J.D. and I flew across the country from our home in New Jersey to visit my dad in California once a year for 8 years.
Micro Chip, snuggly fitting Harness with Leash the whole time your traveling while driving to the airport, at the airports, flying and driving to your destination. Lots of pee pads lined in the carrier. Bach's Rescue Remedy for Pets before flights. I would get his blood work done within 10 days of travel and get his Health Certificate and Rabies Certificate and a letter from the vet saying that I needed to carry syringes and insulin on board the plane (all of J.D.'s supplies were in my carry on). I would test him in the bathroom (on the fold down testing tables that they provide at airports) and I would carry some canned food and a plastic spoon in my jacket pocket and give him some to break up the monotony of the long flights. He had two plastic bowls and I would ask for ice water from the stewardess and give him that. When he went pee in his carrier he was not a happy boy and wanted out of there, now. I would bring a gallon sized plastic baggy to put a used pee pad in, so I could take off the top layer as needed. I found it hard to reach down to him under the seat in front of me, so that last time we traveled, I just bought an extra seat and he stayed under the empty seat next to me, that made it a lot easier to get to him and pet him and feed and water him. I always unzipped the front of his Large sized Sherpa Pet Carrier once we were up in the air and he would stretch out full length, but he was a big cat. I always wrapped the end of the leash tightly around my wrist in case I fell asleep as he had an uncanny knack of knowing when I fell asleep and would wander under the seats. You may not want to do what I did, and keep your cat inside the carrier as the airlines want. I always had stewardesses come by to visit and ask about J.D. and never said anything about him being out, as long as he was hanging out on the floor by my feet.
We always skipped the insulin the day of travel. You might want to ask your vet about that.
I always asked my Dad to bring a litter box and put it on the floor of his car in front of the back seat in case J.D. needed it, but he would never go in the car. It was always a long car drive on both ends, and so he kept that harness and leash on at all times. Cats can slip out of small places, like a cracked window in car (I once was holding the tail of a cat on the inside of a traveling car while the rest of the cat was on the outside of the window, so I have first had experience. It was not funny), so you want to keep a hold of your cat even in the car, or keep all windows and doors closed when you are not.
J.D. was a pretty mellow cat at the vets and even though he was once a feral and didn't ever warm up to most people including my dad, he felt at home at my parents house as we went there every year and he remembered where "our room" was and the lay of the house.
Let me know if you have other questions, and I'll try to answer them the best I can, from our experiences.
