Topic: Long travel with a cat...? (Read 2886 times)

dolcetta46 · « **Reply #20 on:** November 07, 2007, 12:35:51 PM »

Thanks everyone for your great advices. I know at the end of the day it depends on individual cat, but observing Oliver it is quite doubtful he would appreciate a prolonged stay inside the cage, which is increasingly getting quite small for him!! (Many cats like to snuggle up in a tight place, but Oliver clearly prefers comfily stretching out to relax.)

Yes we will be staying in a separate compartment (flat) within the same house of our friend, with separate entry, so there is no worry of other people letting him get out. But in a strange place after a stressful long travel, all sorts of unpredictable things can happen with cats, and I can't bear the thought of getting him lost in the snowy mountain!!!

There WOULD be a simple solution if my partner Cris were a bit more reasonable, that if we get an invite from the friend Cris will go (they are childhood friends and to the friend my presence or absence shouldn't really matter!) and I will stay with Oliver here, but I know Cris won't hear of that, somehow he feels guilty doing things like this alone and he would say "If you don't go I won't go either!", and then I would feel guilty!!

So we will talk this over more to decide what is the best for Ollie!

swampmaxmum · « **Reply #19 on:** November 06, 2007, 23:17:27 PM »

You said you're going to a flat? I agree with the others; mine have always been to flats on the 2nd floor where they could definitely not escape. I would def leave him at home if it's a ground floor flat.

Millys Mum · « **Reply #18 on:** November 06, 2007, 18:48:34 PM »

My worry would be losing him at the other end. Id never forgive myself if it happened to me. Not that any of mine would tolerate being carted up the motorway

lucy · « **Reply #17 on:** November 06, 2007, 18:09:55 PM »

I would suggest leaving him with your friend. He will be well looked after from what you say, and I think the long journey and new surroundings might be more stressful than fun for him. But you know him best & may have a better idea of how he will react.

swampmaxmum · « **Reply #16 on:** November 06, 2007, 16:29:32 PM »

Mine have done several long journeys without too much stress, not that they really enjoyed it, but they were fine. But it depends on the cat obviously and I'd suggest that you try him out for 1-2 hour trips to see if it bothers him a lot or not much? Mine travelled long distance in my little car in a big rabbit cage propped up on blankets, duvet etc, so that they could have a litter tray and a bed in with them and could see us/out a bit. (that was a tip I got from a friend who has another well travelled feline!). And I stopped every 2 hours to hydrate them with water in a syringe. The main thing is that being with you and being able to see you minimises stress, as does being able to use the tray when they need to. I would def say feed something quite fatty (and not too much) about 2 hours before travelling and don't feed them until about 15 mins after you arrive (or whenever they seem to have settled in a bit).

Leaving him alone at home may be even more stressful as he will miss you. It's not an easy decision but you have to base it on Oliver and his temperament, and his health. I always checked with the vets that they were ok to travel. Some cats could never travel whereas quite a lot travel really well. I know several people who take their cats everywhere in Europe without problems - and hotels would take Oliver in the room with you if you had to stop (I think, in Italy too?). Spraying the cage with feliway at least 5 mins before you put him in is helpful. I would avoid any drug sedatives. Hope that's of some help!

Ela · « **Reply #15 on:** November 06, 2007, 16:05:22 PM »

Quote

I would think very seriously about whether to take him

I agree with you 100%

dolcetta46 · « **Reply #14 on:** November 06, 2007, 13:30:39 PM »

Thanks so much Helen for your advice. I will rethink well and discuss with Cristiano and Rita (our friend) about what to do. I know Oliver will be under good care with Rita, she is a 120% cat person and she actually helped me convincing Cristiano that we NEED a cat in our household

At the end of the day, it is mostly me who would be missing that fuzzy wuzzy purring chunk in my arms for an entire week more than anything... I may have to have, or at least try to have an heart to heart talk with Ollie deciding our holiday plan!!

Tiggy's Mum · « **Reply #13 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:48:56 PM »

Quote from: dolcetta46 on November 06, 2007, 12:34:15 PM

I was worried he would get lonesome and sad being left all alone for most of the day.

I know it's slightly different in my case as I have two cats but when the boys were little I kept coming home on my lunch hour to check they were OK. Every time I came in the house the noise of me coming in woke them up, I'd play with them for a bit then no sooner had I arrived I had to leave them again making me feel like the wicked witch of the west. Anyway, the point to this is that I set up a realtime 'Lukey&Riley webcam' which I could view from work. I'd say for 97% of the time they were left alone they were fast asleep!

As long as Oliver has lots of toys and his carer gives him some attention and cuddles when she comes to feed him and do his trays I'm sure he'll be just fine. If he was in a cattery he'd be alone so staying home means he gets to keep his familiar territory. Remember, If you did take him it's not just an 8 hour journey there but also an 8 hour journey back, added to that the risk of him bolting from his temporary home - you might be careful with doors and windows but are the householders? It might take him a while to settle in the new home so he might be frightened and miserable the whole time anyway.

dolcetta46 · « **Reply #12 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:47:11 PM »

Thanks Mark! This could be a solution in certain occasions... Probably the product is called in different way here so I may inquire at the next vet visit!!

Mark · « **Reply #11 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:40:13 PM »

I haven't actually tried them but heard from some that Skullcap and Valerian are good. I'm sure others have tried them for stress. Also, Millysmum's link reminded me. Feliway sprayed in the carrier as well

http://www.purrsinourhearts.co.uk/index.php?topic=8561.0

dolcetta46 · « **Reply #10 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:34:15 PM »

I know... it is such a dilemma! I did think it may be a bit egoistic of an idea on my side to drag him over to the mountains, but then again, he is such a baby I was worried he would get lonesome and sad being left all alone for most of the day. (We can ask our friend who lives couple of blocks away to come over and feed and play with him for a while daily... she is one of the very few outsiders Oliver gets close to. But it would be difficult for her to keep him at her home, where there is an extremely unsociable female Burmese!)

And Helen you are right... in normal circumstances I can't imagine Oliver running away even with the door open, but after such a long stressful drive, it is a good possibility that he would do something unpredictable and mad, though I know we wouldn't open up the cage until we are safely settled in our flat. (The house is large with several individual flat, they are considering about starting a B&B)

Mark, if you can excuse my ignorance may I ask what Valerian / rescue remedy may be?

SpecialRed · « **Reply #9 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:32:42 PM »

Well Barry can take 10 mins before he starts howling, then poo'ing and then throwing up so no chance of him going 8 hours, infact I think he would actually pass out due to stress!!

Tiggy's Mum · « **Reply #8 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:15:25 PM »

I would think very seriously about whether to take him, if a journey is out of necessity then so be it but if there is an option for Oliver to stay home then that would be the best option in my opinion.

Eight hours driving is stressful enough for a human let alone a hyperactive young cat, also I'd be terrified of losing him in his temporary home. What if he escaped, could you stay there indefinitely to search for him? It's a lovely idea but way too many negatives, he'll be just fine at home and you can make it up to him with lots of extra treats and cuddles when you get back.

Mark · « **Reply #7 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:11:30 PM »

If you do take him, I don't think some Valerian or rescue remedy would do any harm. Still a long way for a cat to travel. As much as you may miss him, he would probably be happier at home in familiar surroundings.

Team Svartalfheims · « **Reply #6 on:** November 06, 2007, 12:05:00 PM »

Quote from: dolcetta46 on November 06, 2007, 11:26:11 AM

would it be harmful to feed him during the car travel? Would that make him get car sick?

It depends on the cat, Bilbo can't eat whilst we are actually moving as it makes him sick but he can eat when we stop for toilet breaks etc and then he's fine when we are moving again afterwards. Boopy on the other hand can happily eat whilst we're moving and no problems at all.

dolcetta46 · « **Reply #5 on:** November 06, 2007, 11:26:11 AM »

Yep I wanted to avoid the use of any sedatives if possible, didn't seem fair to him. Aside from the possible problem of him getting sick of being confined for such a long time, he may get hungry and get even more unhappy... would it be harmful to feed him during the car travel? Would that make him get car sick?

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #4 on:** November 06, 2007, 11:11:53 AM »

Further to Marks post, before we did the first journey I asked my vet about this and he said that tranquillers or sedatives are not recommended cos the cats fight against the effect and often are much worse than they would be without them

Mark · « **Reply #3 on:** November 06, 2007, 11:09:01 AM »

When we moved here we asked the vet about what to do with 3 cats in a car for 2 hours. He prescribed tranquilisers. I would never use them again. It was heartbreaking to see Kylie wobbling around when we got to the other end. Her eyes went funny and she was behaving like a kitten and purring non-stop. I think it really confused her - it was horrible

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #2 on:** November 06, 2007, 11:05:45 AM »

I have done 6 hr journeys with Kocka but she was very old but loved the journey and due to her not being very excitaeable ofor anything she used to sit/lay in half her carrier open on my knee.

She also wore a harness and we use to stop offf and she would go for walks on the lead and use the out door tray and have a drink.

She only did this if she wanted and we had a tray, water and food plus emergency blankets and kitchen roll in the car too.

It really all depends on the cat and once we got on the motorway, Kocka just said boring and went to sleep

dolcetta46 · « **Reply #1 on:** November 06, 2007, 11:01:06 AM »

We are not quite sure yet, but there is a possibility that we will be going up to Alto Adige, Italian alps in the north for Christmas. We have been there twice already, as a good friend of mine has a second house there and spends his time with his family fairly regularly, we get invited on occasions.

It is a beautiful place and we dearly love it, and being in the mid alps, I imagine the Christmas time would be absolutely beautiful.

However, it takes about 8 hours of driving to get there from Rome, and I am not sure how Oliver would take it. He was surprisingly calm when we brought him over the first time from his country side home, which took about 1 hour drive. And this friend of ours have 2 cats who always travel with them when they go up there, and they have somehow gotten used to the long car ride, and one of them even stays out of the cage and sit calmly on the lap of their daughter!!

I am still quite dubious about how Oliver would take 8 hours of being confined in a cage in a car... has anyone done such a travel with success? Any suggestions to make him more comfortable and less trauma? Or is it safer to trust him to someone while we are away? (A good friend who can be trusted lives near by, but I would rather have him with us...) Any advice will be appreciated!!

Author Topic: Long travel with a cat...? (Read 2886 times)