Moving kitties

Hi all - new here. Will be moving about 14 hours away and need to hear if this is a good way to get my two kitties ready for the ride. They have never left town.
I'm thinking I should start taking them for starting out at 10 minute trips, then work my way slowly to bringing them on the highway.
Of course they will be in carriers; but thinking how to get them used to high-way noises without them totally spazzing. Don't want them screaming in terror, for their as well as my sake. My little one can't even go to the local vet without pissing himself.
Plus should I start feeding them at only certain times of day, as up to now they have always had dry food down? I have about 6 weeks to prepare them for the trip. They hate even trips to the vet right now and that's less than a five minute drive.

Anybody?

Years ago, we moved my sister's indoors-only cats by car on a 5 hour drive.

In that case, we got a mild sedative from the vet - they didn't have to go to the vet to get them, as long as the vet had records of their weight. This is a common thing to do for cats that are travelling for a while(might prevent barfing, too!) Also, empty tummy before the trip(except water) might be an idea - but check with your vet.

Worked really well for my sister's cats - except the noisy one took a little longer to grog out(Oriental Shorthairs)! They didn't pass out, were just groggy.

When you make stops on the trip, offer them water - they may not want it, but offer it anyway.



Trying the short trips is a really good idea; that will give you an idea of if they might need a tranny.

When I take my cats to the vet, they go at different times. I position the carrier so they can see me and I them, and I can talk to them. Seems to help.

We have been taking 8 cats to Cape Cod for about 10 years. We do not feed them until they are at the rented cottage on the Cape. I have always offered some pieces of dry food as " treats," some eat them others do not. I have never had to sedate any of them. Once the initial meowing stops because they have realized they are not going to the vet, they quiet down and go to sleep. I have a litter box handy, in case anyone has to go(usually no).
We have also moved twice with the cats. I will bring them into the house after the movers are gone,door and windows closed so no one can escape in the confusion(all are indoor cats).
When moving, talk to them, tell them what is going to happen and why you are going to do what you will do. I have also given them the Bach Flower Remedy WALNUT. It is to help with changes, I think it did help. GOOD LUCK!!
PS: It is a good idea to get them use to the car with the short trips. Do not underestimate your cats, they may surprise you!!!

Thanks guys!

Hi..
you really surprised me with the way you are warried about their feelings :eek:
I do care about LuLu & Cutie pie feelings a lot.. and i never thought there will be a person like me in this world...
I had been traveled with my four legs babies in the car, but it was just for a two hours trip.. that it was for a cat show..
my LuLu is very shy and afraid from any thing.. even the fly will make her afraid.. she is a himalayan.. I believe that the persians are very sensetive cats.. do like what i did.. you have to do the followings:

1) put in their carriers a peice of clothes.. with a smell they allready used to it.. cats are smelling their places.. you can put a USED towel.. but it should be really used .. or a dirty laundry...


2) try to talk.. let them feel that you are there for them.. specially if they can not see..

3) before the trip leave the carrier opened.. for them to used to it.. if u let them smell it and used to sit inside it.. they will not feel afraid..

4) by the way no need to stop them from the food.. cats normally don't do Poohs !! in a straing place.. because they don't wnat another cat to know about them ???
so giving them food it's not a problem.. reduce only the water.. they will take their need to the water from the food itself !!

5) if you feel like they will cann't make it.. you can ask your vet to give them a shot to go to sleep.. believe it works.. and it will keep your cat away from unwanted stress???

finally drive carfully.. and give your cats a kiss from me..

Hello,
It is natural to be concerned about making any major change with your kitties, but they are amazing little creatures and will probably surprise you with how well they make the trip.

Last spring I moved from north central West Virginia to southeastern North Carolina, an eight hour trip. My two beautiful girls were real troupers. A couple of days before the movers came, I opened up their carriers and let them explore. Zöe fell asleep in hers.
On the day of the big trip, I put some of my shirts and other clothes from the laundry in the carriers, along with a little food and a small water dish. The carriers were strapped in with seat belts and off we went on our new adventure.

Each time I stopped I would check on the girls, talk to them and make sure they were comfortable. I talked to them the whole trip and we sang along with the radio. They both slept most of the way. Toward the end of the trip, Phoebe started to fuss, but nothing major.

When I got to our new home, I put the girls in the empty house with litter boxes, familiar toys, food , and water and let them explore.
By the time the movers got there, they were at home and loved the new place.

Thank LuLu and bleupurrs . . .
I have their carriers on the living room floor right now without the doors on . My perfect princess girl likes to nap in hers. But punk-butt boy on the other hand . . .
I'm guessing I should leave the doors on, but propped open so they will get used to the doors. They know when I attach the doors it's time for a journey to the vet and I can literally catch the hair they shed from the stress.
I'm pretty sure Petey (my girl) will do okay; but the boy . . . he's my worry. This is the only house he's ever lived in and like I said, he pees himself every vet trip and that's just across town. He's gonna go on the short trips so hopefully he'll realize not all car trips mean shots and some stranger opening his mouth.
Appreciate you taking time to answer me!

I hope every thing will be fine...

did you check about the shots with your vet??
I think taking them for short trips.. will be good..

How old they are??
Believe me the dirty clothes will help a lot...

you will notes that...

and put catnip in their carriers..

I hav emoved a couple of time with cats (myself and helped a friend). If you are going to do the 14 hour drive in one shot that is fine, but you might want to consider staying in a pet friendly hotel about half way through the journey.

If your little boy "leaves you liquid presents" on the trip to the vet, you are likely to get the same "present" here. Try using the adsorbing puppy training pads as a liner for the carrier. (That way he won't mess himself if he does leave something for you.)

Make sure the cats are wearing their collars (just in case). Is it possible for you to have them microchipped (just to be on the safe side)?

All the other advice is really good. The one thing I have learned is when you are on the highway going a constant speed cats are usually pretty good about not being to loud (otherwise turn up the radio).

Good luck!

Thanks 24 paws - those puppy pads sound like an excellent idea - I had never heard of them. I got some baby blankets from good-will and have them on the favorite naps spots in front of the windows for them to get used to now. (I just can't bring myself to sacrifice my clothes) If the blankies get messed on I can just toss them.
Nope, they don't have collars. Even though I tried when they were babies, I could never get them to adjust. Petey, Five years old, And Wilbur, almost 3, would try to bite them off and get theirs mouths stuck open. I gave up on collars. Will look into chips - another good piece of advice!
Thanks so much, board.

LuLu - what do you mean? Trannies? They are up on all their shots. But trannys? I guess if they still wig out after these short trips, I'll look into sedating them. Is that what you mean? The little boy and I are gonna start trips before me and my princess.

Oh my Gawd, just drained the waterbed they are both used to sleeping on, and they are both like a bat out of hell.(What happenened to my bed?) Don't know who is angrier.
Was thinking tomorrow to start bringing in boxes. I"M SCARED!
Thank God I'm doing this with weeks instead of days!

Oh... sorry for the bed :( :(

Puppy Pads is a good idea.. I hope your cats will not scratch it ???
I was telling you about shot of anesthetic.. can be given by the vet..
I tried it when I travelled by plane.. with my four legs babies..
they will just go to sleep.. I had to do it because LuLu is very scared from any thing moving or not moving.. and in the plane I can be next to her?? and it totally different .. because the pet will feel the pain.. in their ears ??

Good Luck.. & don't forget it to tel us about your tip?

They may be upset for the first while, but after a while they will probably settle down. I agree that a mild sedative might help. They might have a little bit of food and some water (of course) available, but not lots of food. I put a good layer of newspaper on the floor of the cage for comfort and sanitary reasons.

We moved our kitties around the world. First, we took on them on short trips to my dh's office when we trying to sell the house, then we took them on two- 9 hour road trips. We found that they didn't eat or drink on the way or pee or poop the entire time. The kitten screamed for more than 2 hours straight, but once we put her in the same carrier as the other cat everything was nice and quiet. Once they arrived, they acted at home in my dad's house.

Puppy pads didn't do much for us. I put one in the carrier so she'd want to sit in it, but she thought it was a litter box and peed on it.

Gizmo hated his carrier throughout and everytime we'd have to fight him to get in it, but he was a great traveller once inside.

For the big trip, we split it up, the first leg was a 2 hour drive to the airport followed by a 1 hour flight. They did great. We spent the weekend at my in laws. Cats were fine. For the big flight, (11 hours), we were already pros. We had to sit many rows apart from each other. When we about an hour from landing, my cat (the baby, Krembo) started getting very upset. I kept petting her in her carrier, but she had enough. The other cat(Gizmo) was ansy too and kept turning around inside the carrier. Against airplane regulation, we put them into one carrier and again both were happier. The hour-long drive from the airport went smoothly too.

If you do fly, you should know that you have to take the cat out of carrier and carry him/her through the metal detector. That was the scariest part because I knew if we lost hold of a cat at that point, we might never see him/her again. The cats were so scared though that it was no problem whatsoever to get them back into the carriers, getting them out was actually trickier.

Been bringing in boxes and both furkids are all over them. They are climbing in, on, up, through . . . They still don't know what's in store, but at least they will not be as afraid (I hope) as they would be with just one week to adjust!

I had the unfortunate luck of being at "Ground Zero" when hurricane Charley hit Florida Aug.13 2004. over the next 8 weeks or so we had to move 5 times with all 8 of our kitties. I never had to sedate anyone. I put them in their carriers, with thick plush towels for comfort and to soak up any accidents. Straped the carriers into the seatbelts in the back seat and made sure they had plenty of fresh air and their share of the air conditioner. I had a few meows at first, but after 10-15 minutes of telling them it was "Ok" they all settled down enough to start rotating them out for a look around. A small litter box on the floor in back of the passenger seat came in handy, and I stopped every hour or so just to offer them a sip of water and a treat. We ended up driving straight through to the St. Louis area without mishap. just make sure that everyone is inside the carriers when you open your window or door. At one point during the trip we had 5 out of carriers, three laying in the back window totally enjoying the sights, one standing on daddies lap watching the cars pass us, and one on the passenger side doing the same. Several times during the trip other drivers would pass by, while holding up thier little fur-balls too, waving paws at us.. 1200 miles and no problems with anyone. I'll never get stressed out about traveling with cats, I think its easier than traveling with a dog. The only thing I suggest is withholding food for about 12 hours before you leave and make sure everyone has gone potty before you leave. Once they figure out its not a trip to the vet, they'll settle in and enjoy the ride... Just think of them as a 4 or 5 year old child and you and the kitties will be fine :) ... Have a safe trip...

Thanks all for advice and encouragement. :)

I did decide to move to a closer town, but it's still about 8-9 hours drive. Did a lot of heavy-duty "spring" (get my deposit back) cleaning over the week-end and the cats were so anxious and mystified.

Poor Wilbur (my younger furkid). A buddy brought his humongous white boxer over yesterday. Not in the house, just backyard. Kitties were looking out the window to the backyard. I threw this big stick for puppy, which he happily chased and brought back to me - about 15 times.
Well, when friend and puppy left, I went inside to tell Wilbur coast was clear and he could finally go outside. His tail was fluffed as big as his body! And it stayed that way for probably an hour! He wouldn't even go outside, which he's always whining to do.
It was rather comical, cause he never was in any danger. :p

I forgot to say one other thing. I moved from Cincinnati to Philadelphia once, with a cat and a dog (who were friends) in the same vehicle. I was not educated enough in those days to know I should have had the cat in a carrier (the dog, too, for that matter, or at least in a seatbelt thing) - so she was roaming loose. She was used to car rides and didn't mind them, but she got fed up with the length of this one. I discovered that if I sang to her, she would stop meowing. If I stopped singing, though, she would start meowing again. So - some of you might try singing to your cats if you have to take them on car rides. Some cats might like singing. Some might not. My cat Indigo hates it if I sing - but that is usually because she is sitting on top of my chest, and my singing is coming straight at her ears and up through her chest and belly.

Beauty17- as I type this my Stinky Pete is on my lap, purring. I have music on - driving music. And talking to her as it plays. She needs adjusted to music cause for the last long while she's only heard TV.
I'm telling her "We're moving." I can tell her home number three coming up and she's still okay. Cause she's still unaware :eek:
The Wilbur though :mad: :o :mad:
He's starting to pull apart the boxes in back room.
Daggnabit, Punk-Butt - Quit It :D

Hope it all goes fine. I think they will be fine once they get there. Exploring their new home will be a great adventure - like a whole new big cat toy that's all theirs to get used to. Speaking of watching television, do your cats actually watch? My blackie, Beauty, loves television - she can't wait until my son and I are going to watch something in the back room together, and then she will usually join us, trotting back like a little pony. She lies along the back of the couch but doesn't doze - she gazes steadily at the screen, not as if she is hunting, but as if she is just watching the shapes and colors. Of course, I don't think she is actually following the story (heh) - she likes the commercials as much as she likes whatever we are watching. She is a special fan of Japanese anime. Maybe it's the colors.

The only show my cats like is Jeopardy, cause they know when it's over it's dinner-time. I rarely get to see Final Jeopardy cause Punk-Butt Wilbur stands in front of television screen and hollers "Close Enough - Feed Me Now! No I Can't Wait Another Five Minutes!"
Sheesh :rolleyes:

My father used to watch the evening news with his cat Zane Grey. When the news was over, and the theme music came on, he would turn the television off. At the exact moment he would turn the television off, Zane would get up and walk away. Maybe she knew that bedtime would soon follow, or maybe she had had her fill of television for the evening and was on to the next form of amusement.

I can so relate how pets own the home!

;) Welcome to Pet Talk & enjoy all the talks & pictures..
Well I do think you have gotton lots of good advice && best of luck on your move & keep us posted..

Thanks lvpets! ;)

Today was tough keeping kitties out of boxes. I'm trying to keep packed from empty - little fuzz-buckets keep knocking empties all over full. I'm trying to keep all boxes away from furniture that should be packed first.

Just got youngsters helping to load truck - don't yet know diddly-squat about weight distribution. - Especially as I'm towing a car and
I'm Driving! Through two states.