Want to Take the Cats with Us--Need Advice

[ohiokim]

We would like to go full time with our 3 cats. We haven't taken them anywhere yet. so we don't know if it will work or not.
We have a 30 ' TT and an extended cab pickup. What do you do with them while you are driving? Do you keep them in cages? What if you stop for lunch where it's hot? Where do you put them?
ohiokim
_________________
full timmer wanabe
making plans
Sisters - Kim and Kristi Roumeliote

[Sandra and Jim Millar]

We full timed for a year (and will be doing so again when we retire in '06) with 3 cats and one dog in a 31-foot Airstream trailer. We traveled with the dog in the van and the cats in the trailer. I had baskets and an old chair that they were used to using so there were some things familar to them. I had the litter box in the bathtub (put the plug in the drain) and a spot on the counter for food bowls. After the first day of travel, I very carefully opened the trailer door and entered calling their names. I couldn't find them at first until I got to the rear bathroom, and they were all wedged in behind the toilet. The first days were somewhat traumatic for them but they did adjust.

Whenever possible, because our cats had been used to it back home, we would let them out. We stayed in some rural areas so there was grass and things of interest to felines. However, one of us was ouside at all times, we made sure there were no dogs loose, and we did not feed them until after their excursion. We have tried cat walking but it ends up being more like us dragging a cringing cat, so we gave up on that. The old chair that we brought aboard had wooden arms and became their scratching post. Since you want to bring your fur family with you, then you probably don't have a problem with them up on the furniture. Once they get used to things, they will each find a spot and settle in. When we left them for the day - we usually took the dog with us, made sure they had food and water and clean litter (box was cleaned twice per day - and people were amazed we had cats because you couldn't smell a thing) and roof vents left open. We didn't have those fans that can be thermostatically controlled back then.

You just need to remember at any checkpoints where a stranger may "invade" their space that one of their humans has to be there, and under no circumstances should they be left alone with a stranger 'cause first thing you know one of 'em will bolt for the door. We took photos (close up and full body) of each cat, they had collars with names on and these days your cell phone number, and all appropriate shots. We had plenty of flea stuff and all our critters made it through in fine shape. This time around there will be 3 cats (different ones) and two dogs and us in a 40-ft. bus conversion. I don't know about them, but we are really looking forward to this next adventure.

[racing fan]

We have 2 cats and have been RVing for 10 years with them. First and most important, get down on your hands and knees and check under everything to be sure it is safe for them and they cannot get anywhere where they could get stuck or hurt. When we got a new 5th wheel, we did not do this and they of course found out they can crawl under the bedroom slide-out (into the motor assembly). Luckily we found them prior to sliding the room out. We have a generator we run when we stop for a while. As far as leaving them out and about, we do, but we have 2 baskets for them that we keep in the very front closet (it is the smoothest ride), and we prop the closet door open. They seem to feel most safe and comfortable there. We always have the water and the cat box ready and nearby (sometimes when they get scared they need to use it right away). One other helpful hint is we give them a few drops of Bach's rescue remedy. It is completly natural and calms them down a little. You can get it at any health food store or bachflower.com. Any more concerns feel free to mail me. I love cats and know the worries with them.

[r haskell]

We take our cats , Sasha (a Burmese/Siamese) and Gabby (a gray stripped Tabby). We usually make 2-3 trips during the spring and winter and take 3 months during the summer. Sasha loves the adventure from the moment we start the engine. Gabby always has an anxiety attack the first day. The attack has all the classic symtoms: drooling, wild cries and panting. Needless to say our travel on Day 1 is very SHORT! When we stop for the day, get food in their bowls and things begin to seem like home, she is great from that time forward. The next morning she has her "travel legs," knows what to expect, she feels secure and all is well from that time forward.....no more problems.
Here are my "traveling with cat tips":
(1)The covered litter box is in the bedroom and clean it at least twice a day. (2) I pack their bowls, jungle jim, beds and toys all from home. (3) I have a folder with papers from the vet with information about their vaccinations and medical information. (4) I am very careful to close all cabinet doors: if they get in the lower kitchen cabinets, they have access to the wall behind the refrigerator. (5) We had screens made to cover the area where your feet are under the dash. Climbing into the dash was Sasha's favorite hiding place. You couldn't get her out except on her terms--sometimes which were not very timely. (6) When we leave them, we leave the generator on for AC and heating if it's hot or cold....if the weather is nice, we leave our thermostated Fantastic Fan on for them. (7) I have cut dowels to fit in the windows so if the window is open, they couldn't slide the screen and escape.
Yes, they are rather pampered cats, but these precautions make our life less stressful! They are really well-traveled felines. They have traveled to 45 of the states, and 6 Canadian provinces including Labrador and Newfoundland.

Happy travels. Hope these tips are helpful.

Judy Haskell

[Stanbnv]

We just got back from 4 months in a campground 40 miles north of Puerto Vallarta MX, with 2 cats. They like to ride under the foot of the bed and I cut a part of a panel out so they can go to their catbox in the basement of our 5th wheel. While there, we would let them out when we were around the trailer and we do that here in Yuma too. When they look like they are wandering too far, I pitch a rock to land several feet in front of them and they run back to the trailer. They haven't figured out that it is me, and they stay pretty close. They didn't like riding in the trailer too well for the 1st day or so, but they ride like little troopers now. When we come to check them, they come out from under the bed yawning to greet us, and want to look out the screen door to see where they are.
_________________
Stan & Linda
Loki & Hobo, our furry kids
06 Dodge 3500 CTD, 04 Laredo 29GS
When you come to a fork in the road, take it

[GizatheCat]

My husband's parents RVed with cats for over 20 years. Not long after their 50th anniversary in 1991 they adopted Clyde and Dale, half Maine Coon littermates. My mother-in-law carried on the RVing with cats after her husband died ten years ago. Clyde died five years ago, but Miss Dale Tweetums is alive and well at fifteen. But her RVing days are over. My mother-in-law married another RV gypsy whose only fault is his mild allergy to cats. So Miss Dale Tweetums lives with my husband and me in what must be the biggest 5th wheel in the world: our 1346 sf house!

All of Donald and Imogene's RV cats were adopted as young kittens and grew up only knowing a life on the road.

One problem with cats in such small spaces is they don't have room to romp and play. Miss Dale Tweetums was on a calorie restricted diet (Science Diet low calorie/high fiber) which kept her weight in check. Tweetums also has a funny gait which may or may not be related to her restrited kittenhood.

And also, leash train your kittens if you're RVing. Cats get disoriented freak out easily when they are away from their "turf." Cats are very PLACE oriented unlike dogs that are OTHER (human or canine).

My mother-in-law and her RVing cats got along quite well. I'm sure if you are careful, you and your kitties will do just fine.

GizaTheCat
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Life is a sit-com on the reality side of the tube

[Motor31]

We have 2 cats that travel with us: one is over 10 years old, the other about 4. Both were obtained through a local rescue operation so they were spayed and neutered. While we were still living in the stick house, we took them on a couple small drives in cat carriers before we hit the road permanently.

First off, we never open or close the slides unless they are already in their cat carriers in the truck. After almost 2 years of traveling, it isn't necessary now but it's part of our routine. They stay in the carriers until we are on the highway and in "cruise mode." Then the doors are opened. One comes out, looks around the door, then goes back to sleep in the carrier. The other divides his time on Nancy's lap or sleeping in the carrier.

They are inside cats so we do not "walk" them. The youngest will sometimes sit on a leash just outside the door for a few minutes. The other cat just demands the window blinds be opened so she can look out, then go to sleep in front of the window. Neither of them get "freaked" by a change in surroundings and we don't make any big deal about moving.

The biggest hassle was where to put the litter box in the trailer so it took up the least space. We used an electric sweep box and that helps keep odors down quite a bit.

In all, the cats travel fine.
_________________
Mike, Nancy and the Fuzzies
2005 MS 38 RL3
2001 Volvo MH (HDT)
2004 R1150RT (piggyback)
1996 Jeep Cherokee (toad)

[jeslee]

We just returned from a 3-month trip with our cat. He is 5 years old and before this had never been in the car for more than a trip to the vet. Since he is an indoor/outdoor cat at home and we were worried he might get lost, we "leash-trained" him over a period of weeks prior to our trip. We began with putting a cat harness on him (small dog harnesses don't work), then clipped a clasp onto the harness for a week. Next we added a 36" piece of twine to the clasp and clipped it to his harness every time he wanted to go out. He objected to this at first, but when we wouldn't let him outside without it, he eventually let us put it on. In the last phase of his training, we would attach a leash to his harness, carry him outside and let him "take us for a walk." When it was time for our trip, he didn't have any problems with the leash as long as he was the "leader."

For everyone's safety, we kept him in his carrier while we were driving. Each time we stopped at a rest area, we would put him in the bathroom of our 5th wheel with his litter box for a short period, and then let him wander the inside of the trailer on his leash to stretch his legs. After exploring our 5th wheel for trouble spots where he might hide or get caught, we decided not to let him loose when the slideouts were in. We kept him on the leash or in the carrier until we extended the slideouts and then again before we retracted slideouts.

Once we set up camp, we put out his food and water dishes and moved his litter box to its normal location (under the computer desk). We cleaned the box daily and did a complete change of the litter weekly.

We had a small problem with him clawing at the carpet in places where it was vertical on the step risers. Once we purchased an inexpensive corrugated cardboard cat scratch pad, he used that and didn't bother the carpet or furniture.

All in all, he did very well and made himself right at home in our 5th wheel. The only problem we had was that since he didn't get as much exercise as he normally does at home, he did gain weight. Next time we go on an extended trip, we will probably switch him to a lower calorie cat food.

Joan & Mike

[NancyMeagher]

We full-time in a 30 ft Bounder with our Russian Blue, Smokey. He is strictly an indoor cat and does fine in the motorhome. The cat box is on the bathroom floor. His food dish is on the kitchen floor and water dish on the bathroom sink, since he won't drink if his water is next to his food. He travels well; we "cat-proofed" to make sure any place he could get into was safe. In such a small environment it's important to be sure he gets enough exercise. We use a laser light to encourage him to chase the length of the RV--back and forth. He will also chase feathers on a string attached to a flexible rod. Cats are wonderful companions; don't leave yours behind!

[dreampod]

We have been on long car trips with various cats off and on for many years out of necessity. Some are better travelers than others but most can gradually become used to it. The key is to be expecting them to freak out at the worst times and never allow any opportunity for them to get out of your control. That could mean transferring the cat to a pet taxi to be moved from car to trailer, etc.

Our last vacation would have had to be scrapped if we had not decided to take our older, indoor cat. There was no one around home to feed/water her and give her twice daily insulin shots and medicine to prevent bladder infections. Stress makes her medical problems flare up. And she DESPISES going to the vet, so we could not board her there. A friend in another town volunteered to keep her. But after dropping her off and seeing her fear and stress about the new environs and animals there, we knew she would not survive the two weeks there. Better that she pass away on our trip, at least she would be with us.

So, we picked her up and loaded up all the gear, medicines, leash, small pet taxi, towels and paper towels to clean up messes, etc., etc. We then bought a 2x3 foot wire pet cage and installed the covered litter box in it. We placed the cage right behind our front seat, so that one of us could reach her to pet her and calm her. She yelled a bit for a couple of hours, then decided we couldn’t be going to the vet and we would probably all be fine. After a couple more hours we let her roam around the back of the car and our laps. When we stopped, she had to go back in the cage before we opened the car.

She absolutely loved the trailer! Loved looking out the windows at the change of yards (scenery) at each campground. Loved sitting in her wire cage outside when we were with her. We left her inside otherwise. A hailstorm while we were gone one day had her hiding under a sleeping bag, but we all had a wonderful vacation and she still loves to go camping. She knows when we are packing up and relaxes after she gets put in her wire cage, because she knows she is getting to go.

[Bookworm]

Five years ago, our gray tiger tabby showed up on our porch when he was about a year old begging to be adopted. My husband laughed his head off when I said I wasn't going to clean a litterbox for very long, but would toilet train Sparky. Since that initial three weeks of training, we have traveled with Sparky a bunch. He has done his business where we humans do ours in several hotels and now in our motorhome. He much prefers being with us to being boarded or even being separated from us, and now that his home goes with him, he is content to move throughout the day from one window sleeping spot to another.

During the time I was toilet training Sparky, I also taught him to respect a cat harness and leash, and don't allow him to roam outside loose. Occasionally, he still begs to go outside after he gets comfortable in a new park, but he's only staked him out when one of us can monitor the area. If we are camped and sitting under the RV awning, I'll usually insist a leashed Sparky join us just to keep him sociable and not afraid to go outside.

Like others have mentioned, Sparky came with me on short trips to places he was welcome or when it was cool enough to leave him in the car while I shopped. After the short trips, his next trip was a 7 hour drive to visit Grandma's. He made that one and many more without a hitch.

[demdds]

As mentioned, cats vary. The best bet is to use carriers on the first trip or until they settle down. When you let them out be sure that any openings, even those smaller than you think are too narrow, are stuffed. This happened to us with our cat along the couch on her first trip on the way home, even after she had appeared to have become well settled. To add to the problem we had made a stop and getting back into the rig we didn't know if she had escaped or was in hiding. At home, still not knowing if she was in there, we disassembled the folding couch for access to where the ducting and electric ran. She had gone rearward past the stove, sink, cupboard and apparently behind the bathroom. Two hours later, never having made a noise, she came out through a pulled-out drawer space.

I would add that the carriers should be in an area that bounces the least and best located (unless a trailer) where they can see you and periodically be comforted. Check them to make sure that they have not excreted out of fear and are not lying in their urine or feces.

[keithann]

Hello,
We have 2 very large cats that we needed to take with us when we began full-timing and workamping. We travel 2 times a year to our next job. Since we kept our car along with our 5th wheel and truck, we haul the cats in their crates in the car each day of the trip. When we stop for lunch, we take the crates inside the 5th wheel so they can be out for awhile, eat a little, drink a little, and use the litter box. We would not leave them in our parked car. They don't like being in their crates but have adjusted well with very little meowing. One caution—one cat discovered on the last trip that he can get into the basement by going under the bed when the slide is in! So we've had to block the door into the bedroom when we let them out at lunch stops and we don't let them out of their crates at our overnight camp spot till we put the slide out. Our cats like to go outside, so whenever our workamper site will allow that, we do it after a few days in the new site. They need to get used to new smells and sounds before we let them out. They both stay very close and we've had no problem. They are not out when we're gone or at night. We NEVER let them out at the overnight campground sites. We tried a "kitty walk" but they are not happy with that. If you have cats that wander, you would not want to let them out without some sort of fenced-in affair. Hope that helps some. What you do with your cat partially depends on the cat's personality and habits, I think. Ours were several years old when we began traveling with them so it was more difficult for them to adjust, but they did.
_________________
Keith & Ann Wilson
1999 Alfa Gold 38ft. 5th wheel
1999 Ford F-450 diesel
2002 Ford Focus
2 Fat Cats

[JRoo]

You've had some great advice so far so I'll only touch on the "before the trip." I had my husband park our motorhome in our driveway for a few days before leaving. I spent a lot of time in there with my cat, letting her get used to the new things in there and finding "her spot" to relax. I fed her in there and just generally lived with her in there for several hours at a time. Blessedly, we live in a neighborhood that I could leave the door of the motorhome open as I came and went, and the cat was allowed to come and go as she wished during the day. By the time we were on the road, she was pretty much comfy in the motorhome. It was also her first time in a moving vehicle, but this was much less traumatic for her because she had her comfort spot already picked out. Of course, we had the carrier along just in case. Cats love to get under the dash at the most inopportune times.
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God Bless & Keep you safe
JRoo in NM

[mickie513]

I have four cats and I'm in the concept and planning process of RVing full-time. I've thought about something like this http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/arkatents_1900_4264967 and create a "tunnel" from the RV to the screened room for additional "play" area during the day.