I will soon be moving 2,000 miles away, and plan to take my cats in my rental truck. I have two, they're very calm, but I want this to be as stress free for them as possible.

I plan to have them in the cab with me while driving, with food and water readily available, as well as a mini litter-box (which obviously I will keep very clean).

Whenever I stop for the night, I will be at motels or residences that allow for the cats, so they won't be confined to the cab of the truck all the time.

I want to make sure this trip is as stress free as possible for them. Any ideas?

They don't mind riding by the way...unless it's to the vet...and they always seem to know when that is!

It sounds like you have it pretty well covered....Get them collars, if they do not already have them and write contact information in permanent marker, just in case. My Mister, who is a seasoned traveler, won't use the box while the vehicle is in motion, so if yours are the same way, you'll want to give them 10 to 20 minutes every few hours to do their business. You also might want to ask their vet about mild sedatives to take with you in case your darlings have panic episodes...I've never had to use them but I always have them on hand when I have to take Mister for a more than 2 hour drive.
Last thing, bring something cozy that smells familiar that you can bring with you into the motel rooms...motel rooms can sometimes smell, to a cat, like a vet's office due to the cleaning products they use(this tibit courtesy of Mister's old vet)
Safe journey!

You're moving? Are you heading my way?

Sounds like you have this cat situation all planned out. Some vets might recommend a slight sedative for cats who have problems traveling but it doesn't sound like your cats would need that. One suggestion tho...when you stop at rest stops or to fill up I would have a leash on then and tie the end to something secure in the cab. Animals, no matter how comfortable they are riding in a car, tend to bolt as soon as the door opens. I would hate to read a post from you saying that your cats ran away somewhere between Wisconsin and Georgia!

Have a safe trip my friend!


LOL MrsS....brilliant minds think alike!

Giz,
Cats actually travel better than people think they would. They get nervous initially and will want to scope out any new place. I've driven to Florida with Lydia a few years back and I also took her on a plane with me a couple of times. Under no circumstances would I suggest sedating them (some vets will recommend this - I think that a stressful situation for an animal is bad enough without adding to it the drug-induced unfamiliar state they would be in).

That said - there is something that I would recommend, in the event that they seem to be too stressed. Any health food store would have something called Bach Rescue Remedy. This is a flower essence that will calm them if needed - I've used this when I take Lydia on the plane, only for the part where we have to go through security and boarding/disembarking the plane because of the chaos. Just a couple of drops from the eyedropper into their mouths will do the trick.

I would not recommend that you let the cats loose in the truck...you just never know if they get underfoot or if you stop and even carefully try to open the door...the last thing you want for your trip is for one of them to get out. Keep them in their cages and only let them out if you are stopping and not getting out - let them use the litterbox, etc. It's funny how easily they will use it if they have to. I carried a little portable litterbox and Lydia actually used it in the ladies room at the airport

Good luck with the treck with the kitties.....see, you won't be travelling alone afterall!!!

I agree with Lydia in that you should definitely keep them in some sort of crate during travel time in the vehicle. I wouldn’t chance it on them getting out during stops for gas, and so on…

Thank you ladies!

I think I will get them collars and leashes, and will keep them in their crate while driving. Better to be safe than sorry. The crate is plenty big enough, medium dog sized, so I'm sure they'll be comfortable enough.