Cross Country With Two Cats

[willowisp]

Hi there. My husband (Andy) and I are moving from NC to NM in a month or so with our two cats. The way his job relocation works is that we only get compensated if we drive, so I can't just pop the kitties into their soft-sided carriers and bring them as under-the-seat luggage on an airplane. We've done this with the older cat, Thena, on two summer internships to California, and flying with her was much easier than driving when we moved her from NJ to NC.

We plan on doing two long days of drives (10-12 hours) and covering about 700 miles per day, then taking a nice easy trip on day three. We currently have three carriers between the two: Thena has a small Sherpa carrier, Gail has the same (both cats can easily move and turn in her respective bag), and we have a huge (largest size possible, I think) hard-sided dog kennel. We're trying to decide whether we should keep them in their small soft-sided carriers the whole time, put them both in the kennel, have them alternate between carrier and kennel, or perhaps buy large Sherpa carriers.

Thena is about 11 years old and was rescued as a kitten from a farm. She would like us to think she's regal, but often forgets this and acts silly. She's an affectionate lap kitty and is fairly placid. Gail is about 2.5 years old and was rescued two years ago from a shelter. She is hyper-everything -- hyper-affectionate, hyper-active, too hyper to be a lap kitty because she doesn't have the attention span, and so on. She and Thena get along surprisingly well; we like to say that Gail has brought out Thena's inner kitten. They play chase-me with each other and curl up together on their window-hammock. They do have their little spats, especially since Gail is more energetic than Thena. Thena has ridden in the hard-sided carrier but Gail never has; we've always used her Sherpa bag. Both cats are in good health and up-to-date on their inoculations.

Please comment if you have any suggestions or ideas as to which carrier to use. My worries with the hard-sided carrier is that it's so large that if we have to stop suddenly, the kitty might be thrown. Andy worries that they may get too cramped in the bags (though, come to that, we have had Thena in her bag for more than 14 hours due to an airline nightmare), but he also realizes that most cats like small safe places when they're faced with a major change. Last but not least, I think a larger soft-sided carrier might be good because maybe they won't associate it with their regular carriers, which usually signal a visit to the V-E-T to get s-h-o-t-s. I'll be working on getting them used to car rides without vet visits between now and when we move, but a new bag may help.

We do plan on stopping often and letting them out on their leashes and harnesses, as well as giving them the opportunity to futz about in their litterboxes. Still, even if we stop every two hours or so, it's still a long time for them to be cooped up.

Comments

[platypus]

Uneasy cats do like small, familiar spaces; together in a large carrier, I'm afraid one or the other would end up bored or unsettled enough to begin bothering her companion. In a stressful situation like a long car drive, I think even the best feline friends would be better with their own spaces. In my experience, even the most restless cat WILL settle down and sleep if she has to stay in a small enclosed space. And, cats being cats, she won't really resent it. If you stop once in a while to let them use the litterbox, stretch their legs, etc, I think they will be just fine. Do they walk well on harness? I've had a cat who, when sufficiently freaked, could either get out of a harness, or drive herself into a dangerous, clawing panic struggling against it. You don't want to lose a cat at an interstate rest stop.

I would vote against the large dog carrier, as well, because of the fear of what would happen in the case you needed to brake quickly. A cat in a small soft carrier would be less likely to get hurt than a cat being thrown against a plastic wall. If you can secure carriers somehow using the seat belts, so much the better.

Ten or twelve hours of sleep in a small space isn't hard on a cat. I'd expect some meowing for the first hour or so, just on general principle because being put in a car is unsetling, but then a lot of napping. If you want to obtain larger soft carriers, but still keep them separate, that might be nice, but I don't think it's necessary. I've honestly never had one of my cats get upset from being cramped in too small a space. They usually fit themselves into things *I* would consider too small for the fun of it. I know, they don't stay there for ten hours, but aside from the odd running fit a few times a week, they don't seem to have the sort of restless desire for space that would make a day-long confinement upsetting.