In the past 3 months, my husband and I adopted two cats. I have never in my life owned cats, so I am not sure how to handle this issue: My husband and I are going to drive to our hometown this Christmas. We are going home for at least a week, and we will bring the cats with us. It's a 10 hour drive. How do we handle the bathroom situation? With dogs its so easy (you just have to walk them at the rest area and they go potty). With cats, I don't know what to do! Any ideas on the best way to handle this situation?
yorkie2008-10-28T15:35:51Z
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several choices for you
leave the cats at home, with a neighbour coming to feed them book the cats into a cattery
these are the easiest options!
to take the cats with you, each should be in a cat basket. if the car is big enough, lock all the doors and windows, put the litter tray on the floor and let them roam the car for a few mins. give them water and a little food.
my cat will walk on a small dog harness, you could try this with yours. try at home first!
if you see your vet and explain you are travelling, he might give you a sedative for a long trip. as the cats will be sleepy, they wont be eating and drinking, so nothing will come out the tail end.
When I was showing Abyssinians, I had crates large enough to give ample room for the cat and a small litter tray in the back of the crate. I put a towel and a toy in as well as water on long trips. I did not usually offer food unless we were driving straight through. Most crates come with a food/water cup that clips on the door. Ten hours is long enough that you could if you want to, or just feed them as soon as you arrive. I always stopped when one of them was stinky, put the cat into another crate and scooped the poop. Be sure your doors are closed before moving the cat around - you don't want an escape artist in a strange place. If you want your cats to travel together, you need to have an extra large crate so they don't feel too confined. Since you have some time before the big travel date, take some short trips, like an hour or two, to see how they travel. My guys traveled from the time they were kittens, so it was no big deal for them. If you find that your guys don't travel well, you may want to ask someone to come in and take care of them while you are gone, unless there is a specific reason you are taking them. Sometimes putting a towel over the crate helps. I would not recommend tranquilizing them unless you have some experience with how they react to the tranquilizer. Years ago I moved two cats from Texas and tranq'ed them the first day, so not only did I have unhappy cats, I had unhappy, drunk cats who sang arias and duets the entire day. Good luck.
cats aren't generally happy with being in a car. They will be scared and nervous for the most part. I have 2 that pee in their kennel going just a 15 min. drive to the vet. We have also had cats in the kennel going 5 hours away and they haven't had to go until we got there. I am not sur about 10 hours though. Maybe take a litter tray with you just in case. Personally I would just get a cat sitter and leave them at home. They are independant creatures and can handle it better. Leave feed for it once or twice a day and they would be good. We have been gone for two weeks and had a cat sitter come in. Of course with 7 cats, we would not have done it any other way.
It is best to have the cat in a carrier at all times while driving and if you want to get out of the car. Cats tend panic and bolt at the first sign of trouble and you may loss the cat. There have been a few people asking this same question on yahoo answers so looking further on the site for more info on the subject is a good idea. I could give links but most people don't like using them these days.
First don't feed or give water before you start out. Have a litter pan, small amount of litter, paper towels, plastic bags and a few extra small towels for the carrier.
Most cats won't go when riding; some do - but not in the pan - in the carrier. You need to have material for a quick clean up if necessary.
I would only offer a little food/water when you stop for more then 1/2 hour (like for lunch/supper) and then let them out of the carriers to stretch and use the litter pan.
When you get to where you are going, be sure the litter pan is one of the first things set up before you let them out of the carrier.
I've travelled 6 hrs with my show cat and he will not use the pan in the car.