Living with Cats in an Airstream?

[jacarape]

Also please be careful, dogs will be dogs, cats will be cats and rats will be mice. I hope your cats keep your life free of pests (if not dump um), but don't let them become your neighbors menu.

[rideair]

One very large dog could keep all the cats in line while you are away from the trailer. I can see it now, 4 cats sitting on the sofa while the dogs on the floor looking up at them daring a single one of them to move!

[AZArgosy]

My '73 26' Argosy came with a sweet cat set-up and when I can call myself a full-timer, I'm hoping to get a buddy who can enjoy the feline comforts of the trailer.

Previous owners used part of the space under the rear right twin bed as a kind of cat cubby. This space has access to the outside, so previous owners made an outdoor enclosure that the cat(s?) could go in/out when camped. I don't have the enclosure, but I am confident that I can make something that will work - as I thought it seemed like a cool idea!

I'm glad to hear cats do so well on the road. I too was concerned about temps, so I'm pleased to hear it usually isn't a problem.

[Silverfoxrae]

I know this was a discussion started several months ago, but I thought I'd chime in! I haven't had the experience with the trailer yet, I'm in the process of buying, but I have been very familiar with animals aboard boats. I have two dogs and four cats. I don't usually boat with both dogs and cats simply because six is a lot, but in the car/will be the TV , I do travel often with all six up and down the east coast. Three cats are boys and they ride together in a large wire crate with hammocks wire-tied to the upper half and a bed andcovered litterbox below. Girl cat needs a little more personal space so she rides in a small wire crate on the third row seat. Dogs ride on the two second row seats or in the middle floor space. In the boat, the cats find spaces to hide in and occasionally come out to see us while underway. They come out when we stop. Litterbox is covered and cleaned at least 2x day. I have mats to help collect litter. Also a small broom and pan to sweep. Save all grocery bags for clumps. Although I like green products- I use a clumping pine litter, the fresh step scoop is probably the best for odor and less dust. You can also get those anti-odor eaters that come in little jar/cans. Oust spray works fast, and buy enzyme eating cleaners for any accidents. (natures miracle is one) Most pet stores and even the grocery store will have most items. Simple cat enclosures can be made from folding wire crates- take the pan out of the bottom and there's the ground/grass to chew. I'm leery of leashes unless you're there watching/protecting. If you're staying in one place for a while you probably can get one of those screen tents to erect outside of the trailer to provide a sheltered outdoor space!
Good luck and enjoy!

[garry]

We rescued a cat once and we really don't care for cats and never had owned one.
This cat turned out to be a Turkish Angora that was more dead than alive was all matted up and looked dirty brown when we found her. She was so matted she had to be shaved. Once cleaned up and $$$$ at the vet she was a most beautiful blue eyed white cat about 3 or 4 years old. It took a few months to get her health back but she did fully recover. No way to find for her owner as we were leaving in 3 days on a 500 mile extended stay trip. We figured she had somehow gotten out and lost.
She could have been on the street for a month or more. No notice in the paper of a lost cat.

We enjoyed the darn thing more that we should have. She hated to travel caged in the truck. She turned out to be an inside cat and never wanted to go outside in fact she never did go out.

As long as we were moving she was crying and she could cry as long as the wheels were rolling 6 to 8 hours probably longer and once we settled down and set up she would always disappear for a day or two and then just show up. Talk about hide, we never did find all her hide holes in fact we just stopped looking knowing she had not escaped and would turn up plus after the 1st night you could hear her wandering around or walking on top of you in the middle of the night after that she would be her old self.

I guess you can tell by now that she won our hearts and was great as long as you were not traveling. We eventually gave her to a good home (a friend of ours) since we traveled so much.

Oh yeah it seems to be important they (cats) get to look out windows to keep them content really good if they can lay down and look out.

My take is if they don't mind traveling and get along they can be interesting to have around. As far as placing the sandbox and food its not a big deal you soon find what works best and go with it.

I agree be sure to have their medical records with you we saw several different vets the first 3 or 4 months and had a good paper trail of her treatments.

[slowmover]

We became full-timers for seven months in 2007 as a couple with one elderly cat. With a 34' trailer there were plenty of options for l-box placement, and, had we kept the trailer, I would have modified the storage compartment beneath one twin bed for cat access/l-box/exterior ventilation. This would have required a fair amount of carpentry from original, so the project was shelved until a decision was made about keeping that particular trailer. It was sold.

As to traveling, because she was such a poor traveler some of the miles were with her in the trailer. But high heat and long days changed that.

I would say that high ambient exterior temperatures are the biggest problem of traveling with a cat, especially if you wish to leave the campsite for the majority of the day, sans cat. One must be confident of the A/C unit, the campground electrical system, etc.

The dependency on TT HVAC is paramount for safety. Exterior energy feeds can be critical.

[AIR-Quarius]

Well I am glad you are taking care of your cats and hope everything works out well....!

[Pahaska]

Originally Posted by jolttx

I have 4 cats. One does not really get along with everyone else-- this leads me to think that I would be insane to try to take them along in a trailer but...

Could anyone share how they deal with their cats?
Thank you!

We just returned from 3400 miles on the road over 4 1/2 weeks with our 3 cats. Oddly, while they tend to scrap at home, they get along fine in the trailer (28').

We carry two cats in carriers strapped in the back seat while our most seasoned traveler rides on the console between us. They sleep mostly when underway, so two could probably do OK in a carrier if they are not real big cats. We stop every couple of hours and give them a litter box break although they generally can go a whole morning or afternoon without using it.

We use one litter box with high-quality clumping litter and scoop it 3 times a day. They eat mostly dry food and share a small can of wet food morning and evening.

Except for an occasional odor (a can of fufu spray is always handy), they are no trouble. They sleep with us same as at home. I also keep a scratching block in the trailer that is well used.

If the temperature is no higher than 95, we can leave them in the trailer for meal stops with the two Fantastic fans on high, one blowing in and one pulling out. Over that temperature, one of us stays in the truck with them or else I use the remote start to keep the diesel idling. It will idle for 10 minutes at a time which is enough to run in and carry out a meal.

[Skater]

This thread is really interesting for me, since we're planning to trade the B-van for a trailer in a year or two. I have a question, which has in part been answered, but I'd still like to hear opinions... In the B-van, we leave our cat (Snowball) loose all the time and we have a generator that runs the rooftop A/C when it's warm. When we're on the road, he curls up in the bunk. But how would we deal with the heat in the trailer?

We were thinking, for the trailer setup, we'd get him a large cage, such as one a large dog would use, and put a small litter box and food and water in there along with a bed. We think that'd be great for him. We'd probably keep him in the truck with us. But what about stops? How do you keep him cool during those times? (Getting a diesel and leaving it idle with the A/C on seems like a good idea.)

I guess the other option is putting the cage in the camper while traveling, then opening it up enough that it doesn't get too hot in there...

How do others handle this?

[Pahaska]

We had two cats that rode in the trailer. They seemed to prefer that. Each cat found a secure place on their own to ride. In warm weather, we kept both vents open, the front fan blowing in, and the rear fan blowing out. Both fans at high speed. That worked up to about 95 degrees. You can run with the vent covers wide open according to the Fantastic Fan folks and we pulled many miles with ours open with no problems.

Above that temperature, we put the cats in the truck with us. We have a diesel. I will lock the cats in the truck and hit the remote start which gives us 10 minutes of idle time with the AC on to run into a fast food place and grab something.

[DebH]

Originally Posted by jolttx

Hi Everyone-- Thanks for the ideas. I took myself out of town for my birthday--no trailer though- but I'm back now, taking my time trying to figure out what my life holds.

Sorry about your sweet cat SL-- I have had that experience and it is very painful but we can only do our best for our buddies. I have a CRF cat right now that I do daily fluid sessions with but she's doing pretty well so far. The pic you posted of your black and whites is so funny b/c I have two sister black and whites that I raised by hand (long sad story-- but the two survivors are blessings) and they look so much like your cats!

As I lay in bed last night after being gone for a few days, I realized that it is true-- cats don't like change but they will adjust, especially if it means that they get to be with you.

It sounds like most people so far crate them in the TV--did the chorus of kitty yowls die down after a while? Is there anyone who doesn't crate them in the TV?

I was also wondering if anyone had built some perches or a cat track along the top of the airstream?

Thanks!
Jenni

I used to put Mitzi in a carrier. Now, she prefers my lap or the back seat. She's 14 and has been on the road with me for 8 years. She loves the outdoors and learned to be happy wearing a harness and leash. I would not want the amount of hair from multiple cats but that is just my feeling!
Mitzi was declawed as a kitten and has her own popup mesh cat tent.