Cats are very much territorial animals. They never have much affinity for any kind of change in their regular routine. Any kind of disturbance in their daily lives makes them super anxious as well as terrified. But nowadays each and every pet owner loves to take their pets wherever they go and that is the toughest part of travelling with a cat.
As oversensitive to any kind of difference in their ambiences, cats are very much reluctant to move or travel anywhere. Moreover, if it is about long-distance travelling or permanent shifting to a totally new place, the scenario would be more traumatic for both you and your cat.
Therefore, we have piled up some essential predicaments that can ensure the safe shipping of your cat to a broader extent.
Let’s check out the tips:
- As cats are very much timid in nature and easily get excited about every little thing, it is always advisable to keep your cat from the packing place. It will be better to keep the cat in a separate room along with its belongings and also don’t let any unknown person enter that room. It is the prior requirement to keep your cat calm before the big move.
- Arrange a suitable sturdy crate that must be well-ventilated from at least four sides. The carrier should be spacious enough so that the cat can easily move or turn around inside it and also its head won’t touch the roof of the crate. The bottom of the crate must be removable and washable. Make sure that the crate has a spring lock system.
Check that there is no sharp surface on the crate’s net. The crate must have multiple exits too. Along with that, don’t forget to make your cat familiar with its new gear as it would need to stay inside it for a long time while moving. Encourage it to stay inside the crate by treating it well for doing the same.
- If you are interested in travelling by car, make your cat habituated to travelling by same. Take your cat for short distant rides frequently to make it comfortable with the procedure and gradually increase the duration and distance of your destination. Careful about your cat’s behaviour during rides. If there is any sign of abnormality, immediately remove the cat from the car and let it stroll in the free space for some time.
- During travelling with your cat, keep the crate in the backseat of your car. Buckle up the crate with the car’s seat belt or with a tie-down harness in order to resist it from sliding in the moving car. Furthermore, for more secure transportation, close the windows of the backside of your car and enclose the backseat of the car with a pet barrier.
- Arrange a meeting with a licensed vet and take your cat to him for a proper health check-up and get the required vaccination done. Also, ask him how to deal with the cat’s nausea or stress and diarrhea while moving. Ask him if there is any immunization or preventive measures needed for air travel.
- Gather all the necessary health-related documents such as medical records and vaccination certificates signed by an accredited vet. Also arrange the road permits or endorsements and pet transportation policy papers, air travel permits etc for uninterrupted travelling.
- Attach a proper travel tag to your cat’s collar that must have your address, name, and phone number along with an emergency contact number. It would be a smart move to insert a customized coded microchip under your cat’s skin so that it can be traced easily in case of loss or theft. Don’t worry, the insertion process is not painful at all!!
- Avoid feeding your cat immediately before travelling or boarding the plane. Make the process done at least 3 to 4 hours before departure. Let it drink according to its thirst. Otherwise, drinking too much may make it uncomfortable. But never dehydrate your cat to get rid of its littering. Provide it wet foods instead of dry ones and also keep some ice cubes in the food bowls of the crate to keep it dehydrated.
- Do not ship your cat as a cargo hold in the flight as the brachiocephalic species might face breathing problems due to high altitude air pressure.
- Instead of tranquillizers, use pheromone-based feline spray inside the crate to keep the cat calm and confined. You can also use Zylkene to make the cat feel comfortable while moving long.