What would you do about this cat on future holidays?

[TheOneWiththeNicestSmile]

I have 3 adult cats (one of which hates the other 2 now, even though 1 is her sister, but that's a whole other issue).

I tried 2 quite local kennels/catteries for the original pair, but didn't like either & eventually found a lovely one, but unfortunately it's a 30-min slow winding drive away. One of the sisters & the 3rd cat are both fine (if pissed off) by the car journey but the other sister gets panicky & pants, poos & wees on the journey, which is nasty for her but manageable with cool air, newspaper, wipes, & a passenger to hold her when it gets too much.

I now have a 4th cat, a young Bengal cross, & last week took him to this cattery too (left the others at home with adult son). He's very confident & chilled normally so I was surprised when he also did the same panicking panting & pooing as the adult female, though he was calm & relaxed as soon as he was out of the car, & has been very happy there all week.

Picked him up today & it was awful - he didn't pant, we got him out of the carrier as soon as we set off, & had lots of newspaper on the floor, but he

1. pooed (on paper - stopped car, removed paper & poo)

2. weed (on paper - left it to soak in to save time)

3. threw up & had diarrhoea at the same time (on paper but missed a bit; stopped, cleaned up as much as poss)

4. had diarrhoea on DS2's lap (& all over himself)

All accompanied by much pathetic unhappy moaning

When we got home I cleaned him up & after a few minutes he was right as rain (phew)

But I can't keep putting him through this . Next holiday is in 7-8 months. DS2 may or may not still be here. I thought about sedation but that would only work on the way there.

Cat sitter do you think? How do you go about finding one?

Have you tried spraying the box and car with Feliway 15 minutes before any cat gets in? I would actually leave cats in the carrier firstly in case there is an accident the are contained and won't be injured or injure a person and secondly the mess is contained in the carrier ( line with incontinence mats and worst will be absorbed).

Cat sitter definitely. Google what's available in your area and then get people to come to the house to meet the cats so you can check them out (this seems standard, I have a friend who did it and is very happy with her sitters). You've got plenty of time to do that before you next go away.

Sounds like our cat, I have to drive slowly and he has got better with time.

The journey to pick him up was 90 minutes there, 4 hours back.

Cat sitters are always less stressful for cats than catteries, but I don't know how easy they are to find.

Thanks for all suggestions

Lonecat, I hadn't thought of feliway spray. I recently got plugins in an attempt to deal with Sis 1's antipathy to Sis 2 & non-sis, but they made no difference - are the sprays stronger & more effective?

Fluffy, I was wondering if some occasional random short car trips might familiarise him & make it all less stressful?

Tendonqueen & catneuterer, I'm def leaning towards sitters; there are several cat rehoming type pages on FB locally & I thought I might try asking there...

It does all take some of the joy out of holidays

We have always left our cats at home, and had someone come in to feed them. Although they miss us, they are actually fine being on their own in the house, as long as they have food/litter try cleaned.

You don't need someone to live in, just someone to come in and feed.

Very stressful. Our vets use towels sprayed with feliway to put over cat carriers.
Whereabouts in the country are you?

Well yes exactly. It's not cat sitters as such you need. It's really cat feeders. And other cat-owning neighbours are generally the first place to start as they may well like to start up some sort of reciprocal arrangement.

I'll definitely look for a sitter/feeder next time then (my cats are all quite keen on human company, so some daily interaction would be good). I think that would be easiest for all if I can find someone we all like - thanks for all suggestions

Wolfiefan, I'm in E Lancs - near Blackburn/Burnley

I've never taken my cats to a cattery - they loathe car travel and are home bodies. Ask your vet or local rescues for recommendations - my cat sitter does cat fostering too. She sends me photos of my cats, picks up post and waters plants. She's brilliant

Yes get someone in

Even without sitters you can get them to come in twice a day and spend some time there.

We always do that for my two as they are older and more relaxed at home

Definitely cat sitter, I asked the rescue I got my cat from if they could recommend anyone, might be worth trying your local rescue?

Our vet has lots of cards on its notice boards from people who cat sit/feed.

We found our cat sitter through a local fb page and she lives just round the corner. She does one visit a day and it works out a lot less expensive than a cattery.

I'm convinced - thank you all

I will ask at the vets, & also try local FB pages.

(There isn't a local rescue unfortunately but I will also try the nearest ones)

I found a lovely cat feeder/brusher on Gumtree. She's 17, quiet, lovely, lives just around the corner and wants to be a vet. Cat is now very happy when I go away and doesn't seem stressed when I return, whereas before when I was leaving her in a cattery she always seemed stressed when she got home.

Also I think Airbnb allow people with pets to let out their places? Not sure re. your agreements (i.e. are you renting, allowed to sublet temporarily etc.) but it's good because you can read previous reviews of people etc. I believe.

Re feeders, definitely ask your vet, the staff at mine all do feeding services on a rota.