the morning, I fed them and they lined up to use the litter box. They were much calmer the second day and went right to sleep.
Choose your motels ahead of time, make sure they accept cats (you do not need to tell them how many cats) and choose those that have direct access to ground level rooms so you don’t have to go through a lobby. I always asked for rooms in the BACK also, telling them I wanted the quiet, but mostly I wanted the least visibility! I did make reservations ahead rather than just grab something when I got tired. In the motels, be sure to make sure there are no escape routes for the cat -- check air vents, windows, holes in the wall, rips in the box springs they could climb up into etc. Keep the door locked and put out a DO NOT DISTURB sign. Do not open the door for any reason unless the cats are is locked in the bathroom or in their carriers.
Finally, when you get to the new home, set up another room for the cats that is as much like the last room you had set up in the old house and confine them there until you get the rest of the house somewhat set up. Again, you can start them in a bathroom, then expand to include your bedroom, and later, when the home looks like a home, open the door and let them explore the rest of the place. The bedroom will remain their safety zone and they will return there whenever anything startles them (doorbell, visitors, noises outside etc.) until they feel safe in the rest of the house.
The following is a 15-minute Video Blog of Cole & Marmalade's move from Florida to California. It's amusing and also informative. Even the commercial leading into it is amusing, but you can skip it if you like by clicking the skip it arrow. There are only two cats involved, but you could double it to four. These cats are very well socialized and calm, but if yours are more timid, you may want to follow some of the suggestions I made above, about keeping them confined and not aware of the moving process as furniture starts to leave, etc.
Last edited:
