bonniebroad

Not to start a cat and dog war here;-)....

but I have twice stayed in accommodations recently where cats have sprayed.......... and I wonder about the wisdom of allowing cats in hotels, condos. You can never get the smell out unless you get rid of the carpet, etc. The moment I walk in the room, I know the acrid smell, if a cat has EVER urinated there............ Now with a dog, the odor cleans up and out, but not with the cats. When we had a cat, she always stayed home because of this.

Don't get me wrong........ I LOVE cats! But I only travel with dogs because of this. If I owned a condo, I would never allow cats to stay there. Now I know the majority of people with cats are super-careful and keep them confined. But the few people who don't make it tough for everybody else.

How does anyone else feel about this, and how easy is it for you to travel with cats, if you do? (I am getting ready to complain to H.I. Express about the odor in our room last week, where a cat had sprayed.)

Rosemary1

It really boils down to this: Dogs love to travel. Cats do not!

Cats will get you back for taking them on the road by peeing. It is also a territorial thing.

I love my Schnoocums dearly, but she stays at home!

Happy travels!

SoBeTraveller

Why is it dog owners on this website spend as much time checking out LaQunita and Dennys as some of us do Ritz-Carlton. They apparently cannot leave their doggies at home. I've yet to see a cat knock off grass or a bush, but dogs could literally degarden the planet. But don't get me wrong, I love dogs!

MikeT

At least the cat doesn't bark for hours on end while the owners leave for dinner.

bonniebroad

MikeT, cats can make plenty of noise, believe me! Have you never heard one "yowl" endlessly when they're confined and unhappy? My dog does not bark when left in the room, or I wouldn't leave him. I leave my cell number with the front desk in case there's ever a problem, but there has not been.

But I'm not talking about noise now; I'm talking about the permanent damage/odor that cat urine leaves, as compared to a dog's.

Now I have both the neighbor's cats and my dog in our yard, and none of them have ever killed anything with their urine, though I know some people complain of that with their grass and shrubs. However, the cats do annoy me when they jump onto the swing, then up to the hanging ferns and kill the baby birds nesting there. That's my only complaint about our "visiting cats"... I do love the fact that they helped eliminate our mouse problem a few years ago!

Blacktie

lol, you know cats who yowl ... can't imagine what a yowl sounds like. Your dog won't bark? Has a vet checked his vocal cords? I'm thinking wet carpets must not bother you. And did you ever see large yellow circles on otherwise nice lawn? That's from dogs. Leave off the cats, puleeeze.

bonniebroad

Blacktie, actually I can't think of the word to describe exactly how a cat sounds......... "yowl" was the closest I could come. But I've most definitely heard noisy cats.

My dog does not bark when left alone; he doesn't have an anxiety problem, and he is old and deaf. And he is not left out in the room where he could wet the carpet even if he wanted to.

Why do you think I'm picking on cats? I am not. I love cats as well as dogs and all other animals. I'm simply talking about a very real cat urine problem that exists when cats are moved about! Most of my friends who have cats agree with me.......... To state the obvious doesn't mean I don't like cats.......... I do!

Blacktie

LOL, OK, you love cats! And if you'd mentioned cat barf, I'd have quickly "seconded" your comment. It simply refuses to come out. But the carpet companies love us. So, happy travels, and I do hope your dog gives you many more years of love and fellowship.

J_Correa

I cannot imagine travelling with a cat. They are territorial by nature rather than pack animals.

jor

I brought my German Shepherd to a downtown high-rise hotel. People asked me if I was some kind of security officer. The pooch was quite popular and didn't cause any problems.

The key to lots of this is asking if the hotel accepts pets and letting them know you will be bringing one. It also helped to bring a large dog crate which I kept him in when I left the room for the evening. No problems, and the doorman gave him a special treats. Its all about having consideration for other people. Also, smart dog owners have an eye out for people who are uncomfortable around dogs.

bonniebroad

Blacktie, you remind me of something.......... and I'm talking about my dog here. He had a stomach problem for many years that rarely rears it's ugly head anymore BUT he'd upchuck this horrible yellow bile and if you did not pounce on it instantly with cleaner, you'd never get it out!!! Had forgotten about that.......

I know that dogs CAN also do some damage, but I am SO CAREFUL with mine..... that he doesn't, simply because I appreciate so much the places that accommodate us. We were at a duplex at the beach last year. A couple was next door, and left a huge Rottweiler, a very anxious one who scratched the door and howled for hours. I can't even imagine the damage he did to that door!

So a dog sure can do damage, I don't deny........ but it's just the urine thing that a cat can do so quickly, almost no matter what, if you let it out of a crate at all. And we found that nothing really got rid of that smell (unlike the dog's.)

Oh, well, happy traveling, with and without the creatures!

MikeT

Wouldn't it be easier to leave all these furry creatures at home. How much fun can you have on vacation if it is dictated by having to walk the dog or leaving your cell phone so that you can be called back because it is barking?

Blacktie

oh, the cats do stay at home. And they'll be there when the carpet installers arrive later in July.

But, please, no more about the dog bile, lol. I can tell it's going to take two martinis tonight, so I should thank you, I suppose.

Hug your dog!!

GoTravel

MikeT, we don't take our cats on vacation but there are times we must travel with them.

The most common time is when we get evacuated for hurricanes.

There was a five year period where we were evacuated at least twice a season. Kitties do not stay behind.

For what it is worth, my cats are not aloof independent creatures. They are the neediest clingyest screwballs God put on this planet.

bonniebroad

Blacktie... for you

Blacktie

... I'll drink those while reading her Takes a Village, about their time in the oil fileds when she raised the twins in that shotgun shack and helped Barb teach that dog to read, and while he was flying for the Guard and building his baseball team on the weekends, and being governor, and ...

indie

consorting with the haves and have mores...

ncgrrl

I wish people wouldn't sneak their animals into hotel rooms. I am allergic to animal dander and ask for a pet free room. If the dander is still in the carpet or linens I spend my time in the room trying to survive the allergic reaction.

I enjoy animals, and I wish others would be sensitive about allergies. I'm not going to die, but some people might.

bonniebroad

ncgrrl, my sister has the same problem. She came through Charleston recently, stayed at a Hampton Inn that doesn't allow pets but it quickly became apparent that someone had sneaked one into that room. She had a horrible, smothering night; her allergies get very dangerous!

Cassandra

My mother traveled everywhere with her basset hound. When she came to visit us as newlyweds, we had no room for her and she and doggle stayed in a motel. The basset was usually okay for a little while but would howl and bay and carry on if left alone, so she rarely left the dog for long. We came to the motel to have dinner with her and then accompanied her back to her room to say hiya to the basset. It was the basset's habit to yodel and bay in greeting if someone had been gone for a while, and she did sound off this time --- so robustly that a man ran out of the room across the hall in his undershirt and pj bottoms to see about this woman he thought he heard being attacked and beaten. My mother closed the door to hide the illegal beagle/basset and assured the poor man that she was fine, everything was just fine.