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I am moving from Dteroit to Las Vegas sometime between the 15th of May and the 23rd of May. I am trying to finalize the details. I have pretty much decided that I am going to use a relocube, and drive my car. I can't pack the cats in the relocube, I dont want to drive them, so i am left with flying.
My concern is that when I called Northwest they said that they do not fly live animals if the ground temp is over 85 degrees. I am guessing I will just fly them cargo (with out me on the plane) but I am worried about the ground temp catch. How rigorously do they stick to that? If I put the cats on a 5:30 AM EST time flight, that Arrives in Vegas at 6:30 AM PST will they be ok? Will Northwest go for it?
Or am I going to have to fly them into LAX and then go get them?
Do I have any other options? Should I just drive them across the country?
having driven from Las Vegas to Missouri....NJ to las Vegas and Las Vegas to NJ with cat[s] I would say goferit.....you might get a mild tranquilizer from your vet [especially if they are Siamese.....but other then that.....they'll be fine....
Having flown with pets and dealing with both cold and heat restrictions, I can tell you that sometimes they will check, and they are more likely to do so when you are traveling to a hot destination, since you can actually get a waiver from your vet to go below the cold temperature but not above the high. I don't think I would risk it, because 1)if anything happens and your cats get stuck on the tarmac or anything, it will heat up pretty quickly out there even if it's within the temperature range when they fly out, and 2) if you get a ticket agent who is super stringent with the rules and doesn't accept them for travel, then you may be stuck with the cats anyway.
How long are you planning on taking to drive to Vegas? The problem with flying them even to LAX is just the uncertainty of the weather this time of year. This weekend we are having record heat in southern California and it's nearly 100 degrees in LA, so you would have been kind of screwed if you had planned to ship them there.
Driving with cats isn't as bad as it sounds. My favorite sedative is aceprozamine, and I've tried several different ones over the years. On the pets. I keep my cats in separate carriers, even though they are buddies, and put a blanket over them in the back of the car. One is a better traveler than the other, and I find when they are in the same carrier they tend to work each other up into more of a frenzy.
I am going to do the Drive as fast as I possibly can. So, what, 3 days I am guessing? 2 nights in a hotel. SHould I leave them in cat carriers the entire time we are in the car, or should I let them out to run around the car? I have a very small 2 door hatchback.
We drove from PA to FL last summer with 3 cats and a dog. It was two long days rather than the preferable three days because we had to meet the movers. The dog was loose in the car, but the cats stayed in their carriers (they actually preferred it even when we opened the carriers to let them roam).
One of the cats would meow for a while once we were on the road, but quickly he settled down and all three spent most of the time sleeping (sans tranquilizers). We would offer water and a litter box when we stopped at rest areas, but they weren't interested. At the hotel they were free to roam the room and that's when they'd eat, drink, use the box, and explore.
A great purchase was a plastic litter box with a lid that had a handle. Easy to transport between car and hotel room and contained the litter when in use.
Airlines can be really strict about temperature. They must endure huge liabilities when transporting live cargo and they'll usually defer to the extreme and refuse to fly your pet. It would be especially a concern if the flight was not direct - very easily the airline could off-load your cats and not fly them on a second leg leaving them stranded at an airport somewhere. This happened to a friend who was flying with her dog from FL to CA.
Driving with your cats as libbykt wrote is not as bad as it may seem.
Keep them in the carriers. Its safer, and they feel more secure. Plus, if they do decide to have some kind of gross accident, it's contained and easy to clean up. Make sure you don't change their routine as far as food- don't try to give them any special tuna fish or anything as a "treat" if they normally don't get it, as it can wreak havoc on their digestive systems while you travel. Trust me. Offer them food and water before you go. They will probably be too freaked out to do anything at rest stops- at the most, I would offer water, but I wouldn't try to let them out to use the box or anything. They won't use it, and it will just be stressful. They can hold it longer than you think they can.
I recommend buying a couple of disposable litter boxes- they come prefilled with litter, and one is only good for about a day or so with 2 cats, so buy as many as you need for your hotel nights (and maybe for the first night in your new house too). They are super convenient for traveling because you can just bring one in with you and throw it away when you are done, specially if you are short on space in your car.
Hi!
Drove my daughter and her sick cat from Detroit to FL in July. The trip went better than expected. Then did the move again in Nov. from Detroit to FL with my cat. We did not use any medication. But I would suggest you check with your vet first and get some just in case it is needed. A large travel cage was used on the 2nd trip and my cat was comfortable. I think they feel more comfortable knowing you are there, as apposed to being shipped as freight on a plane.
Good luck!
Drove from TX to TN with the cat. Got pulled over for speeding. Turned out the cop liked cats, we had a nice chat, and I got out of the ticket with a "have a nice day".
I wouldn't leave cats loose in a car unless I already knew they were seasoned, sensible travellers. Even then it could be risky.
Cats can manage to crawl into the most hidden, inaccessible places (way beneath everything else packed in the car, or underneath seats). You definitely don't want to have to open the door(s) trying to find the darn cats and then have them slip out or jump out before you can catch them.
Keeping them confined in the carrier is the safest bet.
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I keep my cats in separate carriers, even though they are buddies, and put a blanket over them in the back of the car. One is a better traveler than the other, and I find when they are in the same carrier they tend to work each other up into more of a frenzy.
cat travel
