HELP! traveling cross country with pets!

[dexter7]

i'm moving soon. from detroit to las vegas. i need to get opinions from people who have crossed long distances with their pets. i don't know much, but i have heard pets traveling in air planes are stowed away in places with no air pressure and other such bad things.

what i want to know, is it better to make a 3-4 day trip in a car with the animals in pet carriers? i'm assuming i will get some relaxation meds from the doc so they don't stress as much. or is it less stressful for them to fly 4 hours in a plane? i don't know what is worse, either way they are going to hate it. i have 5 cats and one dog.

please help and/or share what you know about this! i'm so worried about my babies and how they will react.

[Glasgow53]

A family I knew had a bunch of cats and moved from Connecticut to Michigan. They couldn't afford a bunch of pet carriers, so they bought a bunch of cheap plastic laundry baskets and lashed two together, making a big capsule, and put two cats in each one. They allowed lots of air and visibility for the cats, the whole back seat was full of cat capsules, but they could see each other and smell each other, and they didn't feel so confined. They all survived the trip, the only drawback was the fact that they had to unlash the baskets every night to let them out in the motels. I thought this was pretty resourceful.

[ConstanceSpry]

Considering how many pets die in airplane cargo holds, driving would probably be a whole lot safer for them. We drove from Washington State to New Jersey with 3 cats and 2 dogs, and it worked out fine. Just be sure to give the kitties regular access to litterboxes.

[miss_perfect]

When we moved over 1000 miles (and two days) we rented an RV. We had 10 cats and 2 dogs at the time. My parents went to the vet and got tranquilizers, so that they were quiet most of the time. We stopped of course to exercise the dogs and let them go to the bathroom.The more docile cats slept in the bedroom of the RV and the others were in pet carriers - the dogs were OK on their own.

[muchlove]

I would never put a pet in airplane cargo... and that is why I don't have my parrot with me right now. I moved across the country and I had to leave her with my parents because I had no way to bring her on the plane. Too many pets have died that way and I wasn't going to risk her life. Now that airlines are publishing the data on pet deaths, it's really an eye opener. Each airline has X number of pets die every year and they keep record of it.

Look at the reports here: http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/reports

They're long and there's a lot of them, so read an article that sums them up here: http://www.washtimes.com/business/20...1926-5959r.htm

If you are able, definitely drive them. Road trips are fun anyway. Putting them in individual pet carriers or cages might be the only way to go... you could try the laundry basket thing, but with so many pets, I don't know if that would work. Worth a shot, though.

[A*O]

If you can afford it, I'd rent an RV so you don't have the problem of finding accommodation that will accept pets. In my experience NO hotels/motels allow animals (and I don't really blame them). An RV solves the accommodation problem and provided you keep the animals in some kind of crate while you are actually driving, you can let them roam around in there when you stop over for rests or for the night. Obviously, you will have to make frequent toilet/walk stops for the dog, but provided you allow yourself plenty of time it should be fun.

[moocow]

Make sure your pets are chipped - my sister's sister-in-law got her pet back after she escaped traveling through wisconsin (on her way to boston, I think). It took a few months, but as soon as someone brought her to the vet and they scanned for a chip, she got a call.

Watch out for any windows that might be down, and make sure if you do let them out in the car, that you know where they are at all times. We had a cat escape years ago when moving She also got injured a previous trip when she slipped out and crawled up into the fan shroud. Fortunately not too badly so.

I've traveled up to 5 hour trips with my cats. One of my cats adores sitting in front of the air vent and meowing.

[Lil]

I agree with the drive suggestion, and microchipping is a must. I did a longish journey (not as long as yours though) with a cat in a normal pet carrier, and didn't sedate her or anthing. The RSPCA book I read said 'cats make good if noisy travellers' and indeed she did. She complained a bit at first, but settled after a while and was OK as long as I didn't sing. That seemed to set her off again, can't imagine why.

[dexter7]

thanks for all the feedback!

for those of you that traveled long distance with cats, what did you do about the litter box? it's not as if we can stop to let them out of the car to use it. can they go 8 hours without going to the bathroom?

[Tenaj]

I would definitely drive, at least you can keep an eye on them all the time and see they are ok. They'll at least have each others company and not be confined. Plus how scary would it be for them on a plane?

I remember a really sad story I read about. An older couples daughter and fiance moved to Australia and the daughter had to leave her beloved dog behind. She had planned to get him on her next trip home. This dog meant the world to her and he was young and fit. The elder couple decided to suprise her and fly him over, god I feel sad just typing this but the dog died of dehydration. The fools that are supposed to keep an eye on the dogs obviously didn't do a good job. The water bowl had teeth marks in it where he had been chewing, desperate.

I'm sorry if I've upset anyone by bringing that up but that is the reason I would never put my dog on a plane.

So please drive them, you can make sure they are well.

[Tiara]

Oh my God that is terrible, fucking bastards. I hope those incompitant twats got fired and severely punished for there tragic lack of care.

[Glasgow53]

As far as the litter pan, that can be difficult, because cats don't go on command like dogs can. All you have to do is take your dog for a pee walk and he goes, but not cats. If the cage is big enough you can try a small pan in there, but I usually just put in some absorbent stuff like old towels or newspaper so if they do have to go, they are not sitting in pee. Check on them every so often, if you are driving that far you will probably stop to stretch your legs every so often. They might hold it until they get to the hotel room and you set up a regular litter pan for them. They also sell disposable type litter pans which are nice for travel (for in the hotel room, you don't have to wash it out and take it with you) or you can use those disposable aluminum pans you can roast turkeys in. I have also used cardboard boxes just for one night. If you do put a pan in the cage, try to anchor it somehow so they don't flip it over. Then they have loose litter in the cage.

[ConstanceSpry]

We used large pet carriers and cardboard disposable catlitter boxes. It worked fine, we could hear them scratching in the litter regularly.
We did have problems with one of the kitties who was prone to bladder infections. He had to be put on antibios after the trip. So keep a close eye on them for a few days after your move, just in case.

[pineappledapple]

This is an awesome thread! I have the same issue, actually, moving from Georgia to Cali with 2 cats. The turkey pan for a litter box is a great idea. I have been so worried about this move with them....I hope they are not too traumatized.

[dexter7]

^^^me too, that is my biggest concern. hopefully the tranquilizer pills will be okay to give them....i worry about them getting car sick. my boyfriend and i really like the laundary basket idea.