I need tips on taking a long drive with cats!!
 

I will be moving soon and the drive is around 1800 miles. The movers will have all my stuff except my immediate clothing, etc.

I have 2 large cats (18lb each) that are not going to like this drive at all. I have tried tranquilizers on a trip before and it was aweful - total kitty panic. They fought it the whole time.

I have a large kennel that they can both fit into with plenty of room left over. I am just wondering if anyone has any tips on what works for cats on this lengthy of a trip. Do they keep them in the kennel? Do you let them roam around the car (SUV)?

Please share any successful methods that would allow me to keep my sanity on this drive!!

Thanks!

Have you looked into having them shipped to your destination by one of the airlines or air freight carriers?

you may think I'm nuts but put a little Rescue Remedy in their water. It is not a drug but will allow them to relax. Animals are a good demonstration of the efficacy of flower essences as they have no expectations. :-d

Try googling Bach Flower Essences Rescue Remedy. My kitty and hyperactive Boston Terrier do well given a drop in their water starting the day before or whenever they might start picking up on your anxiety about the move.

Also works for people with panic about flying. Not sure why it works but it does.

I would not ship them air freight. Have you talked with your vet about this?

Instead of keeping them in individual kennels, why not get a small dog kennel and let them be together? Cats like to snuggle when they sleep and that might give them some comfort.
Also, if you throw a towel or something light over the top so they are not too visually stimulated, it will be calming for them.
My grandmother bred Siamese cats and always traveled with them.
What a sight, this small lady with 3 Show stopping Siamese, on leashes, walking around in the desert, looking for a good spot to "go" while my grandfather sat in the car waiting :D

I drove from Tx to Mi with 2 cats. I did not tranqualize them and did let them out of their carrier. They ended up settling under the seats and pretty much staying there. I had set up some food/water and even had a little pan of litter (which they never used). I just had to be careful stopping and getting out of the vehicle that they weren't ready to pounce out. For some reason, when I take them in the car, they shed hair at 100X the normal rate. Stress, I'm sure. I guess you need to gauge your cats' personalities. Mine hated it, but handled it fine. It would be interesting to try to 'rescue remedy' that was mentioned.
My one cat is also 18lbs and doubt if she could fit under a seat anymore. She loves her Iams. And looks like a woodtick- little head, big body.

Don't let them roam around the car. Just think how heart broken you would be if you had an accident and they went flying everywhere. I second that advice to put a covering on their carrier. I just drove two cats from Denver to Seattle and they did fine, and they are very skittish cats.
They each had their own carriers, but they were placed side by side so they could looks through the holes at each other. Then I covered both carriers with a blanket.

What tranquilizer did they take? Since you say your cats were paniced previously, I'd ask your vet for something else.

I always take my 2 Siamese cats ( brother & sister) when I drive but have never driven more than a 5 hour trip. When I fly they stay @ home w/ their cat-sitter.

They started to travel when they were kittens (3 mos. old) so they are great little travellers. They snuggle up together in their kennel & sleep most of the way. I let them out once & one of them decided to leap into my arms while I was zipping along a very busy mayor highway! Of course, this little acrobatic act almost caused a major accident so never again! Also, I keep them in their kennel for the reasons mentioned above by others: so they won't scoot out when you stop for gas, food, etc. I feel safer for them & for me & for the other drivers on the road when my little darlings are in their kennel. But, if I have another driver I let them out & they snuggle in my lap. When we stop I put them back in the kennel.

JSR:

Not kidding, try bringing some catnip along. Makes the cats feel great.

I don't have any great ideas, but you have my condolences if your cats are anything like mine. They meow continuously on even a short trip to the vet. Perhaps they would stop after a while. Maybe you could get some tranquilizers for you instead.

We did have another cat many years ago who used to travel for 4 hours with us on vacation. He also was large (17 lb Maine Coon cat) and we let him roam the car. He often settled on the back window ledge, but sometimes preferred to try to sleep on the dashboard - made visibility limited. Once he managed to lodge himself under the driver's seat and stayed there for an entire day after we reached our destination.

On a more serious note, I would think that your cats would be safer in a carrier. That would eliminate the possibility they could escape when you stopped. I would also make sure you have places to stop at night that will accept cats. During the trip your major concern would be their trying to escape. Also, be very careful when you are packing and/or the movers are at your place - others have told me stories of cats trying to escape in the commotion of a move.

Band-aids - LOL!

My cat also did not do well with kitty tranqs. They made her uncoordinated but did not calm her down.

Do you have leashes for them? I had a little harness for my cat, which I left on the whole time, and then I attached the leash at rest areas so she could stretch her legs a little. (Though she didn't appreciate this -- was too anxious trying to figure out the "new place" to enjoy the fresh air.)

If you're doing this drive alone I strongly recommend you leave them in the kennel for safety. What if one happened to be hanging out under the brake pedal at just the wrong moment? Less grisly, but more likely, they'll distract you at inappropriate moments.

I agree with Gail that although the trip itself has obvious dangers, you need to watch them before and after the move as well. Cats can get hugely upset about changes.

We lost a dear cat just moving a mile away. It darted out the car upon arrival in a fright and never came back. :( The cats in the cages made it into the house.

I have 2 cat travel experiences and don't want any more.

The first was 30 years ago, for 350 miles and 7 hours. The cat teetered on the top of the front bench seat for the whole time and yowled continuously. The cat didn't use the litter box, but did pee on a pillow we had stupidly put down on the floor for her.

The second was a longer trip: Drtiving with a friend from Houston, TX to Charleston, SC in 2 days. The cat yowled for the first two hours. Her owner kept giving her more and more tranquilizers in an effort to shut her up. I was afraid that the cat would die of an overdose. She finally calmed down when we covered her with a blanket. She was a little calmer on the second day, since we covered her up at the beginning.

After these two experiences, I'm definitely in favor of using the pet carrier with a blanket over it.

I also recommend keeping them in a kennel/carrier while you're driving. CarolB is correct when she said a cat could crawl under the brake pedal. I was taking my cat to the vet and he was howling like a banshee. I reached over and opened the carrier door, and he immediately darted to my feet and lodged himself under my brake pedal. Of course this was in heavy traffic and I had no choice to brake. He wasn't injured, but back in the carrier he went!

I also agree with the carrier idea. Drove Sacto to Portland with one cat and Portland to Sacto with 2. Just before leaving Portland the little one escaped when I rolled the window down to get the last mail delivery. We had to look everyhwhere for the beast!

Also DH in moving van ran out of gas and I had to get gas cans filled and back in the car while keeping the cats from escaping. If your drive is that long that's alot of in and out of the car and many chances for escape.

The larger carrier with cat toys may help them. Eventually they may get tired of yelling. Good luck to you!

I disagree with Scarlett's advice to use a larger cage & let them be together.

While cats often like to snuggle up with each other in comfortable surroundings, one or both may be so terrorized in unfamiliar environment that there could be fighting, even killing. JSRX2 says s/he has a large kennel, but maybe you can find a way to partition it until you're sure the cats will be ok sharing it.

No matter what, use cage(s). Good luck.

I knew our cat would be traveling short 1-3 hours trips regularly so we started young and he is great. He knows he can't get on the dash or the drivers feet (for safety) and he is not allowed to let himself out of the car (so we don't lose him). He enjoys going. You might consider doing some short journeys (to the store, errands, etc) to get them more used to the car. Since they haven't traveled in the car I would keep them in their carriers since they don't know the safety rules, at least at first.

Do get some harnesses so you can let them out to sniff and go potty. Monsty is pretty good on the leash but don't expect them to walk like dogs. He much prefers to just sniff he way around and under everything.

Also if they have a bed or blanket at home, put this in their carrier, the smell will help them feel more at ease. I would put them together if they are buds. If they avoid each other and live in peace under duress then seperate them but if they often sleep together than put them together in a carrier.

A couple of days b/f the trip I put the kennel/carrier in a conspicuous place for my cats to "check it out". I leave the door open so they can go in & sniff around. Then they kind of forget about it & it's not such a big deal getting them in the carrier when the time comes to leave. But, I still have to trick them...kind of whisk them away & into the carrier. Once one of my cats hid for an hour and half so since then I have figured out ingenious ways to get them into the carrier w/o letting them know that it's time to go!

When I take my cat on a long drive, he meows for about 20 minutes straight & then finally settles down. I put him in his kitty carrier & open the door for him, but he rarely ventures out, just once in a while, but then usually retreats back to the safety of his carrier. Your cats may feel safe if they are enclosed in a small carrier with enough room to semi stretch out.
If you are driving with someone, they could pet the cats from time to time.