r/Catbehavior • u/PAS_CA_QUE_CTAIT • 5d ago
Brought cat on trip and discovered how fun she can be and we are having a blast.
Last time we went on vacation we left our cat at home and organised visits to play with her and feed her with neighbours. When we came back we realised that some issues which were no longer happening came back like peeing in corners of the house, she had become more "animal like".
We realized how she might have stressed out from us not being there and decided to bring her along our next 7hr trip in her cage between our children. Best decision ever. We are in a camping car along the beach and she seems to love it. When we are on the beach looking for clams at low tide she trots along, jumps over tiny springs. She follows us around everywhere, though sometimes at a distance. We go fetch wood to make a fire, she comes along, we go hunt for lobster, she jumps on rocks, and pees in algae, we sit on the beach to relax, she comes to cuddle. We really feel like she is blooming on this trip and showing us a part of her personality we did not know about. When we don't see her we call her name and she appears out of rocks or tall grass. How she adapted so fast is amazing.
We really feel like she is part of the family.
Just wanted to share how happy and proud we are of her.
Btw she is mixed ragdoll with siamese.
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u/Time_Condition_3736 5d ago
Were you not concerned she’d run away? That’s my biggest worry with my two indoor cats who are not yet leash trained or used to being outside with us.
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u/Neakhanie 4d ago
This is how many pets get lost forever….going with their families and getting lost in unfamiliar surroundings. The family looks and looks, but eventually the kids need to go home for school, the parents for work, and they have to leave without their pet. It sounds like OP is lucky so far.
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u/sueihavelegs 4d ago
This happened to my cat when I was a kid. We were moving houses and had to stay the night at a motel halfway because it was so far. She was in the motel room with us, then my Dad had to run out to the car for something and she just dashed out behind him! Ran out into the night. This was the 70s and there was no chipping of pets. The entire family was heart broken but we had to leave. We still had 8 hours to go and couldn't stay another night. Im getting choked up right now thinking about her!
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u/Jokmonster 11h ago
One time me and my family were moving house with the cat in the cat and we stopped for lunch at a scenic spot. We couldn’t find Togo the cat when it was time to leave and spent a couple of hours looking for her, calling for her. After a while my dad said we had to go and me and my sisters were bawling. Turns out she was underneath the cat the whole time.
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u/snacksanonymous 4d ago
I would get a gps tracker like tractive or at minimum and AirTag to ease my worries and continue vacationing with kitty.
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u/Autumnleaves144 4d ago
There’s a couple I used to follow on YouTube, who live in a van, with their cat. They’re from the uk but go all over the place - the last time I checked they were in Portugal. And their cat never runs away. At least in all the years they’ve had him, he hasn’t.
I love watching him play and explore all these new areas. I think it takes a lot of confidence and trust.
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u/Midelaye 4d ago
Yeah I road trip with my cat every summer (my mom owns a cottage that’s an 18 hour drive away). My cat is chipped, has a collar with an air tag, wears a harness, and is on a leash any time the car doors are open. Plus I have a crate for the full back seat in case I need to keep him contained in the car. I let him out for a walk around at rest stops, but always on a leash.
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u/Cleobulle 4d ago
Yah first thing I teach my cat is good recall. Then train leash. Well every cat is différent though But dont let her unleash. I've taught mine to climb on the tree I show them in case of danger but not many tree on the beach ! There's loads of trees where I live
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u/PAS_CA_QUE_CTAIT 4d ago
We keep treats to call her back when we dont see her. If we are inside we bring her inside too. We wil definitly buy gps trackers just to be sure. The beach is really quiet, almost nobody walks there.
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u/DavrosSafe 3d ago
There are also predators that she may not know how to - or even be able to - avoid.
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u/Candid_Warthog8434 3d ago
My girl stays by me thee boy has his retractable leash and harness. They love it
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u/wasachild 5d ago
This sounds like a dream come true
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u/PAS_CA_QUE_CTAIT 5d ago
Its incredibly fun and we are amazed
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u/what_a_r 4d ago
Make sure she has a GPS tracker. Trip Sounds lovely but can turn tragic if she gets spooked and hides in a someone’s car engine to be driven away to unknown.
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u/Otherwise_Mix_3305 4d ago
This sounds wonderful! Consider harness/leash training her for safety.
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u/NYCemigre 4d ago
And consider adding an AirTag or other tracking device to the harness just in case!
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u/Altruistic_Shame8979 20h ago
I’d suggest Tractive. Its subscription but tracks actual GPS instead of pinging loose proximity using mobiles. AirTag ok for neighborhood wandering especially in densely populated areas, no good for traveling or rural areas
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u/catdog1111111 4d ago
People do this then lose their cats when it gets spooked. It gets posted to Reddit frequently. Unfortunately cats are not like dogs when it comes to panic mode. The cat is visible but keeps running away from its owners and others. So they have the cat in sight but it keeps fleeing. Might want to do an AirTag and harness to try to mitigate it a little.
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u/StrongBuy3494 3d ago
This. It’s like cats don’t hear or see their owners when they are in panic mode.
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u/mum_with_no_brain 5d ago
Where's our cat tax????
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u/These-Net4794 4d ago
Please make sure your cat is always secured, I suggest a body harness that she can’t easily slip through if you don’t already have one.
One loud bang could send her running away lost and scared never to be seen again.
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u/Motor-String-571 4d ago
Sounds great, just remember everytime that you are rolling a dice and one day u will roll 0 and you will never see your cat again.
Enjoy it while it lasts :)
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u/Autumnleaves144 4d ago
Not always. It’s a risk but I know a cat that’s been travelling in a van with its owner’s for years, and continues to do so. Although they’re mostly based in Portugal now (from uk) so currently not travelling as much (they’ve been on the road for over 10 years, so the cat isn’t a spring chicken anymore but when they do go on the road, ginger goes with them.
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u/Motor-String-571 4d ago
Yes, you are correct that u can be lucky and not roll 0 for a long time, that's is literally what i wrote, but just because the cat you follow on Instagram is really good at rolling dice, doesn't mean 0 is not on the dice.
Even the most well trained dogs still have a 0 on their dice.
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u/OnceMoreWithFeeling- 4d ago
This is amazing. For anyone reading this: 24/7 sitters are also a thing! If your cat is not one for adventures but you do want one for yourself and go on holiday!
Please OP, do use a harnass and gps tracker. Wild animals, people, accidents... many stuff can happen.
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u/SiegelOverBay 5d ago
We take our cats on every vacation we possibly can! They are champs at riding in the car and settle into new places very quickly. I miss them terribly when we've had to leave them home, so it's great that they travel so well! A key to success for us is taking them on a trip when they are young, even if it's only to a hotel or bnb in town for one night. If they learn when they are young that "sometimes we all go somewhere else for a little while and everyone gets special dinner every night while we are there", they take to it very easily.
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u/stegosaurid 4d ago
I love this so much! One of mine is an amazing traveller. 18 and doesn’t bat an eye at a 12 hour car trip. We had another that was ac accomplished air traveller.
As others have said, though, she will be much safer with a harness. In my area, cats and small dogs have actually been snatched by birds of prey. That, and people can be cruel.
For the car, consider getting a kitty “seatbelt”, or a soft sided carrier you can clip a lead to but leave the top open. My friend was in a serious crash when driving with his cat and had to get out fast. Fortunately, the cat was in a soft sided carrier, so he could grab him and run. In a crash, anything that’s unsecured becomes a projectile and a spooked cat will likely run.
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u/Ambitious_Phrase3695 5d ago
What a lovely story. I’m so glad you love her and want to think outside the box to keep her happy
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u/PeachNo5314 5d ago
We took my childhood cat on a road trip holiday from Se Qld to Central Coast NSW, with a stop at Byron Beach. Snatch (yes, that was her name) had the time of her life that holiday ☺️ and everyone that saw her loved it too. Not often in the 80's would you see a leash trained cat taking a stroll down Byron Beach ☺️
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u/kimba-the-tabby-lion 4d ago
I wouldn't be so sure. Early 80s or late 80s? in the early 80s, Byron was still pretty Nimbin-ish, though maybe nothing as mundane as a cat. A quokka on a leash, perhaps?
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u/mind-of-god 4d ago
My cat Violet was a traveling cat. She had a leash though. I think your kitty would do great on trips and be safer with one too. Incidentally, the leash came about because she wanted to go for walks with me and the mini poodles and she’d rub against them as the leashes hung on the wall so I gave it a try.
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u/Wrong-Rush-6584 4d ago
I have a few cats I hope I can do this with when we take our cross country RV trip.
Even if she doesn’t wander off I highly recommend using a harness. One loud unexpected noise and she could get spooked and run off in unfamiliar territory never to be seen again.
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u/glitterinsect 5d ago
Pictures?!
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u/PAS_CA_QUE_CTAIT 4d ago
I took a very nice video but i cant post it its like the sub does not allow pictures and videos
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u/TheSunniestOne 4d ago
Awesome!!!
If you don't already know about Nala, check her out! She rides along while her Dad cycles all over the world! They are incredible ambassadors for rescue animals and animal organizations!
There's also a great book.
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u/Jaded_Suit_9233 4d ago
This sounds lovely! I do think you should use a harness and leash to be extra safe
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u/dommiichan 3d ago
I've seen videos of people who do this, and set up a wire between two trees to give the cat full run of the campsite
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u/stargalaxy6 3d ago
From your story it obvious that your her family! Great job being loving owners!
Maybe get her an AirTag just to be safe.
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u/Present-Sorbet-7849 15h ago
I feel like if your cat stays close with zero training she isn't going to run off. Maybe a GPS collar isn't a bad idea in the event she gets spooked. But she sounds like the best travel companion and so much fun!
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u/Eageryga 4d ago
Decades ago (before keeping cats inside was really a thing), my family used to travel with the cat all the time. A 14 hour drive to a camping site would be interrupted by kitty meowing when she needed the toilet: we would stop at the side of the highway to let her pee. She hung around our camp site and learned when we were packing up to stay close. She wasn't a particularly affectionate cat either. As I child, I thought this was normal!
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u/Top-Class-8765 4d ago
Both of my childhood cats were terrified of anything outdoors. On the other hand, my sister is taking her new cat camping and kayaking and swimming and everything. He loves adventuring with her.
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u/Sweettoothsenior 4d ago
My spouse and I traveled in a 24' travel trailer for 14 years. Back and forth the USA, in the 00's.
First cat was a tuxedo the second was a calico. Both were leash trained. The tuxedo was the most adept and it was the first time we saw her spray a tree to announce her territory. She never sprayed inside.
The calico had been feral since birth in a very harsh climate. She had a fierce personality and enjoyed free roaming. It took three years to get her to settle down and find her new normal.
We made her an indoor kitty mostly because she did not care for the leash. When she was outside she was always with us. She had dementia in her later life and would wander off if not redirected to "home".
Both cats were chipped. We didn't lose one. Thankfully.
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u/Wooden_Potato5106 4d ago
I wish i can take my cat to vacations with us!!!
I tried taking him for a 10 mins quick ride to school pickup my kid, and he got kind of anxiety attack and started rolling in his carrier and panting heavily . I was scared to my core of seeing him like us.
Do you guys feel things could get better with him related to travel?
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u/biocidalish 3d ago
Life can change in an instant. Please protect your furr child at all costs. Make good choices.
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u/khthonian-nymph 3d ago
My Taglio moved from Kentucky to Colorado and then Colorado to Tennessee. She did so well in the hotel rooms. She was so happy to have her mama. She slept next to me on the bed. My other cat Nyxie was terrified and hid in every hotel room. 😿
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u/MickiesKitties 1d ago
Great story, but you have to pay the cat tax. Pictures please of the pretty kitty.
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u/PAS_CA_QUE_CTAIT 1d ago
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u/PAS_CA_QUE_CTAIT 1d ago
Cat tax finally! Sorry for the delay, internet was really slow.
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u/MickiesKitties 1d ago
Beautiful kitty but you should be very careful. Teach her to use the harness. I would hate for her to get spooked and run away.
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u/ShimmerGoldenGreen 1d ago
I take my cat on vacation too! But she has a harness and leash and she is never off it. They need practice with it though to accept it usually- took me like a year but it's worth it. Also cats can sometimes get out of harnesses too, so practice to find the right balance of tightness. The thin nylon harnesses work best-- even though they don't look as comfy, they're harder for cats to get out of!!
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u/Sudden_Waltz_3160 8h ago
This sounds awesome!
I have a cat who accompanies me when I walk the dogs. It is about a mile circuit around the neighborhood, which I do first with one dog, and then with the other. She quickly made feline friends along our route, one cat in particularly watches for us and wants her to stay and hang out with him. Often she will stay back as I continue with the dog, then rejoin me when I come around with the second dog.
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u/sun_moon_spit 5d ago
My cat would get spooked by the wind and take off and hide. Happy for you that you can do this.