How do you people do it? Having a pet cat

[LeftTown]

I embrace my inner “crazy cat lady”!
Your animal family sounds like a happy one….

Well, woad wabbits aren't weally wecommended...

https://bunnylady.com/vacations-and-traveling/

but my "daughter" would have been someone's Thanksgiving dinner if we hadn't tried.

So to make a short story long, you do what you have to do.

I forgot to mention how great the inexpensive cardboard scratchers they have now are. I set them up in the cab for the current feline overnight to keep her busy and happy.

Pinky and Annie didn't have that in the '80s. It's much easier now.

There's a van around here (Arcata, CA) with the front passenger seat removed and replaced with a cat tree and litterbox.

The purebred Siamese and tortoise shell alley cat who live in it like that very much. All indoor cats like to sit in windowsills and look out.

 

[ealseal12]

Just lost my Kitty pal after 14 years together on the road.If you love your kitties who care what others think. I love cats!

 

[BelgianPup]

There are more than 300 million people in the U.S. Each of them have their own combination of opinions about everything, so WHY would any individual worry about what anyone else would think about their traveling with a cat or multiple cats???

If you live your life worrying about what other people will think, you've got far more problems than driving with a furr purrson sleeping on the dash, and the State Trooper asking if it's stuffed.

 

[maki2]

I chose to rehome my 2 Siamese cats. It was for me an emotionally painfull decision. One of the 2 liked to go walkabout now and again so he could not be trusted to return back when I might need to leave if my time at a campsite was up. They were a bonded pair and being separated would have been very stressfull to them.

As I did not know anyone to adopt them I took them to the Seattle Humane Society. It is a no kill shelter and they made sure my cats stayed together and went to the same home. But while you might think that is a nightmare situation for my cat to be taken to a shelter you are very much mistaken. They even have vets from all over the area who come in and take care of any medical issues the animals might have including doing tricky surgeries and dental care too.

While in residence the cats lived in a large multilevel, cat temperature contolled condominium, not in a small cage. The cat condos have windows facing the outdoors. They have the cat box on the lower level, toys, play space, and longing with beds on the mid level and a hidy hole bed box on the top level for the shy kitties.

That humane society takes videos of the pets available for adoption. I was able to go on youtube and see that they were very content in their condo and were interacting with the volunteers without any anxiety. They found them a new home despite their being senior cats.

So please do not scare people into thinking all animal shelters are a nightmare. There are some extraordinarily good ones around. Seek one of those out if you feel it is the best solution for you and your pets.

 

[Bunpoh]

We just bought a 26' 95 Safari Trek, which is getting fixed up by a good mechanic. Currently about to stop couch-surfing and start full-timing with my partner and two cats. My cats are my surviving family members, after my husband passed away, about 5 years ago. I've had them since we rescued them as kittens from a terrible situation and nursed them back to health. We filled them with love and they are the best cats you could imagine. After my husband died, they became all I had left and kept me going. My new partner loves them immensely, and we remain a family now.

Sorry, but I can't imagine giving them up. I've been around other people and their pets... I don't trust anyone to love and care for them in the way I have for 8 years now. People suck at cat food diets to begin with. Our cats aren't obese or lazy because they don't eat grain or other bad stuff. And my cats often seek me out for love and pets and snuggle against me to sleep every night, even when it's warm. They miss us like crazy when we've been separated, and then glue themselves to us for days afterward.

Heartened to hear others have been successful. They are my babies and I will do everything I can to make their lives as good as possible.

In a year or two we hope to find affordable property to buy and build tiny homes on while we work toward our goals of outdoor stewardship grant projects, new careers and such. In the meantime, we will make it work. I'm both scared and excited, and tremendously thankful for communities such as yours to help us get started.

 

[Bkwithlove]

Because there is not an extreme amount of information being shared on Youtube/blogs/this forum about traveling with cat, just wanted to add my cat/van experience to this thread. Please believe: all animals have different preferences and personalities and therefore have different needs and you'll have a unique experience with each pet you take on the road.

Characteristics of my cat: scared easily, prefers quiet places and only humans she knows. She hated her hard sided carrier when going to vet so I tried a different soft sided carrier and she hated it too. She would pee in fear in the carriers and meow meow meow. (and yes, I would leave the carrier out in my living room and put treats in it and she just never came around to liking them). She also does not play with toys of any type even if I try to get her too : )

When I went on a six week trip last year, I had a roommate that could care for her and my heart could tolerate being apart for 6 weeks. I am now full time and have no one to take her, and besides that, caring for her is super important for my mental health. Rehoming her permanently (i.e. leaving at a shelter or finding a new permanent home directly) is not an option, as the majority of pet owners will understand. Firmly, not an option to give up my pet. She was my grannie's cat (and my granny has since passed).

Earlier this year I had a very special opportunity to keep my minivan in a heated garage while dog sitting for 6 weeks (March-Feb), and it was right before my lease ended. I used this as an opportunity to see if my cat could acclimate to living in the van. For about a week I didn't drive it, and slept in it with her the whole 6 weeks of course.

After the first week I started taking the van on short errands, like grocery store. I covered surfaces with ***puppy pee pads, as she would have accidents when the van first started up (it scared her; involuntary poop usually). That happened like four times. But she acclimated quicker than I expected, and soon she was comfortable enough to use her litter box while the van was moving (the first time she did I knew we were rockin' and rollin'!).

She did pee on my bed one time. It was a matter of getting the right cleaning supplies and using my sister's Bissel wet vac. I highly recommend using puppy pads until a week or two after you think they're comfortable.

Soon she started curling up and snoozing while the van was moving.

Don't forget SCRATCHER PAD(s) (she is happy with the basic cardboard rectangle like from any grocery store). Cats have a genuine need to stretch their fingers/claws/back and that's what scratchers are for.

At this point, the whole van is my cat's "safe space". In an apartment, she would run under a bed or behind a couch when scared, but now the whole van is her safe space. If she is outside of it and scared, she darts back inside and up onto the driver's seat.

I have a harness for her, and a leash, but she doesn't "go on walks". She hates the harness still and may never like it- all cats are different. I just use it to let her lay in the grass and sniff the grass and stuff. At one point I thought she was doing good, and I got a much longer leash because I wanted her to be above to just slink about the woods we were in. However, a terrible thing happened. She got scared and ran under the van- cool, that's fine; she's done that before. But, the horrible thing was that she climbed up into the undercarriage and got super tangled and at one point was just like hanging in her harness. I had to cut the leash and she was able to free herself. Learned two lessons: never let her run under the van on a leash again, and long leashes get tangled around trees/tires/etc.

I let her roam free when I'm in a neighborhood like staying in my sister's driveway, but if I'm in a campground she doesn't get to roam free. I think it's best that dogs must be leashed in campgrounds, and cats shouldn't be allowed to roam in campgrounds either, that's totally fair. I'm unsure if I should allow her to roam free if doing dispersed camping- she does always manage to find her way back and I don't think she goes too far but- I basically don't want her to be poking around other people's rigs and stuff. Also, if you're trying to adhere to "leave no trace", letting a cat/dog roam free ain up to par- they leave a mark on the ecosystem whether it's just trampling greenery, scratching up stuff, catching rodents/birds, etc.

I wish I had a larger vehicle (I'm in a minivan) as my cat still gets "zoomies", which are stunted inside van (seems like she takes a crap around 9:30 every night and rockets out of the litter box lol). Wish I could afford the purchase price and gas for a Class B at least.

I also am very concerned about summer heat. If you aren't worried about heat and you're reading this, you need to know that heat kills animals inside vehicles in a matter of minutes. Heat is deadly. When it is 80 degrees outside, it can be like 130 degrees inside in minutes.

In my van I have an outside temp indicator, and I've found when that reads 72 and above outside, it's starting to get too hot. Probably not deadly until outside reads 75 or above but I'm no expert on that, and with my cat I'm risk-adverse. If I'm sweating just sitting there, I'm sure she's even hotter and can't cool down as easily as me- not good. I decided I will never leave her in the van without AC - unless I'm parked **in the shade** AND **it's under 72 degrees** outside AND I leave my (screened) windows down. Will this mean rarely leaving the van? I guess maybe.

After dog sitting, I headed to southern Appalachia because spring/warmer temps come earlier there than where I was in Michigan. In Appalachia, I've sat in the van running the AC during peak heat times (well, I work FT using cell signal and I was sitting in the van anyway). I wasn't willing to even go into the grocery store unless I could park in the shade and it was under 72.

Next week we leave Appalachia for high elevation in Colorado. Lots of people do this for the same reason I am- the higher the elevation, the lower the temperature.

I'm going to try some sun deflection, finding/creating shade to park under, reflectix window covers, and a fan.

My big thing is that I love hiking and want to be gone for hours. Scenic hiking trails are possibly the biggest reason I am in my van. When I live in sticks n bricks, I'm just not healthy. I get depressed, I don't move my body like to go hike or bike (and just haven't been able to get into plain ol' workouts or gyms); I just find myself sitting in my armchair and eating delivery pizza all the time. But when I'm living out of my van, I move much much more, eat better, and the adventure is good for my spirit.

If the weather temps are not forecasted to be under 72 for the day, I'll have to adjust my schedule to being with her during the hottest times of the day. I worry about what if something happens to me and I don't make it back to the van. I worry that it will get too hot while I'm gone and I won't make it back quickly enough. I am not going to take risks with her life and the heat though, so I may just be "stuck" not hiking much.

After I learn things this summer, I'll try to report back.

If anyone sees this thread and knows from experience I'm being ridiculous about the <~72 degrees + shade thing, please let me know.

 

[abnorm]

We're 5 years on the road with TWO Fabulous Feline Friends

We have a large Transit van........the cats are happy anywhere we are even to 95*.........After that they complain !

 

[ColoRockiesFan]

How did you choose 72 degrees? I read a story about a couple that left their dogs in their while they went on a hike. They left the windows cracked, parked in the shade, etc. When they got back to the car, both dogs were dead …heat issues.
I think there are other factors at work such as humidity, etc.

 

[D'L]

I have traveled extensively with my cat while living in the back of my truck.
This was many years ago and my cat and I did very well together.
There was never a litterbox accessible to him while the truck was moving, but every time we stopped I would make it available. Then of course I would clean it, so no smell. I learned from a friend's experience that you never want both water and litter in the same vehicle while it is moving, as it can become cement on a cat's paws. So both were contained and only available when we stopped moving.

The cat was always in a carrier with my having access to the door to it from the driver's seat. The carrier was wire mesh, so not hot, and well secured in place.
The carrier is important, in case there is an accident, to protect the cat from being thrown into you or at the wall or out the ;window. My cat got used to it all very quickly and we never had a problem.

Cats who are neutered 99% of the time won't spray, especially if there's no other cat around, and female cats don't do that, so that is not an issue.

The main thing is who is the cat, who is the person, and what is the circumstance. Some cats will adapt very well. Others won't. It depends a lot on the relationship between the cat and the person. That cat was a soul mate to me and I to him and he trusted me 100%. In addition he was a very mellow guy who just took life as it came and went with the flow. Not all cats or all people can do this, but I think it is ridiculous and stupid for someone on the outside to make judgements, as that one person did here, about what another person is doing without knowing and understanding the situation and the individuals.

 

[Bkwithlove]

How did you choose 72 degrees? I read a story about a couple that left their dogs in their while they went on a hike. They left the windows cracked, parked in the shade, etc. When they got back to the car, both dogs were dead …heat issues.
I think there are other factors at work such as humidity, etc.

The 72 degrees (outside temp) is only based on four weeks of monitoring outside temp and how hot I personally feel inside the car even with windows down and in the shade. Totally not scientific. I'll bet humidity does affect it too. The thing about the idea of getting a small AC unit or something- I would worry too much that it would glitch and turn off and I would never know.

 

[mbrasseau]

There are more than 300 million people in the U.S. Each of them have their own combination of opinions about everything, so WHY would any individual worry about what anyone else would think about their traveling with a cat or multiple cats???

If you live your life worrying about what other people will think, you've got far more problems than driving with a furr purrson sleeping on the dash, and the State Trooper asking if it's stuffed.

I think she's asking for strategies... like how are the rest of you accomplishing keeping your cat without cooking it in a hot vehicle... not an opinion of acceptability.

 

[bebewanna]

It's hot, pets are hot, I am hot.....lots of money I guess solves that, rules me out ..

I have reflective covers over the windows on the sun side, stopping the hot glass is half the battle. When parked wind here comes from mostly 1 direction, so rear of minivan open with full screen, wind blowing in most of the day, shade side windows open. No bugs really do I have not been putting window screens on, nothing can fly in this wind

By the time the shade side of the van is in the sun it's dinnertime and you can open windows on sun side.

Yeah it's warm but we are inside in the shade and I don't think my pets are in any heat danger in here... Keeping the sun out is everything..

As for shopping or anything else... That's a stupid story. Unlike in WA, no fog all morning, clouds all day or trees to hide under. In New shopping stuff in Taos. I have found a few, but we are into town at 6 home by about 10 and those are the hot days because car is hot glass is hot and not cooling down.
I am worried at 8am I might get harassed because they are in van.

I can do nothing because they are in van. This will end in September as it cools off but it really puts the lid on getting stuff done or going anywhere

 

[Foresthouse]

I am just starting out and my options for cat/house sitters did not work out so I took my first li g trip with my cat last week. She had a carrier she could stand up in and lay down in and rode in that while we were driving. She liked walking around in the car and looking out the windows which were screened. I pulled over every 2 hours so she could stretch her legs, drink water and use the cat box. I set the litter tray in a high sided box to keep spills from landing in the car. She did not mind walking on a leash except when I would not let her get in something.

All of this in a Subaru forester. We leave next month for a 9 month trip.

 

[tx2sturgis]

And de-worming cats with Drontal pills. Who knew? Apparently indoor-outdoor cats like mine are supposed to have a dewormer/preventative 2 or 3 times a year. Again...who knew?

I can go see a vet and pay $150 plus $50 for the gas for the round trip to the vet, plus $10 for one pill, OR...

I can order the broad spectrum dewormer Drontal, for $230 for a bottle of 50 tablets WITHOUT a script, or I can buy ONE tablet if I paid that $150 vet bill and have a script.

How strange is this?

In other words....without a vet's script I can NOT buy one pill online. But I CAN buy 50 pills online without a script.

Very weird.

But on the other hand....my little Zipper is worth it...she's probably got worms cuz she's a rodent connoisseur and she is SUPER skinny, kinda frail, dull coat, cant eat much...etc...I'm a bit worried so I guess I'll order the tablets and then if no improvement, a vet bill it will be.

Group buy on Drontal, anyone?

Example website which shows both the single dose and the 50 tablet bottle...notice the single tablet item is a 'Prescription Item.'

https://www.chewy.com/s?query=drontal&nav-submit-button=

 

[abnorm]

Doc Tex......a new side-hustle......?

 

[tx2sturgis]

Fifty tabs...no waiting!

 

[maki2]

Sometimes the only thing that makes logistical sense is rehoming a pet. It can be emotionally painful.

 

[tx2sturgis]

I did find a local store that had a bottle of 4 deworming pills for my cat...I've given her one and now we play the waiting game...supposed to work in about 24 hours.

Just part of taking care of a fur baby.

 

[Bunpoh]

Bkwithlove, I feel you. I'm very curious how things work out for you with being able to leave the van, temps, etc. These are my biggest fears and worries with my two kitties.

Meanwhile, we FINALLY moved into our little Class A in the last week, though we haven't left my parent's driveway in Northern Arizona yet, still solving problems. Their basement has been the backup spot for stashing the cats while we work out all the bugs.

Currently with a partner, which helps, but we are still planning to be doing solo things for weeks at a time all summer, with just one or two days in between each time. I am curious what the daily and weekly rhythm will turn out to be. Shopping, laundry, emptying tanks, hanging out with friends. I still hope to camp with others and exchange pet sitting services so we can make store runs, etc.

I bought temp monitoring stuff I need to get set up that requires WiFi. Such a struggle to get everything rigged! I would then possibly leave them for brief periods only unless it was relatively cool and shaded.

Where we are parked now, in the shade with two little 12v evaporative coolers (Christmas gifts!) and some 12v fans going it's 76 outside, 81 in the vehicle but feels cooler with the breeze. It's super comfy right now, actually, and the cats are relaxing and don't look stressed in the moment.

Hopefully we head up to the PNW soon and will be there through the hot months, but lately even there it's getting up to like 114 degrees during summer. Not to mention wildfire smoke.

Got super hot here in the last few weeks, had to run the LP generator for AC as my parent's electrical system won't handle it or the microwave. CO detector started going off from exhaust getting in. Partner made a workaround exhaust extension out of flexible exhaust tubing, clamps and u-bolt hangers, worked for a couple days, then we couldn't get it to stop coming in again.

Finally got a Gen-Turi to route it above RV, haven't tested it yet, but the weather has cooled way off, so we haven't had to test it yet. Hoping that problem is solved, will test before we go.

Would love to rig up enough solar to run AC! Or even a mini split. But all of that is $$$ and time that I don't feel we have now.

Cats are kind of hating the RV, so far. They've found comfortable spots, though, but I can tell they'd rather be in a bigger space, and my boy cat, Kai, cries to go out all the time.

They were indoor cats, but as we've been moving into smaller spaces we've started taking them for walks, though not on a leash. But we're starting to find it dangerous. Puff never goes far, but Kai won't go in when we need him to, and he's been trying to wander into the brush or across roads. We bought an IR beeper that attaches to his collar that beeps if you press a remote button. It doesn't emit radiation all the time like the Bluetooth/GPS pet and key trackers. At first he would run back to the house whenever it beeped! But now he's ignoring it more, so at this point it just helps us see where he is.

He's managed to slip out of any harness I've tried, or they just don't fit his long, lanky body. Both of them lay down in protest and refuse to move when we put them on. I left all the leash experiments in my storage in Seattle, regret it now. Want to try again, maybe have my partner, who sews, make modifications.

Kai dashed out the door today as my partner entered and he accidentally knocked Kai into the sharp edge of the metal door as he ran past. He chased Kai around the house twice, then Kai hid under a big, thick bush. He called me to help get Kai out, both of us terrified he was hurt. Partner finally walked into the bush, Kai came out the other side and walked lovingly into my arms. We checked him over thoroughly, no sore spots, seems fine for hours now. Got lots of love and pets and lap time from both of us. Still watching him to be sure.

Increasingly scared he will dash out the door and into a dangerous situation now, or get lost. Not sure what the answer is here.

Spent the last several days getting the propane fridge to work, replaced burner and ignition board. It does now, but not on shore power, just gas. Replacing the power board next, and adding computer fans to the back vent to help it stay cooler in hot weather.

Made our own cat proof screens, using metal gutter guard cut to the radius curves of the windows and fitting square screens with pet-proof mesh between them and the open windows. And currently adding cat proof screen to the screen door, which Kai has managed to claw the regular screen out of.

Set up litterbox in the shower...found a boot tray that fits exactly across the bottom, and put a felt and rubber mat under that and over the outside lip of the shower to trap litter from their toes. Will have to take that out whenever I shower, but need to keep the grass seed litter off the bottom...it turns into glue! Really can't let that get into the tank! It works better and seems safer than any litter I've tried, though...no odor, as long as you don't let it get completely gross. But when we had Norovirus in my parent's house a month or two ago, we went almost a week without scooping, was just starting to get bad, which is amazing. I would never let that happen in here.

Took them for their first ride in the rig to dump the tanks the other day. They totally freaked out when their house began to move! Poor babies. Found hiding spots. I hope they get used to it at some point.

Let's keep talking about handling summer temps and such. Good luck to all of you and thanks for sharing your stories.

 

[BelgianPup]

You're leaving the cats loose in the RV as you travel? What's your plan if you're rammed by another vehicle, causing a broken window or hole or larger crack in a wall? Your cats will take off. In a strange and dangerous area. I would suggest a crate or folding wire cage when traveling.

When parked, I would suggest a roll of 2x4" mesh wire fencing, and setting it up all around your rig. This way you can have the doors open without the furrpurrsons escaping.

Consider what could be the WORST thing that could happen to your plans, not the best. Cat lost in the desert in summer? Not a good thing!