Top 5 Things to Prepare Your Cat for the Trip
Before you book hotel reservations and transportation, you need to know these top 5 things to prepare your cat for the trip. Bringing a cat along without making advanced preparations can be disastrous. Instead of having a lot of fun while out of town, you might find yourself in a difficult situation. We will look into the essential preparation you need to make. Be sure to make a quick list of these things so you don’t miss any of it.
1. A Reliable, Well-Ventilated, Cat-Friendly Crate
Having loose pets in the car is dangerous. While it’s possible that your cat won't distract you while sitting in the backseat, you can never leave anything to chance. Placing kitty insider a cat carrier is a must.
A distracted driver is a huge recipe for disaster if you are on a road trip. When you are riding in a plane or any other means of transportation, a crate is a necessity. Having a crate is not enough though, you should also allow your cat to get accustomed to being crated.
When you can, try to acquaint your cat with cars. This will make it easier for your feline to feel at ease during your trip. If you simply shove kitty inside the crate and go for a drive, your cat might get sick.
Aside from the crate, bring a harness too. If you are used to walking your cat, it would be easier to bring kitty along. This way, you can reduce the chances of losing your pet while you are exploring a new place.
2. Bring a Disposable or Small Litter Box
Cats love things that are familiar to them. Of course, when traveling, your cat needs to poop and pee too. For this reason, you need to come prepared.
In the same manner that you have disposable diapers for babies, you need to prepare a litter box for your cat. Unless you can bring your cat’s litter box, it would be better to get disposable ones or a small one so your cat can take care of its business.
Bringing litter is also a must. Be sure to prepare everything including bags and a scooper if necessary. You do not want to smell cat poop odor inside the car or room, after all.
3. Don’t Forget Kitty’s Beddings
Cats abhor the idea of change. When transported to a new environment, cats could feel uneasy. This is not unusual, even for humans.
To help your cat feel more at ease when you are on a trip, be sure to prepare their bedding too. The familiar feel will make kitty more comfortable even in a different environment.
4. Pack Food and Water
Going on a trip might be fun when you are a human because of the variety of food you can choose from. Your cats may not feel the same though.
Cats would be better off eating the same kind of food they have been eating all this time. Be sure to get cat food in smaller packs for this trip.
Other than food, you also need to bring water with you. If kitty is used to drinking tap water, don’t forget to bring some along. By feeding your cat the same things you always do, they will not find the trip too upsetting.
On the subject of food and water, be sure to bring food and water bowls with you. It’s always better to bring all the necessities with you.
Bringing treats might also come in handy. So, be sure to bring something that would make your cats interested in being on their best behavior.
5. Kitty’s Favorite Toy Should Be in Your Luggage
Traveling with cats is just like going on a trip with kids since you need to pack their favorite toys. Toys are a good way to keep cats entertained and it will prevent kitty from getting too homesick.
Toys are also a good way to make kitty behave. Be sure to pack the toys your cats love the most.
Final Thoughts
These days, traveling with a cat is no longer an inconvenience. There are a lot of places where pets are welcome. Hopefully, this list of the top 5 things to prepare for your cat for the trip will help you and your cat enjoy each other’s company.
Thanks Diana!
Diana Hutchinson is the founder of Tinpaw.com blog. She is a pet lover, especially dogs and cats. “A home without a pet is just a house.”
If you are obsessed with cats, check out these cute cat products for humans!
How about you? Have any tips for traveling with your cat? Do share!
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Hmm, we had cats for years and the only time we ever dug out the cat carrier was to take them to the vets. (which was horrific for everyone) Honestly, I never thought to take them on vacation with us. We always had someone come in to watch the cats while we were gone. I have to agree, as a mom of 4 it takes a lot of planning to get us anywhere and taking a pet sounds like just as much work!
This is a great list of essentials for traveling with your kitty. I have never had to do this, but if I ever did I would definitely try to be this prepared. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
We personally don;’t have cats, but we do have family members and friends who do. These tips would be helpful for them should they go on a trip by car or plane. Thank you for sharing some cat travel tips, in order to make the trip not as traumatic for the kitty
Who knew that you could travel with cats! We don’t have one but traveling with our dogs is a task for sure! These are great tips for taking your furry friend on the road.
This is a great post! My cat never like to travel and when she did it was hard getting her in a traveling crate.
These are great tips. In a few years, I’m hoping that I’ll be living an RV lifestyle and I do have a cat. But it will be a little easier because I’ll be pulling our home along with us. I’m really not sure how she’ll handle a moving home though!
I have found that always having they favorite toy like you say here is very comforting to them. I also choose to always bring some of their favorite treats, as well. These tips are all great for trying to trying with any type of furry friend.
These are such great tips. We are supposed to be road tripping soon so these will come in handy for both the cat and pup. Thanks for sharing.
These are such great suggestions for making sure our cat feels secure and safe. It will also make the trip so much better. Thank you so much for sharing
I haven’t traveled with my cats in a very long time, but since we are planning to move soon (hopefully), I will have to travel with four cats! I’m not really looking forward to that! I’ll definitely follow your tips!
I sent this to my father-in-law who is a lover of cats. I don’t imagine he takes these steps but probably needs to. I’ve never owned or had to travel but a cat but if I do in the future I know what to do, thank you!
My upstairs neighbors just got two cats. I should share this valuable info with them!
We have never traveled far in the car with my cat, but she has traveled on a plane multiple times. She gets anxious any time the suitcases come out. The vet helps me by giving her some calming medications, and as long as she can have time to explore the new place before we go to bed she adjusts pretty well.
Good tips. When I had a cat the only place she travelled was to the vet and back. Always had her in a carrier.
I’ve only travelled short distances with my cat, it can be easy or it can be hard, either way be careful.
@Calvin, so true, even a short trip to the vet can be traumatic if you aren’t prepared!
Taking a long road trip with a kitty (or two) is really fun – but you’re right about the need to plan! We relocated with our two moggs and they were crated for almost 24 hours, but it worked perfectly as we’d planned everything to keep them happy and comfortable too.