Moving a Cat

Hello Everyone!

My family and I are moving to Colorado and we live in Wisconsin. We have a 6 year old, overweight cat who hates going outside. She hates her pet carrier, and she meows the entire time we're in the car on the way to the vet.

We've lined up for her to be flown out with us to Colorado in a climate-controlled area for pets. It'll take about 2 hours, and then getting to the airport will take about an hour. Getting from the airport in Colorado to our house will take about 2 hours.

Since she hates being outside or in her pet porter, we worry that she will be in danger going out there, however we have to take her out there because we're all infatuated with her and can't live without her.

What do we do? We've scheduled for her to get a pill to get a little drowsy, but is there anything else we should do to prep her or maybe keep her calm? Any suggestions or advice about moving an animal would be great and very much appreciated!

Check with your vet about the medication, if you haven't already. Just make sure it is the right type.

Also, check the airline's website and with your vet about preparing your kitty for flight. This could mean no food after a certain time, etc.

You'll get more tips - that's all I can think of.

And BLESS you for not just putting her in a shelter which, sadly, too many people do! :)

Try leaving the carrier out where she can get used to it, even put some treats in there to lure her in, so she gets more comfortable, and gets accustomed to the idea that carrier does NOT equal vet visit.

Make sure she is somewhere safe when you are moving furniture, etc. When my brother and his family moved to New York state, one of the cats ended up "hiding" from the movers, and so spent a couple weeks between the floor of the second floor and the ceiling of the first, far enough back so no one could reach him, and too freaked out to move himself. He eventually came out, lured by tuna fish and Grandpa's voice, but still ...

The only thing that I would suggest is to get the sturdiest carrier that I could find in case something lands on the carrier. I would look up back issues of Cat Fancy as they have run articles on Cats and moving them.

Please check with the airline. Some of them will not accept a pet that has been sedated!

have you tried either feliway or rescue remedy? those help calm the pet from things like car sickness and may help in this situation as well.