Relocating with elderly cat

[pjm-7]

Another thing to consider. Do your cats eat vegetables? You can feed peas, pumpkin or squash. I had an older cat that loved baby food peas. The veggies will help them "go". When cats are stressed they will hold it for days which can cause its own health problems. Introduce the veggies as a treat at the overnight stop and when you get to the new location.

 

[oldphd]

Another is to have the carrier in your house with the door open for a few days before the trip. Gives cat time to get accustomed to it.

Forgot about this, but great tip! We had the carrier sitting out with the door open and blanket inside for a few weeks before the trip. Our cat likes cozy spots and had taken to napping in there. We never moved it and never closed the door. As a matter of fact when it came time to depart she was inside and all I had to do was close the door!

 

[Harrald]

@pjm-7

If our cats could hold "It" for more than 20 minutes that would be a miracle. We clean their box at least 5 times a day.






@oldphd
Thanks for the link. We're looking at those now. I'm not sure if we could fit a litter box in each one with a cat. (see above statement)

<<SNIP>> When cats are stressed they will hold it for days which can cause its own health problems.<<SNIP>>

 

[travelover]

I don't know much about transporting cats, but I had a memorable experience when my now DW moved into my home with her aged cat. I didn't realize what was going on until it had done a lot of damage peeing all over the place. I guess old cats don't like to move and show their displeasure in this way.

So, my advice would be to keep a very close eye on the cat and if you smell anything, use a black light to find and treat the urine before it starts soaking into the floor.

 

[Rosedala]

Have not traveled with such an old cat. I agree that just as with a very old person, long-distance travel is going to stress him - you have to balance that against not being able to take him at all.

I did learn a lesson about traveling with cats when I was a teen. My parents and I moved from NJ to FL with two cats. One was 10 years old, the other about 6. My dad did all the driving. But being in his 60's, he divided the 1250-mile trip into 3 days. Mom and I babied the cats in their carriers, and in the hotel room, so all was well as far as litter behavior. But we had a bad scare when we had to leave the cats in the car while we stopped for lunch. The poor things refused to drink from the water dishes I put in their carriers, and got dehydrated far quicker than we expected. We came back to find them lying listlessly in their carriers, panting with their tongues hanging out.

After running the AC like mad in the car and coaxing the cats to lap water from my hand, they did revive, but we were so scared that for the next 2 days, we only grabbed fast food for lunch and brought it back to the car to eat.

I think in your case, I would drive, but divide the trip into 2 nights. Somebody needs to baby the old fellow in the car and in the hotel, and I mean baby, even if it means letting him lick water and food off your fingers or his own paws. I think he will benefit from being fussed over. Old people seem to.

Oh Amethyst what a heart of gold you have toward the little felines! I no longer have the joy of having these magnificent creatures any more, but if I had an elderly cat I'd too stay with him/her all the time as there are many dangers for, not only old ones, but all cats kept in a car for many deadly reasons including stealing them for labs or sadistic "diversion", extreme temperatures, etc. When I had my cats I didn't take any trip if I didn't have THE person whom I trusted more than myself.

 

[Rosedala]

All good advice. We're ordering two large soft sided cat crates for the drive. They'll have littler box and a place for water built in. Our furry family have no claws so the soft side shouldn't be an issue. They will strap onto the back seat so if anything happened, they'll be as safe as was are. I've thought about keeping them in the bathroom overnight and it seems to be the best option. Our only problem is howling. The older cat HOWLS. he howls after he eats, goes potty, wakes up from a nap, is locked out of a room or whenever he feels like howling. Like I said...he's a cranky old cat.



We'll probably split the trip into 2 days. with a one night hotel stay.

@Amethyst

That is the same trip we'll be making. Northern NJ to north central Florida. A pair of 9 hour days will be pretty easy. I still make a bi-monthly 6 hour round trip drive (3 hour drive, a 15 minute stop and then head back). I feel bad for the cats. It's like flying with a baby or a young toddler. They won't understand and it will seem like hell to them.


Cheers all,
Harrald


*edited for spelling*

OH NO!!!!!! I write this with a dagger in my heart! Was it you who declawed your poor animals' fingers? Or were they already mutilated when you adopted them? What a horror to mutilate an innocent living being for convenience and just because you can! I beg you in the name of God to not have animals if you feel the need for mutilating them for any reason....

 

[Teacher Terry]

I love how so many of you go out of your way for your fur babies as do we. You all are awesome!

 

[Buckeye]

Be very careful letting kitties out of their cages into the hotel room. It might not appear there is anywhere they can hide but you will be surprised.

Once travelling with my Calico, she somehow got wedged between the wall and the headboard at floor level. I had looked things over before letting her out and wasn't concerned but she surprised me! I went into a bit of a panic but I finally got her to come out.

 

[Harrald]

An update on our travel dilemma.

We purchased a travel carrier for the cats. It can be used as one 39" long carrier, divided to keep the cats separate or as a single 19" wide carrier. The hammocks have been removed and put under the padding. They made it impossible for the cats to stand up. It did smell chemically when we pulled it out of the box but the smell went away in a couple of days.

We put it together and have had it sitting on our love seat for a few days. The cats normally hang out there so they're familiar with the position. After only a few minutes the cats were checking it out and walking through it. With the screens rolled up, it's basically open on three sides.

After a day we added a tiny bit of catnip and the cats began to hang out in it. Now they're using it to sleep in and have made it their own.

It's large enough for two adult cats to curl up on one side. We're planning on introducing a small litter box for the trip. We'll add it next to their current box about 2 weeks before we leave. A small box will take up about 1/3 of the entire width leaving plenty of room for the kitties.

We have about 5 weeks before the move so by the time we go it should smell like home to them.

Link for curious minds.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N2WKQ0F/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


Cheers,
Harrald

 

[Gulfbeach]

Very nice. Looks like you have thought of every thing.
Happy travels.

 

[Poopycat]

Lots of good tips on here. I have relocated with cats several times, usually by driving, once by air (which was the best, but it sounds like your vet has ruled that out).

Another thumbs up for Feliway here. And I would also do the trip in two days. Being stuck in a cage for 12 hours would be tough on an old kitty. I always drove a max of 7 hours a day with the cats, mainly because I didn’t want them to have an accident in their cages. Most of the time, the cats would calm down after an hour. But not always. So don’t count on that. I don’t trust sedatives; I’d be worried about what to do if your cat has a bad reaction and you are in an unfamiliar place away from your vet. See if you can do the first day without a sedative, and if it’s a nightmare then just do it on Day 2.

You can book a pet-friendly room online, but I’d recommend calling the hotel in advance just to let them know you are bringing a cat. Even though one site allowed me to specify online I was bringing a cat, the front desk person was clueless and was going to put me in a room that was not pet-friendly.

And if you are worried your cats will freak out in the hotel room (which might happen), definitely lock them in the bathroom. Even if the meowing drives you nuts. At least they will be safe. If you are worried that the loud meowing will get you kicked out, and you must keep them in the main room with you, shove pillows, blankets, jackets, etc. under the bed in every possible location. It probably still won’t be enough to keep the cat from hiding under the bed though. If possible, go to a hotel where you have a true box spring mattress and frame, and not a wooden frame that the mattress sits on. You might think “great, a wooden frame...kitty won’t be able to hide under the bed,”. Uh, yes Kitty will. He/she will find the crevice at the top of the bed by the wall and sneak under the frame and hide between the mattress and the floor. You won’t know how Kitty got there, but that’s what will happen. It happened with my cat, and I was afraid I would have to get maintenance to take the bed apart.

 

[statsman]

I'm curious how the move went with the cats. We had three we moved 1,700 miles and 25 hours on the road (over three days) the Fall of 2018. Our cats weren't as old at the time, but still 11, 10, and 6.

What we did experience post-move was the cats using the carriers we purchased as home base during our time in the rental house and later in our new house. Even to this day, we have the carriers spread out in the house, and occasionally we will find a cat sleeping inside the carrier (or on top of it!).