Moving cats between two home regularly

[scratch n dent]

Hi, was just wondering whether anyone has tried moving cats back and forth between two homes regularly?

I will need to take a job out of town and my husband will stay in our original home. The plan would be for the cats to live with me but I would take them home when I am there for extended stays (1+ weeks) or will be away from both homes for work.

I realize the travel itself will make them unhappy but just wondering if they are likely to be fine when they get there as they will be at both places quite regularly.

Thanks

 

[cocobutterfly]

Our cat travels back and forth between our place and my parents' place which is about a 2.5-3 hour drive. It was rough at the beginning as our cat is strictly indoors and absolutely hated leaving the house and hated car rides even more. We tested out many different carriers and methods to try and make her as comfortable as possible in the car. It took a long time, months of consistent short little drives around the neighborhood. While she still dislikes it, she no longer cries at the top of her lungs and screams bloody murder as if we are torturing her. Before I go on and on about what worked for us... How far apart are the two homes? Car travel or air travel?

 

[scratch n dent]

4hrs by car.

 

[detroitcatlady]

4hrs by car.

It will take some getting used to for you and them. The biggest adjustment will be getting them used to being in a new environment. Once they are used to being in a new place it will be easier. The more times you do it the easier it will be for you and them. As long as they are comfortable in the car and you get them used to it, it can easily become routine. I would suggest that you prepare your cats for this as best you can. Get them used to being in the car for extended periods of time. Figure out what type of carrier works best. Have a litter box in the car when you travel. Make sure you bring their favorite toys with or anything else they like to have around. You want things to be familiar to them. It helps to keep a consistent routine that can become somewhat predictable for them.

I travel frequently between states with my cats and they are used to doing this every few weeks since I have been doing it since they were kittens. I stay with someone I know and one place I stay a lot of the time used to be my 2nd residence and my cats used to be there a lot more than they are now so they are used to it and do very well. It was definitely more familiar to them when I was living there for periods of time than it is now that I just come there every couple of months and stay for a week or so. Some cats are more sensitive to change than others or take longer to adjust. Keeping it a regular occurrence for them helps a lot.

 

[cocobutterfly]

4hrs by car.

Okay, so just a little longer than our car ride. Have you taken them for car rides already? If you have, and you all did fine, you're more than half way there. If not, you'll need many practice runs before the big move.

Our biggest battle was the car ride and finding a carrier that didn't make our cat scream bloody murder. We took one of her litter boxes and set up two more once we got to my parents'. We packed all her toys and blankies. She's adapted quickly and she was very busy exploring a new territory knowing that she was surrounded by people she knows and loves. It was the car ride that was the hardest.

 

[captain dave]

I have found that the longer a cat is in the car, the more comfortable s/he becomes.

I drove from Allentown, Pennsylvania to Ketchikan, Alaska in 3 days. My cat was hiding under the seat for about the first 200-300 miles, then came out and looked around, and finally settled on my lap or on the dash, looking out the window.

When I moved back a year later, she just crawled right up on the dash and enjoyed the trip.

 

[scratch n dent]

Thanks for the responses gang. They have both been in carriers to get back and forth to the vets and they both meow but no panicking. Sounds like this might work.

 

[devviepuu]

i travel with my cats by car every week, between the city and my place in the country.  they do fine in the car, and fine in the country house.  all that they hate is the moment of truth when they got into the carrier!  although it does seem that they heave a little sigh of relief when we get 'home' (the city), they do great about it.

prior to these two i had a cat that i traveled with at least once a month, sometimes oftener, between new york and washington, d.c.  he was a pro in the car!  i put him in a harness or on a leash and let him sit on the seat next time.  he preferred not to be crated, but obviously in a rental car it's a must.  technically, the cat must be crated at all times in the car or you can get a ticket.