Friday, July 25, 2008

So, has anyone ever flown with a cat?

I'm taking Wee Beastie on a jet plane for the move. apparently he can go under the seat, in his carrier, which is good 'cause I wasn't going to put him in luggage, but still a bit nervous about the whole thing. Any tips? Someone said -not- to give a sedative because the pressure combined with the sedative can actually kill them? :{

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yep! Get a carrier with as much mesh as possible, so he can see you, which will comfort him. And if the person in front of you starts sneezing uncontrollably, you know they're allergic! (I actually had this happen.)

Also, bring a harness and leash to put on him, because you will have to take him out of his bag to go through security screening. And check with your airline as to whether you will have to bring proof of vaccinations.

Agreed on the sedative; unless he's a total wackaloon in general, he shouldn't need it.

He'll be fine!!

belledame222 said...

oh wow. airline said no worries wrt the vaccinations, I'm pretty sure: it's a domestic flight. never did put him on a harness and leash, I guess I can pick one up and try it...

Anonymous said...

If you have the chance, talk to your vet. And yeah - no on the sedative.

If your kitty is like my kitty, your kitty will be VERY VERY UNHAPPY. My poor kitty did go with the luggage, though. :( Poor kitty!

belledame222 said...

wah!! yeah, there's no way he's going in the luggage compartment, especially since last trip I took they loaded my luggage on the wrong plane. I can't imagine how that works when there's a live animal there ffs.

corey said...

Good luck traveling with the kitty! A tip wrt harness/leash action...be careful if you're holding the kitty while he's in the harness-hold him as tighltly as you would if he wasn't on a leash- they can easily squirm out of them. I learned the hard way. Loose kitty in the airport=fun for no one.

Anonymous said...

Loose kitty in the airport=fun for no one.

I bet the fucking cat had a ball!

Anonymous said...

Well, good luck with Wee Beastie and hope it is not too stressful for either of you.... !

Not sure what the policy is in the UK for carrying pets onto planes re domestic flights.

S.L. Bond said...

Don't worry! It will be fine. I've done it with a variety of similar mammals (mostly small dogs) -- IME they cower and get cranky, but all in all do better than one would guess.

I once had to fly from the east coast to the west with a pair of parakeets. Now that was bizarre.

Anonymous said...

My cat's a total freak and she did ok on the aircraft. A bit of pathetic mewing. I found a homeopathic sedative at a good pet store - have no idea if it worked.

Good luck.

Anonymous said...

I didn't know cats had wings.

belledame222 said...

"Thank you, he'll be here all week. Try the veal."

Kristen said...

We take our small dog with us all the time...I'm not sure if the same advice will work, but....

Being relaxed and calm is important. Abbie gets very uncomfortable (starts to whine) if she can't see our faces and if we're not smiling or at least looking relaxed. She basically stares at the two of us for an hour before deciding it was all fine, curling up and going to sleep.

Don't take any other carry ons if you can manage it. When we travel with Abbie we take one backpack that contains everything, including my purse. Otherwise we are completely hands-free. This is particularly important if you're going to change planes somewhere. And the pet may need a bathroom break outside of security.

Try sitting at the back of the plane. No one else likes those seats which means that you may get a row to yourself...which means Wee Beastie can sit on the seat next to you rather than under the seat for the whole ride.

If you haven't already purchased a carrier, try http://www.sherpapet.com/

They have top zippers which if your steward/ess is nice you can unzip the top part and at least let him sit up and enjoy some ear scratchies.

belledame222 said...

Thanks. Yeah, apparently I'm actually not allowed by this airline to have more than one carryon. I need a new bag, I think. -makes note-

hopefully his regular carrier will do. I could get him a new one, just not sure when.

belledame222 said...

oh, what do you do about food and water?