My Cat

[TayL 0]

Yeah, yeah, I know, cats don't actually get visas, but for those of you who took a pet with you, what was required to get your pet safely to your new home across the border? What forms did they need? Did it badly complicate your border crossing?

Then there's the practical matters. If you were driving, did you obtain travel sedatives for your poor animal? My drive will be probably two days long (Ontario to Texas)! How do you find hotels along the way that will let you have your pet? My little man hasn't ever been in a car more than 4 hours and he's very good in the car when he is in (I used to take him driving when I got bored as a teenager, so car doesn't mean "vet" in the mind of this indoor kitty!).

Help Leo's bid for US citizenship!

How could you refuse this cutie?

[MrsCat 6]

I think most people who enter the US aren't really bothered about their pets. I know when I crossed into the US POE they were not at all interested whether he's had shots or not etc. The border officer didn't ask a thing about my cat actually.

I think basically you may need your pet's vaccinations up to date and perhaps a travel certificate from your vet. But I think that is only for airplane travel. Just to be on the safe side you could probably get one for a land crossing though.

I gave Thomas a sedative for the car ride because he's an anxious kitty. But in retrospect, I should not have, it was just hard on his body and he didn't seem to mind traveling in the car after about 3-4 hours. He just got used to it.

We traveled from Edmonton to Seattle. Stayed in Seattle for one night and then flew onto Hilo, Hawaii. We didn't give him a sedative for the plane and he was perfectly fine.

[Captain Ewok 1,871]

Cute!!

[TheATeam 0]

We didn't drive, we flew but Kaia (my dog) just had her certificate from the vet saying that she was up to date on her vaccinations and that she was fit to travel. She's a good dog in the car, but I was worried about her being in the cargo in the plane. She did fine though even without a sedative.

As for hotels, I don't know if you're booking the rooms in advance, but if you are you can usually find out on their website if they're pet friendly or not. Or you could simply look to stop in a place that has a specific hotel that is pet friendly like Super 8. I wish you all the best. Traveling with our furry friends can be hard on both of you sometimes! That's a long trip as it is!

[MrsCat 6]

PS: Leo is one handsome dude.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

We drove from Ontario to Georgia with my six cats. US federal regulations don't require anything more than that the cat appears to be in good health when presented at the border, but each State has its own requirements so you should google Texas, pet regulations and see what they require. Rabies seems to be the most standard requirement for most states.

For your cat's health, though, make sure he is up to date on all of his innoculations and obtain a copy of his vet records and vaccinations from your vet to give to your new vet.

Ours were not good travellers either and we took regular 'breaks' - every 4 or 5 hours we stopped and let the cats out of their crates so they could stretch, use the litter box, have something to eat or drink (yours may or may not do this). It helped. We also braced the carriers to the car seats with seat belts and covered the top with a blanket as they panicked when big transport trucks passed by and they saw the shadows approach - also it prevented shadows from bridges which also made them nervous. We found that a maximum of 10 hours of travel was pushing it for them - they really were getting stressed by that time.

We did not sedate either and I wouldn't recommend it. Be prepared for a lot of meowing which may resolve if you hold the cat in your lap every now and then. Make sure there are no doors or windows open when you have the cat loose in the vehicle.

You can also check on line for 'pet friendly hotels/motels'. I do know that Motel 6 allows one well-behaved pet in each room at no charge - you just need to declare the animal on registration. We paid a pet deposit at a Best Western (I think - it was a number of years ago now) and we got that back when they inspected the room the next day. I packed a little dust buster vaccuum cleaner and used a portable litter box that you can buy at larger pet supply stores, plus brought bottles of our own water and their food. Unfortunately, our room overlooked the patio and there was a rock and roll band playing when we arrived and for several hours. It was not anything the cats needed to add to their stress after being on the road! In retrospect, I would have asked to change rooms but we were all so tired that we didn't bother.

When you cross the border and activate your K-1 you will need to leave your cat in its carrier in your car while you go inside. If there is a problem with weather make sure you let them know there is an animal waiting in the car so your cat doesn't get too hot or too cold. The border officials themselves showed no interest in the cats but I had their health information available just in case.

My now husband also had two new litter boxes filled and waiting at the house so that when we arrived (he flew up and drove us down) I could confine them in the one room with the litter boxes while they acclimated to their new home.

Hope this helps! Good luck with your travels - we just got back from visiting Texas last night (inlaws live there).

Edited December 7, 2008 by Kathryn41

[Sprailenes 47]

We took our dog to go visit Canada when I went to pick up my son from my moms house from his summer visit and the border officer going into Canada actually us for documents. We were just like: "uhhh" but he said the next time we brought her up to have the proper documents showing her history of shots and stuff.

Yea I planned on bringing my rabid papillon into Canada and he almost crushed my mission!

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Yes, that is the funny thing - dogs are required by federal legislation to have rabies shots before crossing the border; cats, kittens and puppies aren't.

[trailmix 77]

I support Leo's bid for a visa

Ok I realize I have written a novelette here, but I typed it all out so i'm leaving it! In case you don't want to read it - here are the highlights

- Feliway pheromone spray is great for calming down your cat

- You may want to get an updated address tag made for your cat's collar

- We found a regular litter box and a small thing of litter and liners to be the easiest

- We got large-ish carrier for a bed in the car (take a towel to cover top half) - and a smaller one for transport in to hotel

- La Quinta and Hampton Inn are both good accomodation bets

- Cats do not need a vet's record or anything in particular, it is up to the border person whether or not to let your cat in, if they don't think it looks healthy they may call a vet to look at it.

Our cat Fluffy is kind of a skittish cat, not generally, but as an example if someone knocks on the front door she runs - that kind of skittish.

We travelled by car from Calgary to Florida over a period of - who knows - like 2 weeks (we stopped in Nebraska for a week)

Before we left we bought a collar and lead for her and I had a pet tag made for it with my Sister's address and phone number on it, we would put it on her anytime we were taking her out of the car - granted we slacked off a bit after a while. (Our cat does not normally wear a collar as she is an inside cat)

Anyway, by the time we got to Lethbridge (approx 2 hours from Calgary) - the cat and I were both crying - she did not settle down the entire way and was making these weird kind of gagging sounds - anyway, it wasn't a fun time.

So my Husband went over to Petsmart the next morning (we stopped for the night) and spoke with the person working at the vet's office and she recommended Feliway . It is a pheromone spray for cats that comforts them, it was $39 for a smallish spray container of it. You should be able to purchase it from the vet's area at petsmart or your regular vet.

Ok, this stuff was miraculous! She settled right down and after that, the entire trip, we would always spray it a couple of times in our room and spray her car bed once each day - she slept like a kitten (in the car, in the hotel room there was always much investigation going on for the first little while)

Oh and it doesn't drug them, just makes them feel comfortable. When you read about it, they market it as something you use to deter cats from using the litter box, where the litter box isn't - but it has this other use too.

As for transport, we bought a big carrier (because it was a big trip!) and put her regular bed in there and a small dish of dry food and water (which she pretty much didn't touch the whole way - she would eat at night and have a snack in the morning). Some way in to the trip we stopped at walmart and bought a small mesh type kitty carrier, so we didn't have to haul the big carrier up to the room every night. I would recommend a carrier that has two solid sides and two open sides - I don't know about all cats but ours did not want to watch the traffic rolling by - we used my jacket to cover it (cotton jacket) - you will be more prepared and can perhaps take a towel to block the top half of the opening. So we would just take that and take her little bed out of the other carrier.

For litter boxes, we found some disposable ones at Zellers and bought those, when we ran out of those we bought litter box liners and a small thing of litter for the litter box we had with us (this was actually easier than the disposable ones because you didn't have that big litter box to get rid of in the morning). One other thing, it's handy to put the litter box in the bathtub at the hotel, to avoid litter scatter when you don't have a broom to sweep it up!

We had no problem, in general, finding kitty cat friendly accomodation, by the second part of our trip we just started staying at La Quinta - reliably nice rooms and they like pets! We also stayed at Hampton Inn, again - nice and pet friendly. Also they don't charge a ripoff pet fee - some hotels will try to get you to pay extra as a non-refundable deposit - La Quinta doesn't have that. Anyway I would recommend calling ahead to wherever you think you will be spending the night, just to confirm those details.

Crossing the border was a non-issue, we told them we had a cat, we moved the fabric, they looked at her, that was it.

Edited December 7, 2008 by trailmix

[Kathryn41 3,205]

I will second Trailmix's recommendation of Feliway. It is much more expensive in "Canada than the US, unfortunately, but it is worth it. If I had known about its ability before we moved I would definitely have bought it from my vet. I use the feliway plug ins here at the house to help keep things mellow - and it does work. You can buy them on line (at Amazon, actually) much more cheaply than in the store.

That is another thing you could have ready at the new place along with the litter boxes - buy a feliway plug in (it works like a room freshener but absolutely odorless to anyone other than the cat!) and it will help her settle into her new home.

One of my cats - my 15 year old senior - developed a urinary tract infection due to stress from the drive down, stopped eating, and in spite of force feeding, she passed away from hepatic lipidosis 6 weeks after our arrival. I always wonder that if I had had feliway available she wouldn't have had such a stressful time or tragic reaction.

Edited December 7, 2008 by Kathryn41

[TayL 0]

Wow! So much information! Leo's shots are usually kept up to date (I got a bit lax while I was away at university... oops) and I was planning on bringing his vet records so that I could give them to the new vet. He's only had one vet his whole life (which is part of why I got lax while I was at school, I LOVE his vet), so this shouldn't be too hard.

I have never seen him look ill--ever, so this shouldn't be an issue (knock on wood. Now watch him get sick just before I move!). He's an indoor cat and he's curious and awesome. Right now he's got his head in a winter boot sniffing it because my sister's dog went outside so he figures he has free range. He usually travels loose in the car (I know, bad me. Bad.) because, in his crate, he gets quite upset. He'll usually sit on the back seat and just look out the window, then crawl down into the spot where feet go in the back and sleep. He travels in a harness. I'll DEFINITELY get tags for his harness. I hadn't even THOUGHT about that.

That Feliway spray sounds like a good plan, though. Maybe it'll help!

I'm glad to hear so many hotels are pet friendly. I was really worried about that.

I'm *hoping* that we can make it in two days--yes, it sounds awful, but my fiancé would prefer to lose as little time at work as possible, given the cost of the trip and the visa process and the fact that he'll already be losing basically a week's work. As a question, will I be able to help with the driving? Like, does my license run out once I move to the US or do I have a couple days?

Thanks for all the Leo-love. He really is gorgeous--at least in my opinion, but then, I think I'm a bit biased.

I'll definitely check out the Texas laws and the local by-laws. I know that some places need you to register your cats and other places don't.

We're planning on taking my fiancé's car. Basically, he's gonna pack a small bag and get in, drive to Ontario. Then we're going to load his car with as much of my stuff as possible (possibly a roof pack thing as well, if it'll work on the new car) and leave the rest with my parents to be donated to charity or kept for me in the case of a few special items. I figure that I won't need as much of my warm clothes in Texas, so taking my entire wardrobe (all warm clothes, very few summer items, since we live right on the great lakes and it's often quite chilly even in summer) with me doesn't make sense! It'll also help defeat my "pack rat" habits. Thing is? When I budget space?

Leo's gonna end up with more space than any of my other belongings! Cat, cat carrier, litter box, food, food dish, water, his toys... And I need a fair stock of cat food, because he's on Techni-Cal, which appears to only be available in Canada, so I have to figure out what a comparable food is in the US. Something tells me that my fiancé, who isn't horribly fond of cats, isn't gonna be a huge fan of this plan. Oh well. He gets to deal with it.

Also, Kathryn, I'm SOOO sorry to hear about your kitty. Leo's almost three, so he's still very young. Hopefully that will help him during the move (he'll be about four). I'll DEFINITELY track down Feliway when the time comes after your story. I'm sorry for your loss.

Edited December 7, 2008 by TayL

[trailmix 77]

Leo's gonna end up with more space than any of my other belongings! Cat, cat carrier, litter box, food, food dish, water, his toys... And I need a fair stock of cat food, because he's on Techni-Cal, which appears to only be available in Canada, so I have to figure out what a comparable food is in the US. Something tells me that my fiancé, who isn't horribly fond of cats, isn't gonna be a huge fan of this plan. Oh well. He gets to deal with it.

If his cat food is made with meat, you may not be able to bring any with you. When they ask you at the border if you have any meat or meat products - you have to declare it.

Although I knew this, when we crossed the border and they asked I said no. I truly was not trying to evade - I just completely forgot (really!) - so we did take a box of cat food with us.

Meats, Livestock, and Poultry link

The regulations governing meat and meat products are very strict. You may not import fresh, dried, or canned meats or meat products from most foreign countries into the United States. Also, you may not import food products that have been prepared with meat.

The regulations on importing meat and meat products change frequently because they are based on disease outbreaks in different areas of the world. APHIS, which regulates meats and meat products as well as fruits and vegetables, invites you to contact them for more information on importing meats. You may write to USDA-APHIS Veterinary Services National Center for Import/Export (NCIE), 4700 River Road, Unit 40, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; or call (301) 734-7830.

Edited December 7, 2008 by trailmix

[TayL 0]

Oh no! Cat food has meat and meat by-products in it--even the dry food, which is what he eats. But... How will I switch him to his "forever food" properly if I can't take his Techni-Cal? Oh dear... I'm going to have to find another food before we go, then. One that is comparable to the Techni-Cal and can be found everywhere in North America.

Any suggestions? I had him on Iams, but it stopped really agreeing with him and then there was the pet food scare, which kind of clinched taking him off that and putting him on something else. It makes his um... waste kinda gross smelling and runny compared to normal. I put him on the Techni-Cal after that. I had asked the vet to help me find a food that would be Canada and US, but she didn't know for sure which ones are in the US, so she said the Techni-Cal was the best for now and to just take some with me.

[trailmix 77]

Fluffy eats Fancy Feast wet food and Purina One for dry food, both are available in Canada and the U.S. - must be pretty similar in both places as it didn't phase her at all (guess they don't put HFCS in the cat food here )

Edited December 7, 2008 by trailmix

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Mine are on Proplan and NutroMax. We had the same problem with one of my cats on a special diet not available in the US. It took a while but she shifted to NutroMax when we ran out of her own food. (I didn't declare their food either because they never asked!) Try those or try to find Eukanuba or Royal Canin. They are pricier but good foods and available in the US at places like PetSmart or PetCo. My guys used to like Techni Cal in Canada as well. The ProPlan is really good though and they really like it.