Anyone taken their cat touring ?

[peanut]

We are contemplating living semi permenantly in a motorhome and touring Britain during spring/summer months but couldn't bear to leave our cat for any length of time.

Has anyone taken their cat with them and if so how did they get on ? what are the pitfalls apart from the obvious one that every stop they will be disorientated at first.

 

[Deleted member 2636]

There have been quite a few posts on this subject on UK Campsites. The general consensus is that if the cat is a placid cat that is content to sleep all day and most of the night then you should be OK. If it is a hunter, then forget it
If you use campsites then passing dogs seem to be a major cause of upset as well

 

[landrovereditor]

The Cat

We are contemplating living semi permenantly in a motorhome and touring Britain during spring/summer months but couldn't bear to leave our cat for any length of time.

Has anyone taken their cat with them and if so how did they get on ? what are the pitfalls apart from the obvious one that every stop they will be disorientated at first.

A friend of mine used to take his Persian cat on camping trips, he could often be seen walking the cat on a lead and harness! He had a large wire cage and kept the cat in this, in the awning, when he was back at the van.

 

[Deleted member 3270]

Hi.
We bought second hand cat 4 years ago and it was scared of everything! I think she had lots of emotional baggage and she found it difficult to deal with the hoover, tin foil, small children, plastic bags and people in general.
We often went into motorhome, which is situated in the back garden, and she would climb in and out freely to be with us. We eventually took the plunge and once she was in situ, we closed the doors and drove off. She hated it!! Wandered around, under the pedals, on the bed, in the cupboards etc. - not good.
Three years on we have a routine. She goes into her carrier, a slightly bigger canvas bag with a zip and mesh windows, we place it on the floor in between us in the cab and she sits quite happily on her cosy blanket. We make a point of putting the gas on whilst she is still in her carrier and only let her out when we are settled. At night, she often sleeps in her carrier quite happily.
We tend to use the cab doors to get in and out and she doesn't venture down that end of the van. We have also placed a piece of mesh inside one of the under seat cupboards (we can then let her in there and close the underseat door) which allows her to look out and be safe whilst experiencing some fresh air and a 'room with a view'. It is also convenient for us when we want to open the van doors and have a more relaxed situation. We have a litter tray in the shower room which she uses but I have put bluetac over the drain hole to stop any stray litter bunging up the water pipe. (use wood based litter to avoid scratching and both easily removed when showering)
We did buy a cat harness which is quite good, however, it needs to be fairly tight as cats wriggle. We let her have a walk when it is quiet. I have seen a motorhome with a cat flap in the door, the cat stuck within it's boundaries with no probs but I guess it depends on your own pet.
Good luck!!

 

[kenjones]

We haven't had a cat since buying the van. She did however often come with us in the car on journeys up to 300 miles at a time It can't be so different. The only unsettling thing was travel after dark, she didn't like high lights such as street lights. Easily solved by covering the basket.
We bought a lightweight collar and lead for those brief stops en-route and she soon accepted it. We have also met other campers who take cats with them. No problems when she had time to orientate herself at the destination and was secure in a basket overnight.
On one holiday on the Norfolk Broads (without cat) a boatyard owner told us that cat's easily get lost at moorings and so discourage people from taking them.
I suppose a lot depends on the personality of your cat.

 

[Marilyn]

Can't offer any advice as we have never taken our cats with us in the MH but we are hoping to go full time (or almost FT) this year and are quite anxious about our cats.

They are both 4 years old (brothers we think) and were feral cats which were living wild in abandoned farm buildings near us. We think someone's prize moggy must have had an unwanted litter and the owners just dumped them! Because they were living wild in their early days they are very wary of people and quite easily spooked so it will be 'interesting', we think, getting them used to living on the move.

We are going to start soon with very short journeys to begin with and then gradually 'up the ante'.

wilthebeast's comment about letting the cat get used to the motorhome first before trying a journey is helpful - it must take some of the fear away! thanks for that tip

 

[Samson]

We have a Norwegian Forest cat ( called Samson.) He is a year and a half old and starting to get quite big. This breed carries on growing until they are 3 years old and are the largest and hardiest of all domestic breeds. We took him with us on a trip last spring when a kitten. We also walked him in a harness, which he didn't mind, only in case some dog ran after him and we couldn't rescue him. We bought a cheap lightweight tent for him from Makro for £15 complete with sewn in groundsheet and he was happy to stay in there if we went for a walk or whatever when wildcamping but had him indoors at night. We found he complained and needed a little entertainment after travelling for 2 or 3 hours.
We've had a year off from motorhoming while I've built a new van so it will be interesting this summer to see if he enjoys it.

 

[maingate]

We stayed for a week on a C&CC Temporary Holiday Site in Weymouth last year. Nearby was a demountable with a couple and they had 2 cats. We were terrified that the Whippets would spot them as there would have been big trouble (Whippets hate cats). It was quite comical to see the lengths we went to in order to avoid a confrontation as once the dogs knew they were there, every day would have had them going mad to get at them and we would have had to leave the site.

They never did see them and we left feeling drained with nervous tension.

 

[peanut]

Hi everyone sorry to have missed all your replies. I must have forgotten to tick the notification box doh.

Some interesting replies.
Maingate I think your concern and care re the whippets was very commendable. i'm sure the cat owners would have been eternally grateful had they known.

We stayed on a site in Dartmoor over Easter which welcomed dogs and even provided day kennels and an off -lead dog walking field.We chose it because we have an elderly Dobermann

Even though there was a very strict rule that all dogs should be kept on a lead at all times unless in the walking field and was a condition of staying ,several irresponsible dog owners had their dogs off the lead outside all the time.

Inevitably there was an incident. An elderly woman was walkng her tiny Jack Russel on a lead (muzzled)through the site to the dog walking area when two huge Pyrenian mountain dogs charged out and attacked her dog. In the process the woman was also injured .

The owner retrieved his two dogs without a word of apology to the Woman as if nothing had occurred and for the rest of the weekend his dogs remained loose outside his trailer.

Why is it that some dog owners won't follow rules and think their dogs are always under control even off the lead ? If the Woman's dog had died presumably he would have claimed that the Jack Russel was at fault .

Our Doby stays on the lead at all times except when we are out in the fields or on the moors and even then we put her on the lead when other dogs are about.

 

[peanut]

and so to cats !...
landrovereditor your friends cage sounds like a good idea for house cats but unfortunately both our cats are outdoor cats and to add to the problem they barely tolerate each other !
Peanut the 10 year old tom (neutered) is a hunter through and through but he has always traveled really well. We often used to take him to Sussex (150 miles) when he was younger and he didn't mind the journey one bit. He was let out immediatelly and was happy to explore but always came back for food and never strayed far..

If we took him we would fit him with a collar with a tracking device just in case he were to get lost. Peanut would probably be fine.He'd love the adventure.

Its Boo we are worried about . Boo (female) is very territorial of the house and garden. She is the first female I've seen to spray like a tom ! I'm not sure she will adapt as easily as Peanut but then she never goes far from me so it might be possible to think of some solution.

Sampson I like the idea of a cat tent lol thats definitely a splendid idea !. That might be a good solution for Boo at least. Hope your Cv build is going well.

Marilyn
I'd be really interested to hear how your pair get on . Please let us know . Good luck with making your dream a reality

kenjones your cat sounded like a seasoned traveler . I think they are just happy to be with their owners and have the reassuring sound of our voices and body smells .

Thanks everyone for your experiences and advice. I expect we'll probably try a few short w/e trips to start with and see how feasable it will be.

 

[shortcircuit]

Unfortunately I will be a negative. I have seen cats taken for walks on a lead and they were being dragged along. Similarly they were attached to a lead and tethered to the MH and always appear to go to the limit and stop with a jolt and also have no means of escape from the unwary dog. I do not see these as good options.

When I had a cat she was very independent and would come and go when she wanted. There would be no way I would have restricted her movements and unless the cat is used to constant containment, another aspect I deplore, or able to wander and return on their own, then I would not think it should be taken out of its usual environs.