Moving - Need help!

[kiara1125]

Hello everyone! I am moving 10 hours away from Central Florida to North Carolina. I will be moving around December/January. I have my service dog and two cats to bring. My fiance and I are trying to get everything set up for the cats. I'm trying to figure out how to bring them because I don't want them to be uncomfortable.

First off, I have a medium sized dog crate that has a divider. Should I divide the cats or keep them together? They get along, but I'm worried they will get stressed and fight. I have an extra carrier, but it's a carrier for flying purposes, so it's small. If I do divide the cats into the big crate, then there won't be enough room for a litter box at all. Even if they aren't divided then there's still not much room. I'm unsure of what to do.

Here is the crate with Stormy and Oreo into it. We are not taking Oreo, we are taking Shadow instead. Shadow is 9 years old and Stormy is 1 year old. Stormy is already UTD on rabies, we will be taking Shadow to the vet soon (but well before we leave so she is not sick and stressed). With NC, you have to have rabies vaccination certificates on all your animals else they will be quarantined for a total of three weeks. We are going to be completely prepared - I'm just nervous about the actual trip and how to take care of water and litter situations. I'm not worried about feeding them until we get into our new apartment and let them settle. I don't want them to get sick in the car. Unfortunately, we don't have the time to take "joy rides" with the cats to get them accustomed to the car. We just want this over and done with as ast as possible so it will be the least amount of stress on them. Shadow hates car rides, but Stormy sleeps through them.

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• kiara1125
• Sep 12, 2015

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• kiara1125
• Sep 12, 2015

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• kiara1125
• Sep 12, 2015

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• kiara1125
• Sep 12, 2015

See? Stormy loves the crate. He even sleeps in it with my service dog. lol This is Shadow, the cat we will be taking with as well.

Shadow 2.jpg

• kiara1125
• Sep 12, 2015

To sum it up:

- The cats will be vet checked

- We cannot take the cats for joy rides

- I want to keep the cats separated

- I'm unsure of what to do for bowel movements other than laying down puppy pads (there's no room for a litter box)

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Winchester]

I don't understand....you are not taking Oreo???

 

[kiara1125]

No, we're not taking her. We're moving out of my fiance's parent's house. She's 11 years old with several health problems, so we are not risking moving her. She's staying back with the rest of the cats.

 

[swampwitch]

I've make long moves with cats three times, each time was was 2000+ miles so we flew (with cabs to / from the airports). Every time, our cats went into some kind of travel mode. They didn't poop, didn't pee, didn't eat or drink during the trips. Things were fine after, once we got them out of the carriers and set up their things, they ate and used the litter box. I don't know how "normal" that is, but it was my experience every time.

One trip took 12 hours from door to door - I was really worried about them but they adjusted. I really think that was too long and I would have liked to be able to take them out half-way through, in a safe place and offer food and water, but there was no opportunity for that.

I doubt your two would fight on the trip if they don't fight normally. Good luck - I'm sure it will all go fine.

 

[meowzalot]

I do long distance cat rescue transports.  When a shelter cat in one state is adopted by someone in another state, a transport is set up to get the kitty to her new home.  The trips are usually very long ~ 10 hours is very common.  On those trips, the cats are in a carrier the whole time without a litter box.  It is okay if the carrier is small.  We put a soft blanket in the bottom of the carriers, then put a puppy pad on top of the blanket.  In case they have an accident, you can just change the puppy pad.    As someone else mentioned, cats being transported rarely eat, drink or go potty ~ after a while, the usually just sleep.   It is best for each cat to have their own carrier.  I would get another metal crate if you can, but it is okay to use the carrier you mentioned - one in the metal crate and one in the carrier.  If you put them together in the same crate and one gets stressed, it is going to stress out the other one.     

IMPORTANT:   I also search for lost cats and I can't tell you the number of cats that get lost immediately after a move.  The cats freak out in a new house and immediately bolt out the door the first chance they get.   To prevent this from happening, keep your cats in one room with the door shut for at least a few days.  When you see that they feel safe in the room and are acting normal, you can let them explore the rest of the house.  If they get scared, they can run back to their safe room.  Put some things in the room from your old place that have a familiar smell like their toys, beds and blankets - it will help comfort them in the new place.