Tips for flying with a cat?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m going to be putting my cat on a 4 hour flight, in the cabin with me, under the seat… I’d rather handle her myself than trust them to handle her.

I moved her between houses today, and she really flipped out after being put in the pet carrier. She kept turning around anxiously in circles and clawing at every part of the carrier, trying to get out. When I started moving her, she started crying more than I’ve ever heard her cry, it was really sad. She’s just not adjusting well to the stress of moving.

Does anyone have any travel tips that might help me make the trip less stressful for her?

2

Does she like Catnip?
I would consider giving her a lot of catnip to make her loopy.
Give her a big soft comfortable towel on the bottom of the Carrier. Include her favorite toys.

That’s all I can think of. Sorry I can’t offer more.

Jim

3

Your Vet should be able to provide kitty Valium. I’ve traveled with pets before, and that’s how I handled the kitties. Dose him/her/them an hour before flying, and again at the proscribed interval (if possible/applicable). You’ll likely have to see the Vet anyways, as most airlines require a Certificate Of Health within x days of the flight, along with collecting a fee (usually $25 or so), and you may want to let the airline know as far in advance as possible, because they may limit the number of pets permitted per flight and you don’t want to get bumped.

4

I’ve already got the reservations. The airline “recommends” a health certificate but doesn’t require it. I asked what that even meant, practically speaking, and the guy on the phone couldn’t tell me. I guess they’ll ask for the health certificate if they decide she looks unhealthy? dunno.

The flight/arrangements/moving was very short notice, so we didn’t have time to schedule a vet appointment. I may be able to try to get a short notice one tomorrow, but no idea if that’ll work out.

5

Well, if you can find time to swing by your Vet’s office, he should be decent enough to give you the meds or a scrip to fill. I’d be surprised if s/he required an office visit/exam. Good luck!

6

I’d be suprised if the vet didn’t require an office visit. Medication laws apply to vets, too. I do second the suggestion that you get seditatives for your kitty, however - it should make the trip much less stressful for her.

7

Whatever you do, *resist the temptation * to open the carrier in the airport of your connecting flight, let’s say for arguments sake ST. Louis…, (or even at your final destination) to check on the cat.

Why you ask?

Cat gets out, cat runs away, toddler cries, connections get (almost) missed, parents cry, parents get scratched replacing cat in carrier.
Not good.

Resist.

8

I don’t think they give you a choice. When I flew to Vancouver in March, I had to take my cat out of her carrier at the Pittsburgh airport, and again at my connection in Toronto. Panicked cats lose great amounts of hair, which did not please my allergic seatmate on the Pittsburgh to Toronto leg of my trip. Luckily, there were seats left, and the attendant allowed him to change his seat. Also, be careful about the size of your carrier. I paid for my cat to be in the cabin on both legs of the trip but her carrier was too big to go under the seat of the second (larger!) plane, so she had to go in the hold at the last minute which did not make me popular. The airline goes on and on about the cat being able to stand in her carrier, but that makes the carrier too big for some planes. It is not a simple thing to fly with pets. The web site says one thing, the people on the phone say another…If you can get a straight answer consider yourself blessed.

9

I’ve gotten a scrip for Valium for myself without having to go to an office visit with my PCP. Like birth control pills, why would you take valium if you didn’t require mild sedation?

10

Uh, I could have crafted that sentence better, but y’all catch my drift, right? I’m not suggesting birth control pills have a sedating effect. :wink:

11

For courtesy’s sake, you may consider checking the cat as luggage. It’s not expensive, you don’t have to fret for your cat, and allergic passengers won’t have a miserable time, and non-allergic passengers won’t have to listen to the cat for four hours. Remember that closed cabins and recirculated air makes everyone uncomfortably closer than they would normally choose to be.

I mention this because I just had a four hour flight this weekend with a cat behind me, and I’m allergic to them, and it was scared and noisy and crying. I’m not a hypocrite; when I brought my dog I brought her commercially and checked at luggage. It was only $100, and they are in climate controlled, pressurized part of the plane, and they’re very, very well cared for.

12

Who are they? Are they airlines (for a security check, perhaps) or are they the cats themselves with all their adorable (um…) meowing and such during the flight? Just curious…

We used the meds for the trip from San Deigo to Connecticut (through ST. Louis, of course :wink: )

13

I would presume ‘they’ are the Airline Persons. I flew with an exotic parrot a couple times, and had to take her out of the carry-case a couple times. That was not fun, by the way.

14

If you take the cat as carry-on, do you have to put it through the x-ray machine or do you take it through the metal detector? Will the TSA insist on making sure the cat is awake to prove that it is actually a cat and not a cleverly-made cat-shaped bomb? Will they open the cat to inspect the insides? If your cat attacks a member of the TSA can you be arrested? Do they take all yowling and mewling seriously? If you have a harness on the cat will you have to take it off? Do you have to get the cat declawed so that you are not carrying a sharp object onto the plane?

15

Call your vet. You really, really want to sedate the cat. It will make life much easier for everyone (cat included). My understanding is that a certificate is no longer required, but if you have to take the cat to the vet to get the meds, you could ask for one.

Winston Smith, Valium is highly addictive. Of course there are people who want it who don’t need it.

16

Sorry, but this is a horrible, horrible way to treat a cat. I did this with mine, out of ignorance, many years ago, and I could tell when I retrieved her that she was traumatized. I still feel the guilt. She was freezing cold, so I know she wasn’t in any climate-controlled part of the plane, nor do I believe for one second she was cared for by anyone. She was just luggage to them.

Many pets die or are lost when shipped in this manner. If you love your pet and can afford to not do this, don’t, for heavens’ sakes!

If you can’t get to the vet for a sedative, at the very least, stop by a Petco or PetSmart & get some Feliway - it has a calming effect.

17

If you can’t get into your vet in time, try try one of the 24 hour emergency vet clinics. Yeah, it’ll be a little pricier but your cat will be so much less traumatized.

18

I definitely don’t want to check her as luggage, because I don’t know/trust the people who would be handling her.

It’s irrelevant, anyway, because the airline I’m booked with won’t accept pets as checked luggage - their hubs are in vegas and phoenix and as a blanket policy they don’t want pets back there sizzling.

I’m going to call a night time vet in a bit, and see if I can pick up some valium without taking her in. She’s been stressed enough already as it is - I don’t want to take her on another trip just as soon as she’s started to settle in a bit here.

19

We have been through this before, the hold in an airliner is presurized and climate controlled. We have had pilots like LSL guy verify this. You cat could be cold because the ramp area is not heated, and well if was cold outside you cat would get… cold. But don’t forget you car is wearing a fur coat.

I would strongly suggest drugs. If for no other reason is it may be the only thing that keeps the other flyers from killing your cat so they don’t have to listen to it yowl for 4 more hours.
Don’t flame, I owned a cat and loved it, but when we moved to our new house the 30 minute drive was hell, I was ready to kill her by the time I arrived. This cat had a yowl that would shatter glass.

20

I travelled with my cat - two hour flight, four hour holdover, then finally, a six hour flight. YAHOO!

I reserved my plane tickets, told them about the cat, and that I wanted to keep her with me the entire time. The reserved a window seat for her. Lucky cat.

Took her to the vet, got her certificates. The vet did not recommend any sedatives - she said they were unnecessary if I was keeping my cat with me.

Check out the airlines guidelines for bringing a pet aboard. They have certain restrictions for carriers. I bought a decent vinyl and mesh carrier, big enough for my cat to turn around and lay down in. You need to make sure the cat cannot get an arm out of the carrier in most cases, and the mesh carrier was great for this. The carrier must be small enough to fit under your seat. The stewards allowed me to set the carrier on the seat next to me once the flight got under way.

Bring treats, blankets, toys, a food dish, a small baggie of dried food, and a water dish. Bring bottled water. Incidentally, if you tell the stewards that you have your cat with you, they may provide you with water free of charge.

When you can bring the carrier back out from under the seat, speak reassuringly to your cat. My girl meowed a few times, but was otherwise okay. Mostly, the poor thing just wanted out. I couldn’t wait to set her free.

If you have a connecting flight, and have to wait a bit, I would recommend, several weeks before your trip, getting a cat harness and leash. Train your cat (gently and patiently! but it can be done) to get used to being walked. Leave the harness on for a while, let her get used to it, then add the leash, then slowly coax her into walking. She’ll get used to it. This was wonderful, because while I was waiting the four hours for my connecting flight, I could attach her leash and take her outside so she could do her business. That’s a long time to be cooped up without a bathroom break!

My cat didn’t eat much during the whole trip, slept a lot, and was ever greatful when we finally got to our destination, where there was a fresh litterbox awaiting her (courtesy of the friend (who later became my husband! :eek: ) I was visiting). Leave her carrier out and open when you get to the new place, because she might need a “safe” haven among all the unfamiliar stuff. You’d think she wouldn’t want to see the thing again, but it’s something she knows. And let her be, unless she asks for attention - she’ll want to do some sniffing around all on her own, without intrusions. She probably won’t want to be held or snuggled or smothered to bits after that long trip, she’ll want to stretch out and figure out what the hell just happened. :smiley:

All in all, my cat survived the trip better than I did, and though she had a few moments where she cried a bit, I just stuck my fingers in her carrier (through a zipper on top) and spoke to her gently. Familiar things being nearby will go a long way towards comforting kitty. The noises may scare her a bit.

I wouldn’t dream of shipping my cats with the luggage. No way, never. Having someone they know and trust nearby is the only way I’d go. My cat is scared to death of strangers, so as long as she saw/smelled me nearby, she allowed customs and airport inspectors to handle her (and coo over her and tell me how soft her pretty fur was :smack: )

She adjusted excellently, and by the next day was the reigning Queen of her new domain. Later on, when we adopter her younger sister, she showed her around the place.