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jmb667's avatar
jmb667
Explorer
Sep 04, 2015

Teaching cats to travel?

My wife and I are (still) in the "do we want to do this?" stage of picking an RV (TT, 5er, motorhome...) and one of the deciding factors is whether the "kids" can come with us and how comfortable they'll be. We already have an F-350, so I'm leaning towards a TT or 5er, but my wife is leaning towards a motorhome of some kind.

We have two cats: a large tabby and a small Burmese. The Burmese likes traveling...on the way to the vet she comes out of her carrier and sits in the lap of whomever isn't driving, looks out the window, etc. The tabby, however, is a bit of a prima donna, and freaks out when he's in the carrier, even with the top open. He cries and whines the entire time.

I'm trying to decided if he just needs more (positive) travel exposure, or if he's truly at stay at home kitty. The Burmese could travel tomorrow and love it; she's obnoxious and has to be into everything, so she'd love it. It's the tabby we're really concerned about.

Any tips for "teaching" a cat to travel, or is this gonna be one of those personality things that there's no way around?

Thanks in advance for your insight!
  • Our old cat that has to travel is put in his carrier and closed in the bathroom or bedroom. She doesn't cry for very long and snuggles down. The carrier makes her feel safe. Once we're set up and finished going in and out of the rv constantly, we let her out. She'll park herself on the sofa or bed then. You do have to be careful of going in and out if the RV because cats and dogs both can move warp speed out of the door and be lost.

    If it's a long trip we don't let her out of the bathroom but will put her in the litter box during rest stops. When ready to leave back in the carrier she goes. With this routine we've never had a pet get away from us yet.
  • Our 2 cats travel in the largest dog kennel I could fit in the back seat of my pickup, with a shelf I built into it for more room. At first, they fussed and meowed the whole time, but now they meow for a bit and calm down and sleep. We do take frequent stops to allow them to use the litter box in the trailer. We just allow a little more time for the trip. We have thought about a motorhome and if that would be easier with the kittys, having the ability to wander around while traveling, But they are probably safer in a kennel, in your truck or a motorhome.
  • The cat will teach you how he rolls. :) Hopefully the crying only lasts a few hours.. once on the road he should settle down.

    I would say a MH is better for this.
  • Keep in mind that Prozac is often prescribed for kitties with "anxiety" issues. It may not be the perfect solution but might just make travel a more pleasant experience for all concerned.
  • I suspect it's a personality thing. Our cat has been an indoor kitty her entire life, but when we moved across the country she had no choice but to become a "camping kitty." We have a TT so she rides in a carrier in the truck when we're on the road, and we carry her (in the carrier) between truck & trailer when we get settled in camp, and sometimes when we have lunch in the TT at a rest area enroute. For the entire move, and for subsequent years' camping trips, she meowed the entire time in the truck; fortunately no wailing or screaming, just meow - meow - meow - meow, for hours. She still does it periodically, but over the last 3 years of camping trips (3 weeks or less duration) she has gotten more used to it. It seems to help that we elevate her carrier in the truck (putting a large cushion under it) so she can see out; she seems happiest on 2-lane roads with lots of trees and/or green hills to see (go figure). In other words, she is getting used to the truck but still protests when we get her ready to go, and protests some of the time on the road. She loves being in the camper - no problems other than expressing her feelings by missing the litter box sometimes :R .

    We got a larger carrier than usual for her, actually made for small dogs, so she has room to sit up, turn around, move from one side to the other, etc., and we don't use it to take her to the vet. (So far haven't had to do that on a trip!)

    I suspect your two cats will be pretty much the same as they are now when riding in the truck. It's possible they might react differently in a MH. No way to know until you actually get underway.

    We carry ours in the cab, in carriers. The new cats have almost spent more time traveling with us then at home.
    They still hate travel days. But they like the new channels on Cat-TV (windows) when we get where we are going.


    I guess that sums our experience up pretty well too. :)
  • We carry ours in the cab, in carriers. The new cats have almost spent more time traveling with us then at home.
    They still hate travel days. But they like the new channels on Cat-TV (windows) when we get where we are going.
  • Our two find their own spaces in the Motorhome. No carriers.