Taking cat with us to in-laws over Xmas

[Hypercatalectic]

Is this a bad idea? We’re away for Xmas then again for Betwixmas. We’d leave the cat for Xmas Eve to Boxing Day and our neighbour will pop in to do food and have a play (where we’re going have dogs).
Then we’re away again for a few days until New Year and we thought we’d take the cat with us. It’s about a 3.5 hour drive each way. The house is quiet, she’s 2yo, a majority-indoor cat and we’d take her litter trays, igloo etc.

Would this be a mean thing to do, would it likely stress her out? Is it always the best thing to leave them in situ and get people to come to them?

Moving can be very stressful for cats. And this is what you’re doing, even if it is temporary. Even laid-back cats struggle with new environments and can react by doing things like weeing / marking in strange places to make it seem familiar.

I would also never bring a cat to someone else’s house. I wouldn’t even dream of asking. That’s sheer madness. If they are a cat lover, they would already have a cat.

Personally, I would cough up for care - it’s the pet tax you need to pay

Cats, dogs and other pets definitely not welcome in my house even for a short visit, never mind over Christmas.

^ this.
I've always left ours at home with a sitter / friend to pop in. Far too stressful for them with a new environment, & if they escaped they'd have no idea where home was (& GirlCat would absolutely pee on the carpet & hide under the bed for 3 days as she did when we moved house!).

If you go away in cold weather, remember to leave the heating on for the cat.

I put my cat in a cattery once. It had fabulous reviews. I came back to collect him a couple of hours early to find him in a run, facing lots of other distressed cats, his litter tray rarely covered with litter l, but full of poo. He was extremely distressed for a week afterwards and hoarse from miaowing.

You bet I took him with me to my sister's farm. He went outside, played with all the other cats, taught them how to get up on the roof of the house, from the barns🫣 and told the farm collies off if he felt like it. He loved it every time he went.

Our cats do a good line in yowling to the extent that even going round the block in the car is incredibly stressful.

I'd try that first but I'd also try and get a cat sitter who does home visits.

No, it would freak them out. We employ a cat feeding service to come in once or twice a day. She is there about 15 mins, feeds them, cleans their litter and has a quick pet if they’re around - I think it’s about £8 per visit from memory

Oooo. What is this air lock

Not opening an outer door unless cat is secured behind another door. I.e. if you have a porch, enter porch, you would close the door before opening the next door. So the cat can't run straight out.

Catteries are similar in that you are taking them away from their home environment (which they are most attached to). I've only used one when our house was unsafe (had new concrete floors poured & couldn't be 100% sure cats wouldn't escape from our bedroom!).

All cats are different though, yours sounds very confident!

I’ve only ever known really eccentric and lonely people do this, my grandparents and a stereotypical cat lady that I worked with did it. Cats don’t want this. They’re all about their own territory.

Your cat will hate the journey and cause them stress, just pay your neighbour well to feed each day

None of my cats would have tolerated this.

Had cats all my life and I have never heard of anyone taking the cat with them for a few days. My cats have always hated the car and go particularly crazy whenever we have moved house. So taking them to someone else’s house would be a firm no.

Also taking a cat litter tray into someone else’s house?!?! Can you really not see how disgusting this is?