Fur balls, fuzz buckets, or the furry-fanged crew; whatever we call them, once they’re in through the door, they’re a part of our lives.

In my many cross country and eastern seaboard relocations, I’ve had the – shall I say joy? – of travelling with either a couple or a small herd of cats. Each grouping over the years had its own unique personality and quirks to be discovered and dealt with.

My first dual-cat expedition was during a northeast winter. On an initial dry run, both girls travelled in separate carriers and the Siamese would not shut up. Four hours of yow, yow, yow at ear-splitting volume was not what I had in mind. For the main event, I piled as much stuffing as I could between me and their carriers. To keep their climate temperate, rather than arctic, I purchased an indoor/outdoor thermometer. The sensor unit hanging in the back registered its temperature on the thermometer in front to let me know if the angels needed more heat or were melting into kitty puddles. I couldn’t hear them, they couldn’t hear me singing along with the radio, and the trip was uneventful – no driver- or feline-meltdown.


Then there was my trip from New England to north Florida, where four cats – grandma, mama and daddy with their young one – and I arrived at our new gulf front domicile on Halloween evening during a power outage. This was my first attempt at communal travel. I had gotten the biggest cage that would fit in my car, added a full width, carpeted shelf to make it a duplex, and found a small litter box and water bowl for the first floor. The cats loved that cage so much, it became their favourite hangout on the screen porch for lazy kitty naps as gulls sailed by. That was a one-stop road trip and the cats stayed in the closed bathroom with the cage door open while I went out for a quick dinner. When I got back, we all went to bed…me under the covers and the all cats tucked up just so cozy in the dust cover that was only semi-attached to the bottom of the queen mattress. A little bit of nudge, nudge to bounce them out in the morning and we were on the road again.

The trip that led to the standardization of the cat-proofing regimen was a very long, tightly scheduled, road trip from north Florida to Hawaii via San Diego. Three cats traveled in the duplex cage in the SUV, cat food and hard-sided cat carriers were in the towed sports car, and reservations had been confirmed to transport everything – except the cage – to Oahu. Here’s the recipe for a less than eventful road trip with kitties.

“Bring some adult beverages back to the room. You deserve it.”

One – You’ll need two car door fobs; one to leave in the running vehicle during toilet breaks and one to get yourself back into the locked vehicle when you return. Don’t worry. Most cats can’t reach the gas and brake pedals, and none of them can handle a standard transmission, so they’ll be patiently awaiting your return. Don’t forget extra cat litter with a larger litter box, a scoop and a bag to hold them. You’ll need them at your destination if everything else is in the moving van.

Two – When you know where you’ll be stopping for the evening, call pet friendly hotels at their direct number to make a reservation for a room with two beds. Do not get a king size bed unless you have really long arms. That could get ugly when you’re ready to leave in the morning. (See photo) Get a confirmation code. Some hotels only have a few pet designated rooms and you don’t want to be turned away from the inn because someone gave your room away.

“Do not get a king size bed”

Three – When you get to the hotel, cat proof the room. This is more easily accomplished in a room with two platform beds. A two-bed room has more linens and other usable objects to create barricades. Tuck the extra pillows, towels and bedspread between the headboard and night stands. Yes, there may be a small space and you don’t want to have to pull apart any furniture because your little fuzzball needed to hide right in the middle, where you can’t reach her.

Four – Leave the cats in the bathroom – door closed, provide litter and food – with the cage door open while you skip out for a quick dinner. Put the do not disturb sign on the door and bring some adult beverages back to the room. You deserve it.

Five – Regroup, repack and resume the road trip. Prepare for another night of more fun, games and kitty adventures.

Postscript – When we got to San Diego, the cats were the stars of their own little show going through the lobby of our hotel. The staff was able to donate the cage to a local shelter. The airport required us to take each cat out of their carrier for it to be swabbed – the carrier, not the cat – for security. We handed off the cats and a humungous pile of paperwork to the ticket agent and we all headed for paradise.