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Don't expect to stop much on the trip. In the desert, even in a few minutes that time of year, the car can be 115 degrees. Four hour trip? I would wait until around noon. That worked better when I took Jasper on his big car adventure. That is his usual napping time. When I left earlier, that just meant an extra hour or two of his yowling. When I left at 12, he settled down in about ten minutes.
I would drive at night when it's cooler. That's what I did when I moved from Tucson to Sacramento. It was too hot to drive with my cats in the car then.
I did a search on Amazon for "cat stress." There seem to be a few different natural remedies that may help. Amazon.com: cat stress: Pet Supplies
You can also use Dramamine to sedate her somewhat, but should check dosages with your vet first. Some people have said Dramamine has the opposite affect and makes their cats hyper, so you may even want to do a test dose before leaving. I'm not a big advocate for unnecessarily medicating animals or people, but if it makes the trip less stressful for your girl, it may be worth it.
Lots of water, a favorite blanket and toy should help. (We're getting ready to move 2 cats and 2 dogs from CA to WA, so I feel your stress)
Hi everyone. I need some tips
I will be driving me & kitty about 4
Hrs in the heat.
She is 10 & hates cars. A mamas girl;
Deaf, neuropathy & scared because we have
Moved too much.
Pretty sure will shave her long fur before
We leave (usually wait until July) in late may
As it is much hotter than LV.
Don't expect her to eat much on trip.
Should I seat buckle cat carrier to front seat ?
How about water? Having arthritis we will probably
Stop 2 times for me to stretch.
When we get there I will try to set up safe zone
ASAP w/her blankets, toys, water & food.
any other suggestions?
Can you do the trip in the early AM or at night when it is cooler?
I might try to carry a cooler with some ice cubes that you could take out and wrap in a cloth towl and put in a corner of the carrier so she can lick them when she wants to. You might even try making some chicken broth with a chicken or chicken parts and bones and freezing ice cubes made out of that. Anitra Frazier has a really good recipe in The Natural Cat that my cats loved. The soup or broth could be frozen into cubes to make it yummier.
For a 4 hour trip though, I probably wouldn't sweat it. Just give her some Rescue Remedy when you head off and then again if you can give it to her if she seems unhappy and is crying. You can actually give it every 15 mins if necessary.
My 12 year old cat and I did a 17 hour trip ww house to pee. He was SUCH a good traveller and never complained.
I wished I had had time to do the things I'm suggesting you do but until the moment we left I was getting my old house ready for buyers and trying to move my stuff (which I thought I had room for in my car) out. I will never do another long distance move like that without a few day transistion/preparation time somewhere close by so I can move the miscellaneous stuff that I can't fit in my car there and then pack it and ship it (instead of pulling an allnighter and making trips to a Salvation Army to drop it all off there) and then thinking I still had enough energy to drive 17 hours safely.hich included one unplanned overnight stop at a hotel after 5 hours because I was so tired. But at least it gave him a chance to use the litter box even though he hated the strange smells of the hotel room and at one point I thought he wouldn't come out from under the bed.
During the 12 hour leg I stopped about every 4 or 5 hours to get gas, offer him water and put his litter on the hood of the car and and opened his carrier to see if he wanted to walk into it and use it. He waited all 12 hours until we got to the new place. He was the BEST feline traveling companion anyone could ask for.
you can imagine. He never complained and rolled with the punches.
Your car should have a/c so temperature is no issue. Have her "safe room" stuff in the car. She will complain and tell you yow mean you are. Fine! Buckle the carrier in to avoid shifting should you have to hit the breaks. Keep your eyes on the road not the cat. You may not have to shave her in LV. I would not let her out unless it is in the closed car as it is no fun to chase a cat where neither you nor her know your way around. Give her all the loving she can stand once you are at her new home. She may not want to have much of it to start with. God speed!!!
ThAnks for your help. I am disabled & typically needed the
TLC but this is my baby.
That stuff for the car I have to downsize - we will be in a corolla
Just her stuff, sheets & bathrm stuff looks way too much.
Think I will pull over for my joints 1-2 times but snack
In car.
Will bring her chicken. Dry food ice cubes & somehow water
She doesn't like hot or cold things.
Since you are going through desert, I'd definitely take lots of water. And food. And a litterbox. And everything else needed if you are stranded there a while. Have a sunshade to throw over the cat carrier. I use the silver accordion-folding windshield screens for cars. I recommend the travel later later in the day or at night recommendation. Keep the car cool, the radio volume low, the cat carrier shaded.
Another thing I always take with me is a small handtruck or flatbed cart or such, in case I have to leave the car and hoof it with the cat carrier. (You never know.)
I never sedate my cats. The one who gets really nervous rides in the front seat so he can get facerubs until he calms. But even he will settle down and quit stewing after 2 hours. A lot of how they act is how you react. If you are calm, they eventually give it up. lol
When I moved from L.A. to L.V., I got some sleeping pills for my cat from the vet. It was a much less unpleasant experience for both of us. He slept the whole way, and I didn't have to deal with him howling the whole way.
I never shaved my angora when I lived in the desert southwest. She did not go outside.
4 hrs is a piece of cake drive.
I've made cross country moves with 4 cats at once. None of them were too interested in either eating or drinking though I offered.
Sometimes just placing a towel over their carrier quiets them down.
My 10 year old who detests the car calms down after 20 minutes. We go back and forth from RI to NC every year.
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