Traveling with Kittens

Hello,

This is pretty far in advance, but I would still appreciate some advice. I am a college student. My college is in Indiana and I live in Connecticut. I want to buy two Siamese kittens from a breeder in Illinois after I graduate and take them home. How on earth do I transport two new kittens in a car for at least 13 hours? I realize there is a thread about traveling with cats, but I feel that the issue is more complicated with new kittens.

Thank you,
AClaire11

I don't envy you a 13 hour drive even without kittens!

Obviously you'll need a cat carrier. Water would probably spill and make a mess, but they'll need something sometime, so I'd crack open a can of moist food for them and put it in there for them. For a shorter drive dry food might be fine but they'll need some moisture to not get dehydrated. When you stop for meals, you'll need to pick someplace with a drive through and eat in the car so you don't have to leave the kittens in the car alone (this is illegal in most places, and also not safe, because of how hot cars get). When you stop for restroom breaks, you should probably pick a highway rest stop and take the carrier with you, or a pet store that allows bringing pets in, for the same reason.

If you can get one, a clip-on battery operated fan on the carrier door really does help with the ventilation issue. Kittens will be MUCH more comfortable this way as carriers are otherwise the extreme opposite of drafty.

Since the two kittens (assuming litter mates) will be gotten at the same time, I would get a large carrier for both of them to ride in there together. You can put a puppy pad or other absorbant pad on the bottom of the carrier. And take a small litter pan with the same litter they are used to.

Since they will not know you, its not wise to let them out of the carrier and try to catch them. I'm assuming you will stop for the night at a hotel. You need to give them water and food in the hotel (keep them in the bathroom over night).