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I'm eighteen, going to be nineteen next year; a couple weeks after my birthday or so (basically around early July), I might be moving to Florida. But, before I make any big decisions, I want to take my cat into consideration. She's only been in the dry air of Colorado, and I have to wonder how well she'd adjust to the humidity of Florida. So, I was wondering if anyone had any experiences with moving from a dry state to Florida and having their cat? Or know someone who has? I have a few other options on where I'd move to if it's unlikely she'd be able to adjust; but, before the move I'd like to figure this out if possible.
(she's an indoor/outdoor cat here right now; & in Florida I'd be setting up a cat enclosure so she could still be an indoor/outdoor cat to an extent, which is why I'm concerned.)
Basicallyyy.. If it wasn't obvious by what I previously said; does anyone know how well a cat can adjust to high humidity after living in a dryer area? :3
My dad lives in Fla. & his cat has been an outside cat for 11 yrs & loves it. She eats grass on his lawn, chases ducks/birds, attacks garden snakes, hides in fern plants, etc.
What a life living in a tropical jungle like Fla. So, I'd say even if cat is indoors she can look out windows & see all this wildlife outside & enjoy herself. Just my advice.
How wonderful that you are considering what is best for your kitty while you consider where to move.
How old is she? I ask because younger cats have an easier time adjusting than older cats.
Florida is air conditioned so while she is inside, she should be okay. Building her an outdoor enclosure is a great idea. You will be able to control when she goes out, and where she is, and when she comes in. If the weather is too heavy for her, you can bring her in to the world of a/c again.
Keep in mind you will have to treat her for fleas every month year round, living in Florida. There's no getting around that.
Basicallyyy.. If it wasn't obvious by what I previously said; does anyone know how well a cat can adjust to high humidity after living in a dryer area? :3
Cats are very adaptable. I would be more worried about an alligator or one of those huge snakes getting her than the humidity.
My cats have always been Florida adapted, so I can only guess at what it would be like for a cat that was adapted to dry, high altitude to be suddenly in a Florida summer at sea level. Based on what humans report, it can feel suffocating. Like trying to breathe through a wet blanket, and of course it is very hot. It feels much hotter than the reported temperature. Temps in the 80s can feel like the 100s when you consider the effect of humidity and dewpoint, and that heat is sustained for months on end with little to no relief, not just for a "heat wave" week now and then. It's hard for most people to adjust to, even if you move here young. A cat that is young would be more likely to adapt, an older cat would probably appreciate the AC as much as you.
She'll probably prefer to stay indoors during summer weather which includes severe thunderstorms in the afternoon. She will probably be frightened by the intense lightning and thunder. Make sure she has some place to hide from it. But during the cooler months we have a lovely dry season with much lower, pleasant levels of humidity and gorgeous weather for most of the season. I'm sure kitty will enjoy the enclosure then (I assume you will screen it in). In the summer it would be most pleasant right before daybreak or directly after a thundershower in the early evening.
In addition to flea control in Florida, you should consider that mosquitos cause heartworm in addition to their other nasty characteristics. This is less of a worry for an indoor cat but mosquitos do sometimes make it inside, you'll have to weigh the risks for your particular cat. My cat is indoors-only and always has been. She has been flea-free for years with no treatment necessary, but you must be vigilant in checking areas where they sleep looking for "flea dirt" which are little black squiggly things, and treat immediately both the cat and the living area if you ever find any. Of course also treat if you ever happen to see a flea on the cat or in the living area, but the flea dirt is an early warning and if you take care of it immediately you can avoid infestation. A screen won't stop fleas, so if you are using the enclosure it would be prudent to consider continuous use of something like Advantage. Discuss your options with your vet.
Last edited by tilli; 09-06-2010 at 09:34 AM..
Reason: elaboration
& to answer the age question ; I adopted her from a local humane society when she was a little over a year old, I've had her almost two years. So, she's about three years old right now. Probably not young enough to adapt as easily as kittens.
I'll make sure to let her out more during the cooler seasons if I go through with moving to Florida, since I'm sure she wouldn't be too fond of the heat during the hotter ones. & As far as the enclosure, I will make sure to screen it in. I didn't know about the mosquitos, so that's something I needed to know; thank you for that, tilli.
& As far as the fleas, when I get the money I will set up an appointment with one of the local Vets to talk about options& things I can do to make her more comfortable with the changes. :]
Again, thank you all, this has helped quite a bit.~
We moved three animals from Denver to Florida almost 5 years ago.
We drove with all three of them over a course of several days.
One was a young dog, one was older, and one kitty was very elderly, had kidney failure, and was arthritic (age 19).
I had thought that the change might be too much, and I even considered putting her to sleep, but there was no way I could do it.
She adjusted fine. In Denver, she had been an inside/outside cat but in old age had pretty much changed to inside, and we continued this. I never used flea meds on her. We moved to north Florida, and she liked to use her little heated cat nest during the winter. At age 20, she began to seriously fail,and we put her to sleep. That was a tough time. But I have no regrets.
All of our animals seemed to do fine with the change in the air. The dogs loved the beach. Our new cat gets Revolution every month. An outdoor enclosure is a great idea. Good luck!
We had cats and dogs when we moved to Florida from the desert. They adjusted far better than we did. Our old dog with stiff bones enjoyed the heat.
Just make sure you use heartworm meds on the cats, even if they are only indoors. Mosquitoes don't understand that screens are supposed to keep them out.
It really is a Your Cat May Vary situation. Our junior cat would far rather be in the heat than hang out in the AC in the summer. My theory is that he's very fine-furred, and likes any extra warmth when he can find it.
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