Tips For Traveling With Your Cat

Since spring his here and summer rapidly approaching, many people are gearing up to make that annual visit with their pet to their veterinarian. The trip can be stressful for all pets, but our feline friends may be more affected by this. To make this trip less stressful, here are four tips that may assist on your trek to the veterinarian’s office.

1) Make your carrier your cat’s second home. I know a lot us of store our carriers out in the garage. By sitting out in the garage, the carrier loses the scents from your cat, so bring it inside with the door open and let the cat rub against it. Allow the pet to go inside. Maybe throw in a blanket or something that your cat is accustom to. This will act as a security blanket for your pet. By allowing this, your cat won’t view the carrier as a foreign object and the pet may be less stressed.

2) Turn the carrier into a feeding center. If the cat associates the carrier as where its food is, the cat may go into the carrier easier. It may also work by putting some treats in the carrier, as it will show that the carrier is not bad at all.

3) Try a different type of carrier. Sometimes emergencies happen and there is not time to acclimate your pet with the carriers. So a pillowcase can be a good option by putting the cat on your lap and sliding the pillowcase over the body first and then the head. Other things that may work are laundry baskets or something that your cat is used to sleeping in.

4) Try some synthetic pheramones. There are pheramones that can be purchased and sprayed on the towels and blankets that will help the pet be not as agitated, so it make make it easier to adapt to the car ride and the stress of the visit.

Nothing is foolproof, but these steps could make your trip less traumatic to you and your pet.