Best way to travel with diabetic cat, fly or drive?

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Alfred

Alfred

Member Since 2014
Good news my Alfred will be coming to live with me! I am overjoyed! We have been apart for three years and I have missed him terribly the entire time.

However, now I must make arrangements to get him here which means traveling half way across the country with him.

Does anyone have any recommendations as to the best/easiest/safest way to transport a diabetic cat?

Driving would be ~2 days, whereas a flight would be ~3 hours plus the 2 hour drive to the departure airport then another ~1 hour drive from the destination airport to home.

I am prepared to do either one, whichever would be best/easiest for him.

He has never flown so that would be an entirely new experience for him. He has been on a 4 hour car trip and does fairly well in the car, but 4 hours has been the longest trip he's been on. He gets stressed out when he sees the carrier so when I had to put him in the carrier I would usually bring it out a few days before hand and just leave it out so he would get used to it being in the room which made it easier to get him in it.

When he goes to the vet he doesn't like to come out of the carrier but goes back into it easily.

Thank you!
 
I would opt for flying if yo can get a direct flight. I adopted Murfee from DCIN and he flew from Florida to Reagan National airport. He was fine. You do need an approved carrier.
I still have the one Murfee came in. I also think you need a certificate signed by a vet and the cat has to be up to date on rabies shots
 
Travel notes:
Microchip him if not already.
Get several pictures - head on, body right & left, abdomen - for identifying markings
Harness train him; its harder to escape on a harness.
If you fly and they want you to remove him from the carrier, ask to do so in an enclosed room which is a more controlled environment.
For interstate travel, you must have a rabies certificate.
You may need a certificate of health from a vet within 30 days of travel. Check the states in which you'll be traveling.
Insulin and a cooler for it.
Syringes (check the laws in the states about need for Rx and if needed, have it on you)
Testing supplies
Sharps container.
It could be helpful to have a vet statement that the cat is diabetic
Litter, scoop/gloves, plastic bags.
 
I would opt for flying too. I'm living abroad and I need to travel from time to time to my home country. I have been travelling with Juno by airplane since he was 1 year old, so he's got used to it even though he dislikes it so much (but he hates travelling by car much more). This year, just a couple of weeks after Juno was diagnosed, I had to travel again and we travelled by train ~4 hours plus by airplane for ~3h30m. He did very well. Very soon I will need to travel again with him.

BJM gave very good tips and I also beware of the airline company requirements for travelling with pets in the cabin.
 
Thank you all for the suggestions and advice!

I have decided to fly and am in the process of planning for early June.

Have been shopping for flights and educating myself regarding airline rules and regulations about transporting animals across state lines.

Thank you for your help!
 
I've done both with Grayson.

Car is easier on him, as he can have his litter box. Flying from Raleigh, NC to Denver, CO was a 3.5 hr direct flight. Pain in the neck to carry a "portable" litter box/litter. But he needed to go before the flight and when we landed. DO NOT DRUG THEM.

Family bathrooms are your friend in an airport. I had to shoot insulin before we left Raleigh - in front of stalls with people coming & going - but he was a champ - peed on command (well, the litter box was a good motivator!), fed & shot. It was chaotic in there - and no door - so the harness is a MUST! And a tag w/ your contact info on it as well.

On board, Southwest wanted me to use one of their approved carriers. G is a big guy, and wouldn't have fit. They allowed me to use the Sherpa I had purchased. American was fine with the Sherpa. On board pet doesn't need med certificate; checked pet does. Temperatures are a factor for checked pets.

On a 2 hr trip to Chicago, G pooped in the carrier. The person in front of me complained. We had to return to RDU due to mechanical issues, and when we were ready to re-board on another plane, we were summoned to the counter and offered a flight the next day, so I could clean up the carrier (which I'd already done).

My carry on was a spare carrier - in case Mr. Pees and Ocean couldn't hold it. Towel, roll of paper towels, diaper wipes, ziplock baggies, a trash bag for wet towel, Fancy Feast box (for travel litter box), plastic trash bag wrapped around it, ziplock full of litter, scooper....

... by this time, driving is looking much better! :)

In my car, G has the option to go into his (open) carrier, there's a full litter box behind the passenger seat, and food & water. He usually lounges on the back seat, all stretched out.

Because of his Acromegaly, he's now ~26# - more than the 20# limit for cat & carrier for American Airlines. So he's resigned to car travel for the duration.

Happy to share more info I've got in a word doc... if you're interested, just let me know.

And the pet fee is usually about $150 each way. At Christmas, his flight was more than mine - and he didn't even get his own seat OR frequent flyer miles! :o

Lu-Ann
 
I've only done car travel with Neko, 24 hours spread over 3 days each way to Colorado. Before that her longest trip was one hour. I used Rescue Remedy for Pets ( a couple drops in her food before hand ) and Feliway spray in her carrier before hand. I think she liked having the car to roam and a private place for the LB. My sedan has a folding back seat so it was in the trunk. One of our members commuted each week with her kitty and wrote up a document on travelling with cats. If your cat is microchipped, don't forget to call the company that manages the microchip information when you arrive. I used to work at a shelter and can't tell you the number of times we had a stray kitty and tracked the chip to where they used to live. :roll:

If you travel by plane, you probably want to shoot a reduced dose or skip the shot before hand. At least in a car you can pull over and test/feed if you need to.
 
Since you decided to fly, please keep these things in mind:

- Make sure when you book your ticket/flight, that you book a ticket for the cat to travel IN THE CABIN with you, under the seat, and not as luggage in the cargo hold.
- Put several layers of puppy training pads in the carrier, this way when he pees, you can easily pull out one pad and there will be others to keep him dry and allow him to pee/poop on.
- When going through the check points, they will want to search his carrier - do not put him through the xray machine. Rather, go through the check point and ask the agent to take you to a bathroom, where you can open the carrier and allow it to be searched. If they give you a hard time, ask for a supervisor.
- Cover the outside of a carrier with a towel, this will give him more comfort while traveling, privacy and keep little hands out of his face.
- If using a hardsided carrier - get some zip ties, once you clear security) to secure the carrier doors shut. I've had these pop open unexpectedly and you don't want the cat loose in the airport.
- If using a soft sided carrier, make sure it's all zipped up tight, you can even zip tied the zippers (leaving one free for easy access).
- Bring his travel documents, medications, etc with you in your carry on. Make sure you have his medical records, in case TSA try to confiscate his insulin and syringes. Additionally, get the vet to provide a travel certificate and letter stating this cat is diabetic and what his medical needs are.

I am sure others have additional suggestions.

Good luck!
 
Link to google doc w/ flying supply list:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc ... _web#gid=0

And here's my list:


CARRY ON:

kitty carrier
pee pads
blanket
Harness / lead
ID tag - "Diabetic" w/ cell #
litter box/tray
kitty litter (ziplock for travel)
food - regular - 4 cans
water bottle
2 bowls w/ lids
fork
lancets
meter
test strips
syringes
insulin
unscented wipes
paper towels
Ziplocks - trash, litter, sharps etc.
trash bag (for wet bedding in crate)

vet records
emergency phone numbers
treats

laptop
phone


PACK:

cat brush
dustpan & hand broom
lint brush
plastic food can lid
ketostix
food - reg/gravy
Ziplocs - variety & trash bags
syringes
cell, camera & computer chargers
litter scoop


BUY THERE
Food
Water
Litter



MISC

fluids/needles
Pepcid
Bupe
Window shade
kitty bed
3ml syringe and simply saline
scissors
kitty thermometer
5ml water syringes
dish towel and wash cloth
Febreze
bottles of water - frozen
cooler
ice packs
Hotel w/ Fridge
first aid pack
flashlight
hi carb food
syrup and syringe
medications
prescriptions for extras
Toy/comfort item
pill pockets
spare meter or batteries
 
Thank you so much for the additional information and the wonderful list of things to bring! That will be so helpful for me so I don't forget something!

I've booked our flight and informed the airline I will be traveling with a cat in the cabin. Now I'm shopping for supplies and reading everything I can about traveling with kitties via plane.
 
One other thing I thought of. If you think this will be the only time you fly with your kitty, you may ask some friends if they have a Sherpa or other approved airline pet carrier.

I transported my mom's beagle when she was rescued, and I was able to borrow one from our local humane society. Once she was there, I didn't need one again (at least until Grayson needed one!). Now we have our own, but if you're like many of us, you've got a lot of things you've used just once.

Hope you both have a safe trip.
 
Hello!

So I've had to change my plans after looking at all the carriers and doing measurements, it turns out Alfred is going to be too big for the under seat space on the plane. He's a big cat, weights 16 pounds and is tall, there's no way he'd be able to stand and turn around in the carrier that the airline would allow in the cabin and I'm not going to fly him as cargo so we're going to drive instead.

I have a month to get all sorted with it and will be with him for 5 days prior to leaving so I can learn his current routine and we can get reacquainted etc.

I think/hope that in the end driving will be the better choice, he's a skittish and shy cat so hopefully driving will be less stressful. It's just so hard to know, but I don't really have a choice in the matter since he won't fit under the seat on the airplane.

Once the transition is made and he's settled in here I will start the process of getting him used to home testing then will begin switching his diet so I'm sure I will be back with many questions! nailbite_smile
 
J.D. is a big cat (people often think he's a dog) and he used to be 17 lbs when we first started flying, and is less now, but we fly every year. We us the large size Sherpa carrier. Once he's under the seat, I unzip the front of the carrier and he either gets out and stays by my feet or stretches out on the floor by my feet. He is always in a tight (snug) fitting harness and I tie the leash around my hand in case I fall asleep. Last trip, I bought him an extra seat so he could have the floor space next to me.

Whatever you do fly or drive, I would make sure he's micro-chipped if he isn't already.
 
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