Advice Please? Flying on a Commercial Airline with a Pet in the Cabin? *Update in comments - help?*

lc07

Hi Ya'll. It's me. The newly single crazy cat lady. Kitty is 18 years old and she doesn't do well being left at home without me anymore overnight. I used to be able to leave her at home for a week and just have someone come every day to check on her. She's VERY anti-social with people she doesn't know. And moderately anti-social even with those that she does know. She is like a puppy who follows me around most of the time. We communicate verbally and I believe she cues well off of me to stay calm. She would tolerate me leaving like that for many years. But now that she's getting older she's more clingy. She will get bad anxiety and poop all over the house if I leave for a few days.

I'm flying across America on Southwest for a vacation with my family (whom she knows and love and knows the home that we will be staying in). And have been planning to bring her with me, since H is no longer around to be with her when I go away. I figured it would be less traumatic for her to go with me than staying at home for 12 days virtually alone. And less traumatic than being boarded at a kennel stuck in a cage where she would not get much human interaction due to how anti-social she is. Now I'm wondering if flying will be more stressful, though? She has traveled in cars cross country and has been fine. But she's had free-range in roaming around the car. And a littler box and food and water set up in the car for her. 

It's a 5.5 hour flight plus travel time to the airport and waiting to get on board. I'm concerned about her need to use the litter box and eat/drink. My flight there is non-stop. My flight home has a 1.5 hour stop (haven't found anything direct so far). I was thinking of using my carry-on bag as Kitty emergency supplies (fresh towels in case she goes in the carrier, clorox wipes, food, water, and maybe even litter and a small pan. Can I sneak her in the bathroom to use it during our stop or on the flight? She's never been on a leash before. This sounds kind of crazy. Help?

What do you guys think?

Edited: to delete the date of my departure. For creepsters out there.

Blergbot

Cats are supposed to stay in their carrier the whole flight under the seat in front of you. Doesn't sound like you've flown with kitty before...yes?

lc07

Correct. We have only ever done car road trips. Never flown with her before. How do people do this without it being a horrible experience for the pet? Maybe that's not possible? I guess I'm trying to weigh which choice is best. None seem ideal or like the obvious winner. 

I felt strongly about taking her with me til I started googling tips about taking her. And I'm worried about her stress level especially because she is elderly.

CMGragain

I thought Southwest Airlines didn't allow pets at all!  Did they change their policy?

Oops!  I'm wrong!  They did change their policy! http://www.southwest.com/html/customer-service/traveling-with-animals/pets/index-pol.html

lc07

CMGragain said:

I thought Southwest Airlines didn't allow pets at all!  Did they change their policy?

They do! Up to 6 per flight (sometimes more)! First come first served. No reservations for pets. Makes me wonder about people who have allergies who fly.

http://www.southwest.com/html/customer-service/traveling-with-animals/pets/index-pol.html

I've already checked that my bag is the right size with them at the desk (I live very close to the airport). 

PrincessOfHavoc

My two cats happily flew back and forth with me during college years. One is a lilac point Oriental Shorthair, the other is an ebony torbie bi color Oriental Shorthair. Velcro kitties who are extremely active physically and mentally. If I left them with a sitter, they would be extremely naughty and destroy everything because they need more interaction. Kennel would never work, active is being mild and they would be screaming bloody murder to express displeasure.

You aren't supposed to, but no one ever complained that I had them in the same carrier. Fully suspect because my boy would glare at people and let out one merow at a slightly loud volume, and most people have heard how horribly loud Siamese can get and he's got the Siamese points, so he's a Siamese. If the demon twins ride together, they're good. Individual carriers, Jay will start his grumbling racket, Harley Q will scream without stopping until she gets her Mr Jay back.

They never wanted to eat or drink during the flights. Usually, they just cuddled up together and slept. These were all direct flights.

JCbride2015

I've never flown with my cats but I put them in carriers when I drive (otherwise they jump on me in the car). On longer drives I will stop and set up a litter box and some food, but they never want it. They've gone up to about 7-8 hours on a trip and were fine. I wouldn't bother to take Kitty out of the carrier on the plane. He probably won't like the carrier, but it's asking for trouble to take him out. He'll be fine.

daria24

My roommate used to fly with her cat. The vet would give her a sedative to give her right before the flight. Kitty slept through the entire flight. My cat is 15 and very cranky. Personally I would never fly with her unless the vet would give me something to knock her out. She would cry through the entire flight and pee everywhere. 

MamaAlly89

I've never flown with my cats before, but I have gone on long car trips with them. I would always bring food and water but they never want it. And they never would never use the litter box either while traveling. I think the idea you have about bringing emergency supplies in your carry on is a great idea to be prepared. Also, if you are worried about your kitty getting too stressed you can talk to your vet and get a sedative so that she will sleep through the flight.

From my past experience I would recommend not feeding you cat right before the flight. On my last trip (16 hour drive) I fed my kitties right before we left cause I knew they would refuse to eat the whole time. This was a mistake because my one cat got motion sick and threw up while we were driving through the mountains! Poor baby.

emmyg65

I wouldn't do this. Cats are generally happiest in their own homes. My cat is pretty neurotic, and I think flying would be too stressful for her. I'd only do it if I was moving.

ohannabelle

(Former airline employee)

First, don't even think about sneaking her out of her carrier. Frightened cats tend to panic and bolt, which is why Alaska Air had to shut down the Seattle Tacoma runway to rescue an escapee (yay, Alaska Air!) and spent two days searching the airport for another kitty. (He was found hiding under a baggage carousel, safe.) Either of these stories could have ended badly.

Take Kitty to the vet, and get her tranquilizers. If she can handle car trips, she will likely be a good flier. Cats are very specific about their poop. They simply won't poop in a small enclosed space. They'll hold it for six hours, no problem, unless they're ill. You know her habits well, I'd bet. If she is a morning pooper, schedule your flight after that.

Put puppy pads on the bottom of the kennel, and a favorite towel or sweater from home. Cats fly all the time, and in all my years at two major airlines, I've never received a customer complaint about a cat on board. Smelly passengers, yes, but no smelly cats. If a passenger complains about allergies, one or the other of you will have your seats moved, but if Kitty is in her under the seat kennel, nobody will probably even know she's on board.

Even Evil Lucy, my daughter's cat, didn't get complaints. And she's a yowler. One man saw her at the baggage carousel, and said, Okay, I'm not crazy, I thought I heard a cat. (The engine and air filtration systems muffle the noise.)

Leave her carrier open in the living room for a few days before you go, so she can go in and out. Hide treats in there. Make it a fun happy place for her. She should be fine.

MyNameIsNot

I flew with one of my kitties once.  He was only about 6 months old at the time.  It was a relatively short distance.  (1.5 flight, hour layover, 45 minute connection).  I took him to the vet first and got him a sedative.  I gave it to him right before we left for the airport and he slept the whole time.  

Security was a pain in the ass.  They wanted me to put him through the xray machine.  Yeah, no.  

Go see the vet.  An older cat is going to be a little more nervous, but a sedative will make it easier.  

jdluvr06

Before I moved back home I flew with my cat all the time. Just get her a tranquilizer from the vet and make sure to have water in the carrier for her in case she wakes up. She should be fine.

Jells2dot0

We often travel for 2-3 weeks at a time and have 4 cats at home. Our cats range in age from 2 years to 13 years. My 13 year old has special medial needs as well. All of the cats are needy and clingy with us. We hired a pet sitting company to come to our home based on a lot of research. We pay for two 30 minute visits per day, but most companies are flexible with number and length of stays. Our cats typically do not like strangers at all, but they get used to the sitter after a few days. It has always worked out well for us. It may end up being more expensive than pet airfare, but the cats are as comfortable as they can be in that situation.

Blergbot

Ok, so it could depend on the sedative, but I have heard never to knock your cat out, as it can slow their heart rate and that, combined with the change in air pressure, can kill them. There may be some that just calm them (kitty valium, maybe?) and don't knock them out that may be ok.

I flew with my kitty from the SW to the NW (so fairly long flights) and she absolutely hated it. I had to put her on Prozac when we got back because she was licking all of her hair off. Cats are much happier in their own environment and don't like to be out of their element. When we went through security they had to take her out of the carrier and put it through the baggage scanner. Luckily for me, she was too scared to bolt and clung to me for dear life. She didn't go to the bathroom the whole time and wouldn't eat or drink, either. So that wasn't a problem. She just didn't know what was going on and was very, very scared.

I think if your cat were used to flying from a very young age it would probably be ok. Older cats, though, would be much happier at home.

erollis

I don't have anything to add. I did want to echo what others have said.

Pet sitter at home may be best
Do not let cat out of carrier in airport/on plane
Use a harness and leash if you need to
Don't need to feed/water kitty while traveling
Talk to vet about sedative/ways to relax kitty

Our two cats travel in the car just fine (7 & 2). Neither would fair well on a plane. It would be to stressful for them. We leave them home when we fly and a friend takes care of them.

lc07

Thank you all so much for your advice and insight. I really appreciate it. I'm uncomfortable with the sedative idea because of her age. I'm starting to re-think all of this. I really just want to do what is least traumatic for her. And initially that felt like me taking her with me. 

I just emailed my closest friend here (I have no family in the state) who knows Kitty best to see if she wouldn't mind checking in on her while I'm gone. I'm just so nervous that Kitty will think I have abandoned her and will get bad anxiety. My friend will not be able to stay with her overnight for sure. But I'm starting to see that that might be the least traumatic option. She travels really well in the car (not in the carrier). But I think flying would be a whole other thing. And then doing it all again 12 days later. 

Thank you each again for your opinions both ways. I'm glad to hear the good and scary stories (and the insider airline employee knowledge!). It's really helpful.

lc07

I've decided to leave Kitty at home and have my closest friend come by to take care of her. My friend has cats and small children (lot of experience with tantrums and poop!) and I gave her full disclosure about my concerns about leaving Kitty (I asked her via email and told her it was perfectly fine to decline helping me as I had a back-up plan - I didn't tell her but my back up plan was to take Kitty or board her at the vet).

I have to take a trip in September anyway and I can't take Kitty on that trip. So at least this will be a trial run and I have full faith that my friend can handle it. Worst case scenario, I am leaving all of the vet info and she can take Kitty to the vet to be boarded and I will obviously pay. 

Thank you very much for helping me think this through. I wish I could explain to Kitty that I'm leaving but coming back. Wish us luck that it works out alright.

Blergbot

Sending good vibes for Kitty!

lc07

Thank you, @Blergbot

pinkcow13

Aww, good luck to kitty! I'm sure Kitty will be fine. It may be a bit traumatic at first but I think she will adjust. Staying at home I think would be the best option for her.

livedeliberate

I'm actually looking for advice on this as well. I may be moving from PA to TX, and I'm not sure if it would be better to fly with our dog (he's small, just under 20 pounds) or if we should drive him. He gets anxious in car rides after 20 minutes, I can't imagine how he'd be after 20 hours.

JCbride2015

Good luck, Kitty!  @Ic07, sounds like you made the right choice for her.

lc07

So, I'm back from my trip and Kitty had a hard time while I was gone. She was "okay" for the first 3 days/nights and then she started pooping all over the house. All over my bed, on the couch, behind the curtains. My friend who checked in on her was incredibly kind about it.

Problem is, I have to go away again in a few months and I can't take her with even if I wanted to this time. I don't think it's fair to anyone (including Kitty) to leave her at home and have someone check in on her since she was obviously distressed. I THINK she would be okay if someone stayed at my house and slept there overnight (though I'm not sure) but I don't have any friends where it wouldn't be a huge inconvenience for them to do that even if I paid them.

So do I board her? She's extremely anti-social. 

I feel like I have no good options. Ideas?

mrsmorales2be

My cats have always been super social and attention seeking and have always done very well boarding. The place I've used has a day room for the cats to run around in, and staff/volunteers to play with them as much as they wanted. Kitties could go into their kennels whenever they felt overly stimulated, and they were floor-to-ceiling kitty condos with perches and all kinds of goodies for each cat.  They only took a few cats at a time, too, so they always felt comfortable.  Not sure how they'd do being antisocial, but clearly staying at home is a stresser, and they won't have someone 24/7 where they're being boarded, either....

Sorry it was so traumatic for your baby!

Jells2dot0

Knowing everything I know about cats and my cats, boarding is so much more stressful for them. Cats like routine and they react strongly to smell. If you change their routine AND their surroundings, which also changes the smells around them, I think she'll be far worse off.

I'm so sorry she had such a tough time. It breaks my heart when I go away and my kitties get upset (some do better than others), but I do know that when I have taken my kitties out of their home and away, they were really stressed.

jenajjthr

Do any of your friends know people who could housesit? You could also try Angie's List for housesitters as well. I'm old enough to say look in the yellow pages for a company that has house sitting services, so you could try that as well. 

daria24

In my city pet sitters offer these options: 

Boarding in their home

Once or twice daily visits

House sitting

Over night house sitting-basically they come in the evening, sleep there, and then leave in the morning. 

Or you can board with a vet/groomer/etc

Honestly we have no good options with our 15 year old diabetic cat. Even when we left her in our apartment and had friends come over that she loves, she still is miserable for days when we come home. Thankfully she doesn't act out and poop everywhere/destroy anything, she just is so grumpy and moody it's heart breaking. We choose to have a twice daily pet sitter, but quite frankly we never leave for more than three days because we are afraid of what we'll come home to.  

I know it's pricey, but maybe try boarding her for 24 hours, while you are in town and see how she takes it? Or if you have the option to board in home, do a test run?

Blergbot

Agree with @Jells2dot0‌ it is much more stressful for them to be outside their own environment. I know you don't want poop all over your house, but honestly it would be the same or worse if you boarded her. I'd just get a cat sitter who is willing to put in a little more time with Kitty.

QueerFemme

Hire an in home sitter. We have someone that sleeps in our home. Watches tv, dies all the normal things I do. It's not that much more expensive than boarding.