Moving 4 Cats...How?

Question

Moving 4 cats (3 spayed females, 1 neutered male) from Texas to California is overwhelming! I'm comfortable with the basics of making the transition more comfortable for them, but not with the logistics of the move. My new husband and I are leaving this weekend to go find a new place. The cats will have a pet sitter. But then we come back in a week or two and make the move. We haven't decided if to drive them with us and our stuff, if to hire movers and fly with our cats, or ship the cats and drive our stuff (but then who will do the drop off and pick up of the cats? Pet movers are expensive!!!) What do you guys think?

Would love to hear your experiences.

Answer 1

Since you have 4 cats then I strongly recommend driving with them. My mother did it with 7 cats from MA to NC and then from NC to MA. They snuck the cats into hotel rooms with them. You may have to take slightly more frequent breaks and keep an eye on them. But they should be ok in carriers. I wouldn't drive more than 8 hours a day though.

edit: I have flown with a cat twice. I brought the cat into the plane and I needed to buy a special carrier to fit under the seat in front of me. Both cats did great. I didn't need to medicate them and no one seemed to know they were until we were leaving and some people saw them. It was fine. My cats are docile.

Answer 2

shoe box with hole in them

Answer 3

The best would be to drive with the cats in the back of the car.

If driving during the day make sure there is Air Conditioning on while you are in getting food/ or stopping for the rest room

I think the best thing would be to drive during the night so that the car won't be hot when you stop to go the the rest room or eat.   That way you will not have to leave any windows open.

Place a DOG BARRIER between the front and back seat... allow the cats to roam freely in the back of the car. Put a litter box (covered ) on the floor and some carpet on carriers in the back seat...so they can get up high.

DO NOT OPEN THE WINDOWS... EVEN 2 INCHES THE CATS CAN ESCAPE!  (one did escape in my little town and was not found)

Possibly you can get screens for the windows (which you wedge tight in the window to make sure they get air but not escape)

If they are YOULERS..you are going to have to give them some prozak (you can get it from your vet / or a friend) which will calm them.  or a friend.  I liked the idea of a test run around town.

I would not fly 4 cats which have to be in the hold of the plane.

Driving from TX to CA is going to take a while so plan carefully... if you drive non stop you can make it in around 17 hrs depending where in the state your are from/ to.  

GOOD LUCK

Answer 4

im sure they'l b fine if u take them with u on the trip.  just make sure you let them out every couple of hours so they can stretch there legs.  good luck with the move! remember to give them plenty of treats when they get there.  

Answer 5

I have driven three cats from Arizona to Florida, flown the same three on a private jet from Florida to Michigan and back, drove back to AZ, then flew them to Europe. Each of these trips they did fine. In the car i let them out to move around, had a litter box, and food/water for them. One of the cats prefers to stay in the carrier, but the other two slept in varuious spots in the car.  If you drive with them, they will more than likely sleep most of the trip. Just be careful getting in/out of the car and hotel with them. Motel 6 allows pets.

Flying is good, but research which airlines handle pets better. Northwest has a person designated to getting the animals on/off the plane, and they fly in a air controlled compartment that isn't the regular cargo hold.

They will be a little nervous, but once you get to your new home they will be fine.

Good luck and enjoy California it's a great state!

Answer 6

have them in your car to drive over there. you could put them in a cage and put them in the middle land in your car. the have one of you guys sit back there to make sure they are okay

Answer 7

I think they will be just fine taking them with you. It would be cheaper to buy 2 large crates then to pay airfare for all four of them.

Answer 8

Wowsers!

If it were me, I'd invest in 4 travel cages & 4 harnesses w/leashes, and add another day or two to the length of the trip.

Don't forget your camera, and remember that later any mishaps or challenges will make for humorous memories.

Best wishes, and

WELCOME TO CALIFORNIA! (I live in Santa Cruz County)

Answer 9

any kind of move is bound to stress a cat out whether your driving flying etc. i would go for the option you can best afford. your vet can give you a sedative for the cats to make it easier for them. usually a pill you give 30 mins before you leave. it should last 6-12 hours depending. they will most likely sleep the whole time.

Answer 10

Hi -we will be moving from Ca to the east coast in 10 mos & have 3 cats and a snake...

My suggestion is to keep your pets with you at all times....most hotels allow pets (look online for them) Ask your vet to give you something so the cats are not anxious during the long drive & bring disposible litter pans...If the cats get along you can buy 2 big doggie carriers & put 2 cats in each carrier.  Good Luck

Answer 11

Anytime i moved i took my own animals. who is to say they will feed them? whose to say that they make sure they are not too hot?

If you go thru your items im sure you can make enough space for a large enough kennel for all the cats! Make sure they have a kitty pan they cant kick sand all over water and food. and go about your move. Make sure the kennel is locked so they cant get out by accident. In case it happends i would make sure they all have a collar with your number and name on it. just in case.

Good luck.,

Answer 12

I moved 3 cats (1 spayed female, 1 neutered male and 1 intact female, 6 months old as of our move) to Ohio from Connecticut and drove the whole way.  I made sure that each of them had their own carrier that was big enough for them to move around.  Before we moved I took them on little trips around the current neighborhood to see how they handled being in the car.  If they are bad travelers you might have to sedate them.

I also took away their food and water away from them 2 hours before we packed them up (they were the last to go) so that they could potentially be 'empty' for the ride.  The litter box stayed out until the end and got packed with them.  I also put the puppy house-breaking mats in the carriers with them so that if they needed to use the bathroom it would be easy to clean up (and while we were cleaning they would walk around the inside of the car)

I also packed their food and water bowls in the same car as them as well as a litter box, food and litter so that we could unpack them asap.

We did not get to our new apartment until 3 am and thought it would be bad to start to unload our stuff then so we set up their stuff and then let them out of the carrier.

We were on the road for ~10 hours and each cat had things in their carrier to make the trip better for them.  The male had my husband's shirt, the spayed female had both of our socks (the two of them would sleep with our dirty laundry) and the kitten had her favorite toys.

They have adjusted to the new place quite well, though we think our next move might only be 10 min away or so.