We travel with a very sweet cat, Kaylee. She’s a petite
Maine Coon, very affectionate but also very nervous. She technically belongs to
our oldest child, Aryk, but as Aryk is still finishing grad school in England,
Kaylee travels with us.
And she doesn’t like it.
It’s not easy for us, either. But we wouldn’t have it any
other way.
Cats and Planes
Flying with a cat companion is a logistical challenge. Here
are the many steps:
·
You have to call the airline to
reserve the cat’s spot, hoping that she won’t exceed their quota of pets per
plane.
- You have to pay a fee; in the case
of Southwest, it’s $95 each way.
- You have to purchase a carrier
that fulfills their requirements.
- Then you have to tote her all over
the airport, make sure the skittish kitty doesn’t have a panic attack, and get
her through the security line without her bolting. (Hint: Make sure she’s on a
leash so she can’t run, but since she can still shred you in a panic, also ask
for a private screening. That’s where they take you and the cat into a small
room and then take her carrier away to be x-rayed.)
- During the flight, you have to
listen to her cry from inside her carrier between your feet (so comfortable).
If you’re lucky, the middle seat will be clear and you can put her there
instead. We have an expandable carrier, and it greatly reduces her anxiety to
be able to spread out.
- During transfers between planes,
you have to find a place for her to do her business in the portable litter box
you packed (with the litter that made security red-flag your backpack as a
security risk), and give her some food and water, all of which she will ignore.
In addition, to bring Kaylee to Puerto Rico, we had to get
an international health certificate, which entailed finding a specific kind of
vet and paying $240 for the paperwork, an extra exam, and extra shots. And then
the authorities in PR didn’t even ask to see any of it! We have done this
twice. I spoke to a dog owner here who did it for three dogs, at much greater
expense because of their large size, and no one asked to see their paperwork,
either. I know if we skip this step, though, the authorities will ask for it
and send her back to the States.
Alleviating Kaylee’s anxiety about flying is crucial, so we
got gabapentin, an anti-anxiety medicine, from the vet, which has helped Kaylee
endure the terrifying airport screenings and long periods stuck in the carrier.
Usually. It does wear out, though. You can tell because she starts thrashing
and meowing. A friend who operates a doggie daycare suggested I play a calming
playlist from Amazon music. This works miracles! I just place the phone on her
carrier to act as her private concert hall, and she is calmed instantly.
Managing Feline Anxiety While Living Like a Nomad
Cats like routine, and life is always changing when you
travel. We manage Kaylee’s stress as best we can, but there’s a limit to what
we can do. Sometimes local cats meow outside the windows at night, or come up
to the door during the day. Humans shove her into carriers with no warning, and
sometimes leave her there for hours while we travel in cars or planes. Food on
the road is inconsistent, depending on what’s available where we are loving at
the time. The environment changes monthly, when we move to a new condo. (This
is part of the reason we bought the house in Cabo Rojo.) Kaylee’s buddy Ellie, our
Russian Blue who lives at college with Gavin, may be in the house for months
(over summer break), and then, just when they have finally adjusted to each
other (again), will abruptly disappear with no explanation. Once, while living
in Mexico City, we put Kaylee in boarding while we took a short jaunt to
Acapulco. We had to return early due to COVID, but the vet was calling anyway,
saying our kitty was freaked out by another cat who wouldn’t stop yowling. We
arrived to find her hiding in the kitty playroom, her body tucked deeply into
the bottom tire in a stack.
Kaylee was recently diagnosed with alopecia, after she
licked all the hair off one of her furry legs. The vet said this could be
caused by fleas – and told us all cats in PR should be regularly treated for
fleas and heartworm – by food allergies, or by stress. We are treating her for
fleas, and we’ll test for food allergies this summer if her symptoms persist.
But in all likelihood, it’s anxiety. So, we make her life as easy as possible,
give her tons of attention, staying home some days just to provide a lap for her
to nap in, and keeping up her routines as much as we can (within limits).
Finding Vet Services for Pets
Finding vets to care for cats in a place where you don't
speak the language well is a constant challenge. Their front claws must be
trimmed regularly, they must be treated to prevent fleas and heartworm, and
sometimes they get sick. The upside is that it's usually less expensive
anywhere else than in the States.
Our cat Equinox took ill a week into our Mexico City stay in
early 2020. We found a vet within walking distance whose convenient office we
had noted while exploring the city, and rushed him there. Fortunately, one vet
spoke English, and he got the city's best kitty cardiologist involved when it
turned out our cat had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. In humans, this condition
is called "the widow maker" because often it's often undetected until
the patient, usually a man, has a sudden fatal heart attack. Alas, the same was
true for our dear Noxy. He was hospitalized but only lived through a weekend,
and had to be put to sleep in the middle of the night when he became agitated
and had trouble breathing.
But he got excellent care. We were called in, we brought
Kaylee to say goodbye to her friend, the children were called, and it was as
good a pt death experience as is possible, And the cost for that care and his
subsequent cremation was a fraction of the cost for the same in the States.
Stress and Health
However, the stress of traveling and then moving to a
mile-high city probably contributed to his demise, and this is why I am
vigilant about managing Kaylee's stress. I hope the move to Cabo Rojo in
winters will give her a more settled life. Alternating between two households
should be much easier than adjusting to a new home every month! And when she
finally moves in with her owner, our oldest child Aryk, we will probably stick
to healing aid organizations care for all the stray cats in Puerto Rico
Meanwhile, whenever I sit down to use the computer, read a
book, or watch TV, I lay Kaylee's favorite towel across my lap and call her
name. She is here in an instant, ready to cuddle while I work. In fact, she is
in my lap right now!
Because despite all the stress, the most important thing I
can do for my traveling cat is give her love.
