Help: car sick kitty

Subject: car sick kitty
From: GUEST,Bouzouki Bob
Date: 15 Mar 01 - 10:11 PM

I know this is not a music question, but I know that a lot of you have cats. We travel to a cottage most weekends, our first cat did not mind the 90 min. ride, however our second cat "Shadow" throws up almost every time! Does anyone have any solutions to this messy problem? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks, BB

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: Pol Pot
Date: 15 Mar 01 - 10:24 PM

leave cat home or eat it very tasty

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 15 Mar 01 - 10:32 PM

It could be stress.. it could be motion sickness... call yer vet... Most vets can provide you with a light sedative for pets who need to be moved... It's basically just a small amount of Gravol to knock 'em out... No lasting effects, but keep yer camera handy... watching a drugged cat 'come down' is pretty funny!

;-)

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: Mike Byers
Date: 15 Mar 01 - 11:00 PM

Tranquilizers may help; it's worth a try, so contact your vet. But not all cats respond the same. I've got a cat who is a "bad traveler" and tranquilizers just make him more unhappy; guess he's a "mean drunk." My wife's little sister used to get car sick, so her family always carried a bucket when they were driving. Granted, this may not be too useful with a cat...

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: katlaughing
Date: 15 Mar 01 - 11:01 PM

Try witholding food for a few hours before the ride, then offer just small amts, at first when you reach the cottage. I used to have a homepathic rememdy which calmed them just enough to reduce stress, but I cannot remember the name of it. YOur vet should be able to help, but I don't know if they'd recommend dosing every w/end.

Also, read Aine's recent thread, in the past week or two, "Moving my pussies" it should give some idea of keeping them comfortable in their carriers, etc.

Good luck,

kat

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 01:22 AM

Oh dogs they love to travel
With their faces to the breeze
But cats sit trembling on your lap
And vomit on your knees

It's by Garrison Keillor, I believe. At least I once heard him do it on A Prairie Home Companion, back in the early 80s. The tune is "The E-ri-e Canal." I have the other verses buried somewhere; the chorus goes:

Oh the Siamese was crying
And the tabby was a wreck
And the old tomcat was on my back
With his arms around my neck

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: GUEST,BEK
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 01:28 AM

First time I took our dog, Drew, to the vet he 'buicked' all over me. Needless to say, I was pretty embarrassed and unhappy.

Dr. Posey (bar none the best vet I've ever met) said, don't feed him, don't let him in the front seat, and don't give water before car rides.

Eventually before he died, Drew got to the point where he went almost everywhere with us. We very seldom left him in the car unless it was just for a short run into someplace (like the ice cream parlor) where we could watch him. He was a pretty smart dog and he ended up always moving to the front seat of the car and sitting in the drivers seat with his paws on the wheel at the 10 and 2 position. Sometimes, he'd even honk the horn.

Hopefully the advice or the laughter will help!

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: GUEST
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 01:28 AM

Also check with your vet about a tranquilizer called Acepromazine. And good luck.

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: campfire
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 01:47 AM

There is also a drug people take for seasickness (and probably other motion sickness as well). The vet I used to work for used it for carsick dogs and cats. The name escapes me at the moment (except the brand we had started with a B - not much help, I know) But you need the vet to calculate the dosage, its NOT the same as for (even little) people.

It worked well without causing the grogginess and disorientation that many tranquilizers cause.

campfire

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: SINSULL
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 01:59 PM

I'm with kat on this one. Leave early in the morning. Feed the kitty at 6PM the night before and nothing afterwards. Have food and water ready when you arrive. I am assuming you have a cat carrier. Does the cat like being at the cottage? Mine hate to leave home. It might be easier for all involved to leave her at home with lots of dry food and water. For just a weekend she'll be OK and maybe happier.

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: JenEllen
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 04:05 PM

Acepromazine? Highly unlikely. Try Benadryl. Your vet can give you a correct doseage based on your cat's weight. It is not the same as dosing for people, so ASK first.

The anti-histamines contol motion sickness because they decrease the impulses sent from the vestibular apparatus(in the ear) to the emetic center in the brain during continuous motion. This won't work if your cat is vomiting from something like a gastroenteritis, where they are receiving a different kind of stimulation to upchuck. The benadryl has a bit of a sedative effect, but nothing like the effects that Ace can have.

Check with your vet.

~Jen

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 05:36 PM

I've found that ginger is a more effective anti-emetic (for people, including my little patients) than most of the OTC or prescription motion sickness or nausea medications. There's science to back it up, too. It's one area where the herbalists have it all over us "modern" docs. It grows everywhere here in Hawaii, so fresh ginger root is easy to come by; but for everybody else, you can get crystallized ginger at most food stores or health food stores, or try "real" ginger ale. You might check with your vet to see if some form is available for cats.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: Little Hawk
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 07:30 PM

Most cats hate being in a moving automobile. Your first line of defense is a cat carrier, to contain the situation a bit, then I guess try the sedatives people have recommended above and hope for the best.

- LH

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: GUEST,Jill
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 07:39 PM

Our cat is the same. We used to drive 2 hours every other weekend to visit my father. I found that she was much happier being held on my lap (or in a shallow cardboard box which I placed on my lap) than in the cat carrier (YMMV). I used an aluminum pie pan to catch the inevitable barf, and sopped it up with a paper towel and put it in a plastic bag to be disposed of upon arrival. I got so I could tell by her gurgly meow that she was about to explode, and could grab the pan and put it under her chin with about 10 seconds notice. She seldom repeated the performance -- until the next trip. She never came to like the trip, but we were happier.

Subject: RE: Help: car sick kitty
From: GUEST,Bouzouki Bob
Date: 16 Mar 01 - 08:14 PM

Thanks to all who offered good advice. We do have a cat carrier, so the mess is contained, but we feel bad for her because it gets on her fur. For a 2 day weekend we do leave her at home, with a kind neighbour to let her in and out. But for longer stays we take her, because she really enjoys prowling around in the forest. Shadow and I thank you all. BB