Cats???

[sourdough]

This cat spent the first several days coming to our house, circling my back fence, meowing and staring right through the gaps at me - literally calling me (in my mind ). Thrown out or abandoned I'm sure. I tried and tried to put it out and let it just go but it kept coming back in a day or so then would return every day as it got colder. She loves to play in the back yard (fenced) and comes to the door to either get me and play or to come back in. I can let it out the front door (open to the world) and she comes back in an hour or so waiting for us to let her back in.
Got the halter yesterday afternoon and she has no problem when we put it on or wearing it. I have not taken her out to see how that goes because it's been misty rainy since yesterday.
Many things we're trying to figure out about a cat. Forgot they like to sink their claws in things (DD's cat tore up an entire dining set) so need to come up with a solution if we keep her. She is VERY good about it and stops the instant one of us says anything. My fear is leaving her for a day unsupervised in the house or the RV. We'll see - it's a work in progress to say the least.

 

[sourdough]

To bring a close to this little event/episode;
We have decided to keep the cat (Patches). She's a calico cat. Had no idea what that was until the vet told me. Too good a spirit to throw out or leave in the cold.

I am in the process of receiving (thanks Amazon) LOTS of kitty things I never knew I needed. I will say I bought her a halter that looked like ony my pup always wore and the cat did not respond well. At first she just laid over on her side and acted like she couldn't move. Kept messing with her until she would take a step then each successive step she just kept crouching lower and lower until her belly was on the walk and she was stopped - hilarious. So, that new halter is now thrown in a box and another thinner one on order. Bought a cat travel carrier to take her to the groomer and she did fine in it.

RV is going to be another new frontier but she's laid back enough I think it will be fine - we'll see. A litter box in the RV is going to be a challenge - told DW to put it on her side of the bed .

Anyway, it's a done deal and I'm not fretting about it daylight til dark. DW said this morning it was so nice to have "someone to talk to":ermm:. Not a slight at me but we both spent much of most days talking and messing with pup....here we are again....but a cat is so stealthy - I can't find her half the time. She thought she liked to go hide under our bed and I couldn't get her out....put a Roomba under there with her - now that gets a reaction!

Thanks to all for the thoughts and suggestions. It will be an adventure I'm sure. Didn't want a cat but as DW told me, I didn't want a house dog either....until I had one so here we go. Thanks again.

 

[jasin1]

The cat we got for my 87 year old MIL was missing soon after it arrived at her home…MIL was sure someone ( not her of course lol) left the door open too long when coming in and the cat was gone…she looked everywhere in her house.
I came over and after a few min I spotted her sitting way up on top of the glass display cabinet by the ceiling…amazing how high they can jump…she was just sitting up there being amused as MIL looked and searched all around the house calling her name.

That’s her favorite places now wayyyy up high on cabinets

 

[VinnieSmith]

To OP - I'm glad the CDS (Cat Distribution System) worked out for both you and Patches! I swear it's like a cosmic need fulfillment warehouse, and works in mysterious ways.

We travel in our camper with 6 cats regularly. Our house looks like a PetSmart exploded inside. The camper is lightly modded to allow the brood to be comfortable, and to be cats. The good thing about cats is that they typically like enclosed spaces. You may find them napping in little cubbies you didn't know existed. They're great at staying warm, and aside from the litter situation, extremely low-maintenance.

Travel- the safest way to accomplish this is in a crate, in your truck. Some folks like to let the cats wander in the camper, but there's too many variables in play back there, and it's typically unmonitored. A well-behaved cat will travel calmly on a lap or napping on the dashboard, but think of it like a baby- in a collision, you don't want your little girl flying around the cabin smashing into things, so get comfortable crate and she'll be fine for several hours. No food before driving, unless you like the smell of poo in your truck; she won't starve if she misses breakfast, no matter how loud she complains. Check on her once in a while to make sure there's no health issues. If the trip is more than 5 or 6 hours, try to give a stretch/potty/water break.

Living in the RV- Number one rule- Make sure there's enough places to stretch and scratch!! That cannot be emphasized enough. We have a cardboard scratcher taped up to the end of the little kitchen counter, a collapsible tower of scratchable fabric cubbies, and we have wrapped the pull-down windowshade valences with these woven twine sheet things, so they can stand on the sofas and scratch those to their hearts' content, while soaking up sun from the windows. Regardless, the faux-leather OEM sofas are picked all to hell, and will need to be completely reupholstered at some point, if not simply replaced. The little worthless loft area is filled with blankets and beds for them, and they often end up on top of the cabinets, or walking along the slide-out valences- often with no safe exit strategy, so you have to kinda watch them at times. If you're not there, they'll be fine, however. The litterbox situation is a matter of taste. Patches will find it no matter where it is. Keep it clean so you don't have to live with the smell, obviously, but it's good to have a covered flap-entry type for odor control, or a top-entry style for litter drag mess control. Dedicated tiny trash bags are very helpful in this regard, as you can twist 'em closed, double it back over, twist it again, and it won't stink up your trash in the house before you offload the main trash bag in the morning. If you don't already have a really good stick vac with a rotating brush, get one. There's a variety of Dyson or Shark models that have good floor/furniture brush attachments that are good for fur. Cat fur is typically finer and more plentiful than dog fur, but you've probably already got that figured out.

Just enjoy the ride, bud! Cats are fun little critters, and if you've got her outdoor/harness trained already, even better! Take that last step and get a collar with some kind of name & phone number tag on it (a tiny bell is also very helpful), and you're set!

Product links:
https://www.amazon.com/Navaris-Tabl...=cat+scratcher+wrap+around+mat,aps,133&sr=8-8
https://www.amazon.com/Kitty-City-L...=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9zZWFyY2hfdGhlbWF0aWM&th=1

 

[bareftn]

if you have a cat or two and stray or a rescue we all have a story. Mine was we lived way back off the road in the country and one summer day a cat was on the porch meowing you could tell he was hungry; I had no cat food but some meatballs so i gave him some and I was thinking i should have a cat in the barn to catch mice. I told the cat if he wanted to stay bring me a mouse. And I swear two hours later I heard him again and he had a mouse as I opened the door he shot in like a rocket and stayed with us for 6 years till he passed. He always went out hunting each day and brought back mice and came in at night

 

[sourdough]

Thanks for all the tips. We just bought a collar with a little bell but don't know if that will be the final choice. She's VERY good about getting on things. Initially she got on top of the cabinets, then the stove, the kitchen table, our dresser etc. Each time we gently scolded her and she has not been on any of them since!! She hasn't really tried to claw anything (its been around 2 weeks but we bought her a scratching post anyway. She put her claws in the post this AM for just a moment but hasn't returned. In the last 2 weeks all she did was sort of jab at a thick area carpet we have in front of a couple of recliners and stick her claws in it. Never tried to pull or tear, just stuck them in it and pulled them out.

We don't travel with an animal unsecured. Pup always had her harness and was tethered to the seatbelt restraints. This one has a little crate we bought for her and the 60 miles to the vet was no problem. I watched too many safety videos over the years illustrating what happens to unsecured items in a vehicle in a crash.

Inside the RV will be a new learning experience for all of us. It's still in the storage barn but I need to get it out and take her (cat) for a test spin. Thanks for the tip on the type of litter box. We have an open one right now and I could see it might pose a problem. The types you mentioned will probably be the ideal situation.

We haven't got her harness trained yet. As I mentioned the one I bought was similar to a dog travel harness but made her either just lay down or start walking down close to the ground then sunk to the ground in a couple of steps. I've got a lightweight one supposed to come in tomorrow.

Like I initially mentioned, I have always been a dog person and had dogs all my life (outdoor until Ginger who stayed inside). Never had a cat, never wanted a cat and I was highly allergic to them. So far the allergies aren't too bad and taking her to the groomer seems to have helped (she also has decided she doesn't want to sleep on our bed thankfully).

Figure it's going to be a learning experience for all of us and so far has proven pretty fun. The cat is extremely well mannered; she's been around someone at some time and learned a lot. Now to figure out the do's, don'ts, gotta haves and needless things.....

 

[German Shepherd Guy]

Congrats on your new pack member. Long time back I knew a woman who lived in a city who would walk with her cat to the park near her home with her cat, off leash, just like a dog. When Carrie and I first bought the farm and we would travel up for the week-ends, we were working on the Navajo nation, dogs and the cat came with us. In bad/muddy weather closest we could get to the property was half mile to a mile. We just put the cat (Cassie) out of the truck and she would walk up with us. Worked great until one ti,e Cassie climbed a tree and refused to come down when called. We has to go, work was on for the next day. I lost my patience and decided to encourage her a bit and so put a round into the branch she was sitting on. Poof, Cassie came down and literally jumped into my arms. So I would suggest a harness when you walk. That too will probably take a bit of getting used to. We have always had cats even when we had 24 German Shepherds. The Cats would almost always rule. One cat, Tesa, would jump into the whelping box when the puppies were small and when Mom was out doing her business and teach the puppies who was boss. When they got older they remembered those lessons well and always gave cats a wide berth. Made placing puppies into homes where there was a cat much easier.

 

[sourdough]

Yes, I can see Patches has a mind of her own - and minds when she wants to, so that will take some getting used to (or training if that's possible).

Halter should be here today so we'll start round two of that. One of the biggest things I miss is the eyes of a dog and being able to read them - see what they're thinking; the happy, sad, excited, playful etc. Those little slits don't tell me anything. Just more to learn I suppose.

 

[{Tpc}]

Its been a minute since I've posted so *waves* at everyone. We no longer have any cats, they all have passed. But I wanted to chime in. I have heard of a shot that us humans can get, once or twice a year maybe? to help with cat allergies. So you might want to look into that.

As for the cat scratching, you can buy these little plastic caps that can go over their claws. I have never used them myself, but had considered it. I think you put a dab of glue and then slide them over the claws and they come off when they shed the claws? something like that. Sounds like the kitty is good natured enough to be able to do that, I know mine would not have been, hence why we never tried.

I had one that would deal with the harness in that I could put it on him, put on a leash and he would just kinda wander around but not go too far from you. Wouldn't walk very far though honestly I never gave it a lot of effort.

I had another who would literally fall on the ground like a sack of potatoes and not move. Kinda funny, I could put her in the harness and put her anywhere, go make a sandwich, come back still there, go wash the car, yup still there lol. Again we didn't spend a lot of time trying to train her.

Both of them were extreme people cats. Sit on your lap, follow you around the house types. And always extremely mad if you left them alone for any length of time. We always had to find house sitters, so that the cats wouldn't be mad if we went way lol.

 

[Rdynbama]

It appears you have been adopted by this cat! Happened to me a few years ago. When I was still working I heard a cat meowing and she came from a utility closet and sat between my feet while I was at my toolbox. I called my wife and told her to bring the carrier to me cause I think I’ve been adopted! We had a few rescue cats before and after having to put the last one down because she had cancer.. we decided we were not looking for another rescue cat. But this cat (now known as Kizmet) needed help and chose me/us . I took her to the vet to have her spayed and while she was under sedation the vet called and told us she had eaten something she can’t pass.. what did we want to do? My wife said fix her. It turns out she had eaten pecan hulls and they were lodged in her intestines and would have died without help .. she knew where to find help and it’s been about 5 years and she knows what love feels like now. She follows me around in the yard but prefers to sit on my wife’s lap while we have coffee on the porch in the morning
Haven’t taken her camping yet because she prefers outside over inside and like others I’m afraid if she got out of the rig we would never get her back.

 

[sourdough]

It appears you have been adopted by this cat! Happened to me a few years ago. When I was still working I heard a cat meowing and she came from a utility closet and sat between my feet while I was at my toolbox. I called my wife and told her to bring the carrier to me cause I think I’ve been adopted! We had a few rescue cats before and after having to put the last one down because she had cancer.. we decided we were not looking for another rescue cat. But this cat (now known as Kizmet) needed help and chose me/us . I took her to the vet to have her spayed and while she was under sedation the vet called and told us she had eaten something she can’t pass.. what did we want to do? My wife said fix her. It turns out she had eaten pecan hulls and they were lodged in her intestines and would have died without help .. she knew where to find help and it’s been about 5 years and she knows what love feels like now. She follows me around in the yard but prefers to sit on my wife’s lap while we have coffee on the porch in the morning
Haven’t taken her camping yet because she prefers outside over inside and like others I’m afraid if she got out of the rig we would never get her back.

Thank you (and to everyone else). I had no idea about pecans...we built our house in a pecan orchard. I have not seen her make any effort to get a pecan, good ones or bad ones, but I will be very vigilant. Ginger, my puppy, loved to eat pecans and would occasionally try to "crack" and eat one- but I always gathered them, went to the shop to cull them and she came in to the workbench and I would just crack them and we would share them - 3 max though.

 

[rvdummies]

I'll begin by apologizing for any of this that has already been said. I'm way too lazy to read all of the thread posts. We've been traveling full time with Jasper, an adult 14 yr old male, extremely co-dependent indoor cat for the last 3 years. We have a Ford F150 Super crew and a 31 ft (26 ft box) Bullet travel trailer, so not a ton of room. Probably our biggest issue with Jasper is that he doesn't get enough exercise in the small space. Oh, and he also absolutely hates to travel.

I just wanted to share some of the stuff that makes traveling with a cat easier for us.

In the RV, we keep his litter box in the shower for the most part, with a cheap Walmart rug outside to catch most of the litter on his feet. We prefer Arm & Hammer Natural Litter, which is conveniently available at every Walmart across the country (ARM & HAMMER Naturals Clumping Cat Litter With Corn Fibers, Odor Control, Fresh Scent, 9 lbs - Walmart.com)

He does like to scratch, so we have a scratching post for him and try to keep his nails trimmed as much as possible.

We often take day hikes and are away from the RV for several hours. Jasper would eat his weight or more if we just left a food dish for him. Plus he's lost most of his teeth over the last several years, so we only feed him wet food on a schedule. We found a timed feeder works great for the days when we're away. The first one we bought, he was able to infiltrate with ease after a few feedings, so we ended up with an Orsda feeder from Amazon that works like a charm. Amazon.com

We had a scare early on in our travels when he escaped his carrier from an open truck door while we were hitching up the trailer. That prompted us to get an Apple Air Tag and a collar with a holder for the tag. He wears that at all times now.

For travel, we purchased a collapsible pet carrier from Walmart (XROMTBEM Portable Pet Kennel Carrier Collapsible Small Dog Fence Cat Travel Cage - Walmart.com) that fits well in the back seat of the truck and gives him a little room to move. We tried to make it as comfortable for him with a little cat bed and some blankets, but as I mentioned earlier, Jasper despises travel days. He would whine loudly for the first 15 minutes or longer until he'd finally go to sleep and then whine more if he woke up. I didn't want him roaming free in the truck cabin, but after over a year of listening to the whining, my wife convinced me to get a harness and leash that kept him on the passenger side of the truck. Jasper is a lap cat, so now he sits on my wife's lap on travel days with very minimal whining. We try to keep our travel days to 2 or 3 hours, but have had some that were up to 10 hours and he just sits there the whole time. We, of course, stop every few hours to give him bathroom breaks and feedings.

We have had a couple of times when Jasper was sick with a UTI, which can get a little messy in a house or an RV. For those times we have pee pads like you would have in the bottom of a baby crib that have helped keep messes a little more contained.

Those are my most helpful tips for traveling with a cat. Hope you have a great experience with your new companion.

 

[jasin1]

though ….If they do run off, cats are pretty resourceful animals and have been known to travel hundreds of miles to find their way back home

 

[sourdough]

I'll begin by apologizing for any of this that has already been said. I'm way too lazy to read all of the thread posts. We've been traveling full time with Jasper, an adult 14 yr old male, extremely co-dependent indoor cat for the last 3 years. We have a Ford F150 Super crew and a 31 ft (26 ft box) Bullet travel trailer, so not a ton of room. Probably our biggest issue with Jasper is that he doesn't get enough exercise in the small space. Oh, and he also absolutely hates to travel.

I just wanted to share some of the stuff that makes traveling with a cat easier for us.

In the RV, we keep his litter box in the shower for the most part, with a cheap Walmart rug outside to catch most of the litter on his feet. We prefer Arm & Hammer Natural Litter, which is conveniently available at every Walmart across the country (ARM & HAMMER Naturals Clumping Cat Litter With Corn Fibers, Odor Control, Fresh Scent, 9 lbs - Walmart.com)

He does like to scratch, so we have a scratching post for him and try to keep his nails trimmed as much as possible.

We often take day hikes and are away from the RV for several hours. Jasper would eat his weight or more if we just left a food dish for him. Plus he's lost most of his teeth over the last several years, so we only feed him wet food on a schedule. We found a timed feeder works great for the days when we're away. The first one we bought, he was able to infiltrate with ease after a few feedings, so we ended up with an Orsda feeder from Amazon that works like a charm. Amazon.com

We had a scare early on in our travels when he escaped his carrier from an open truck door while we were hitching up the trailer. That prompted us to get an Apple Air Tag and a collar with a holder for the tag. He wears that at all times now.

For travel, we purchased a collapsible pet carrier from Walmart (XROMTBEM Portable Pet Kennel Carrier Collapsible Small Dog Fence Cat Travel Cage - Walmart.com) that fits well in the back seat of the truck and gives him a little room to move. We tried to make it as comfortable for him with a little cat bed and some blankets, but as I mentioned earlier, Jasper despises travel days. He would whine loudly for the first 15 minutes or longer until he'd finally go to sleep and then whine more if he woke up. I didn't want him roaming free in the truck cabin, but after over a year of listening to the whining, my wife convinced me to get a harness and leash that kept him on the passenger side of the truck. Jasper is a lap cat, so now he sits on my wife's lap on travel days with very minimal whining. We try to keep our travel days to 2 or 3 hours, but have had some that were up to 10 hours and he just sits there the whole time. We, of course, stop every few hours to give him bathroom breaks and feedings.

We have had a couple of times when Jasper was sick with a UTI, which can get a little messy in a house or an RV. For those times we have pee pads like you would have in the bottom of a baby crib that have helped keep messes a little more contained.

Those are my most helpful tips for traveling with a cat. Hope you have a great experience with your new companion.View attachment 739726

Thanks for the tips. Like I've mentioned, this is a very new learning experience for us. Looks like I'll have a room full of tried and discarded items in the near future.

We haven't had her in the RV yet so that will probably be interesting. It's too early to get out and dewinterize that will be a future experience.

We found on our last return trip to the vet that she does not like the pet carrier we bought so will be looking at options. I wanted her to ride with a halter tethered to the back seatbelt like pup did but she has a very hard time with the heavy duty halters and the light ones look like they would just cut her in half if we had an accident - a work in progress I guess.

Thanks for the tips and I'll be looking into the items you listed as we are just trying things out as folks suggest them to find what works for her and us.

 

[Notanlines]

Danny, the owner here in the park who walks his cat regularly said for you to remember who’s boss. The cat WILL wear a harness, WILL go for a walk, will NOT be on the table or kitchen counters (nasty!). But you have to be persistent! As he said, “Cats aren’t born liking leashes!”

 

[sourdough]

Danny, the owner here in the park who walks his cat regularly said for you to remember who’s boss. The cat WILL wear a harness, WILL go for a walk, will NOT be on the table or kitchen counters (nasty!). But you have to be persistent! As he said, “Cats aren’t born liking leashes!”

Yep, that's one of the reasons I never liked or wanted to own a cat. This one is very, very good about that now. She tried over the first day or so to get on everything but once told no and slightly scolded she hasn't been on anything other than a chair, loveseat or the end of my bed....if not on the floor which are acceptable.

The new lighter harness is working pretty good. We let her out every day with it on and work with her. She's getting better daily and once she's comfortable with it we're going to try the heavier one which I feel is mandatory for safe long travels in the truck. I suspect it will be next to impossible for her to be as in tune to a leash as puppy was but I am beginning to accept that, plus, I forget how long Ginger walked with me on a leash and what happened over years with her cannot be expected to happen with a cat in a couple of weeks.

 

[Ramtop]

Thanks for the tips. Like I've mentioned, this is a very new learning experience for us. Looks like I'll have a room full of tried and discarded items in the near future.

We haven't had her in the RV yet so that will probably be interesting. It's too early to get out and dewinterize that will be a future experience.

We found on our last return trip to the vet that she does not like the pet carrier we bought so will be looking at options. I wanted her to ride with a halter tethered to the back seatbelt like pup did but she has a very hard time with the heavy duty halters and the light ones look like they would just cut her in half if we had an accident - a work in progress I guess.

Thanks for the tips and I'll be looking into the items you listed as we are just trying things out as folks suggest them to find what works for her and us.

We don’t take our cats with us camping, although have talked about it but they are too old to change their habits. We found many years ago, that a smaller dog carrier works better than a cat carrier. Gives them more room and they are less confined. When these 2 are no longer with us, we plan on trying to take our next ones with us. Our neighbors take their Maine Coon cat with them and he loves it. They spent weeks getting him used to traveling before they actually did it.

 

[sourdough]

Thank you. Yes the carrier we found is for small dogs as we were thinking she's a small cat (compared to puppy) - vet said she is a "large" cat at 11.66lbs. - who knew? The carrier seems tight but the vet tech, who has owned cats for decades, said the carrier was just right.

We don't know the age of the cat and vets (now 3) can't seem to tell you her age, but she's grown. Traveling will be a training issue it looks like. She starts talking after about 15 minutes riding in the carrier - pull her out and let her sit in DWs arms and she is happy - that's a no go for traveling.

Like the leash it seems that it's going to be a lot of "training" to get her used to a leash and traveling in a carrier....

 

[chuckster57]

My brown point Siamese cat went across the country with us perched on the ice chest in the back seat. He passed shortly after, and my Flame point would shake with fear until he learned to lay by my side and I would pet him. We tried Dramamine prescribed by the vet, but it never worked. Never had an issue with either one obstructing my view.

 

[sourdough]

I'm not good with giving a pet Dramamine or any other calming type pharmaceutical. They prescribed that for Ginger when she was younger and administered it to her prior to a trip to CO. By the time we got to our hotel in Santa Fe for an overnite stop (5 hours) she was unable to walk without falling over, totally disoriented and in general looked terrible. Took her to an emergency vet clinic and the vet said they had overdosed her on the medication (it wasn't Dramamine as I recall) and all we could do was wait to see if it killed her or not - it was a sleepless night. She survived that but we never gave her anything again for her anxiety and she just had to adapt.

This cat seems to be pretty laid back but very much likes to see what's going on. She's adapting to a lightweight harness but I won't travel with that on her as it seems it would cut her in half if we had a collision. Looks like it's going to be a lot of training and conditioning to get us where we need to be....or where she's willing to go. If it would warm up and stay that way (looks like about 5 days) we can resume and see what kind of progress we make. DW said she's not going to hold the cat 5-6 hours at a time while towing so I need to find a solution.