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Up the Pitt View Drop Down
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Joined: 18 Jul 2015
Location: Pitt Meadows BC
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Posts: 22 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: R-Podding with a Cat!?
    Posted: 20 Aug 2015 at 10:00pm
Hi all,

We are trying a big experiment this weekend - a weekend in our RPod 179 with our 17 lb. cat, Ted.  We are motivated to give this a try, because we've been spending a bomb on cat-sitting during Podding weekends away. 

Anyone have experience Podding (or other kinds of RVing) with a cat?  Any tips or recommendations?  We have been working on leash training him (with a good quality cat vest/harness and a small dog leash), and we have a beagle-sized crate for him for the car ride, and for when we're busy doing stuff around the campsite.  He obviously won't be allowed "free range" outdoor time around the campsite, but we're hoping he can be outside with us, either on his leash or in his crate.  At night, he'll be in the Pod with us.

Wish us luck, and please send any tips or suggestions you might have!

Deborah, Len & Ted Star
Traveling with Len (the fella) and Ted (the cat)
2016 RP 179 - 2010 Nissan Frontier (6-cyl)
http://www.upthepitt.com
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Posts: 122 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Aug 2015 at 11:04pm
Originally posted by Up the Pitt

Hi all,

We are trying a big experiment this weekend - a weekend in our RPod 179 with our 17 lb. cat, Ted.  We are motivated to give this a try, because we've been spending a bomb on cat-sitting during Podding weekends away. 

Anyone have experience Podding (or other kinds of RVing) with a cat?  Any tips or recommendations?  We have been working on leash training him (with a good quality cat vest/harness and a small dog leash), and we have a beagle-sized crate for him for the car ride, and for when we're busy doing stuff around the campsite.  He obviously won't be allowed "free range" outdoor time around the campsite, but we're hoping he can be outside with us, either on his leash or in his crate.  At night, he'll be in the Pod with us.

Wish us luck, and please send any tips or suggestions you might have!

Deborah, Len & Ted Star


I would have changed the "Don't try this at Home" to "TRY this at home first."  Smile
The Brew Dog spent a night or two with us "driveway camping" before we actually took him with.
We also let him spend time aboard when we were packing (even if he was in the way a bit)
Bruce & Donna in the Sno Pod
(and Brewer too)
2011 RP 177
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techntrek View Drop Down
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Posts: 9059 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Aug 2015 at 8:21am
I think you'll be fine.  We have considered doing this from time to one with one of our cats, and have done test trials on a full harness outside.  She seemed ok - but she is also an indoor/outdoor cat so she's used to being outside.  If yours is strictly an indoor cat you might want to do more leash training. 

I would make sure the cat has a collar with a contact number just in case.
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Aug 2015 at 9:55am
Henry is a camping cat. He's pretty much camped the entire east coast from Mass. to Florida. I think his favorite campsite is Assateague National Seashore so he can watch the ponies. He is an indoor cat and seems very happy about it. We do make an effort to play with him as much as possible.

Although he is quite an escape artist at home, he seems content to sit at the dinette and look out the windows or door in the pod. I modified a locker for his bathroom and on the road his "box" is in the back of my 4Runner. He does get car sick once in a while, but gets over it quickly. His longest road trip has been from New Jersey to Florida.

fred
2014 RPod 178 => MyMods and Buying Habits
2008 4Runner Limited 4.0-liter V6
Yes, those are wild ponies dining on grass while dumping tanks!
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Posts: 22 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Aug 2015 at 10:34am
Thank you for not laughing us out of the campground, everyone Wink, and thanks especially to Fred for sharing stories of your much more ambitious trips with Henry (who looks very much like our Ted, btw). I should have mentioned that for our first weekend away, we've chosen a campground which is about 50 minutes away from our home - not quite our driveway, but the next best thing.  And we've told Ted that if he behaves, he gets "smores" (made from cat crunchies + wet food, wrapped in tinfoil and roasted on the campfire ... mmmmm ...). 

Seriously, we are really hoping to be able to make this work.  Ted is a very calm, well socialized cat. He has a history of being outdoors, and spends a lot of time sitting peacefully on a chair on our second floor patio (well supervised). I think there's a good chance he'll be able to adapt to camping, but we'll see.  I'll post again (with pictures) after the weekend!

Thanks again, everyone - all your input was much appreciated.

Deborah, Len & Ted 
Traveling with Len (the fella) and Ted (the cat)
2016 RP 179 - 2010 Nissan Frontier (6-cyl)
http://www.upthepitt.com
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Aug 2015 at 10:48am
Just to follow up...

I've been following these guys for quite a while. Besides being very talented documentarians (bloggers), they do offer some good advice about traveling with cats:


fred
2014 RPod 178 => MyMods and Buying Habits
2008 4Runner Limited 4.0-liter V6
Yes, those are wild ponies dining on grass while dumping tanks!
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Posts: 1214 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Aug 2015 at 1:35pm
  Here is another good website of a camper camping full time alone with two cats. www.simplelivingandsimpletravel.com  he goes hiking with his cats following him. I think they watch out for one another of any danger.
2018 Vista Cruiser 19BFD (2018-              
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Posts: 767 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Aug 2015 at 4:24pm
I used to take my cat camping all the time (before he, and my ex moved out).

Before leaving the house, I put Gizmo (the cat, not the ex) in a harness; I felt it was more secure than a simple collar.  Like techntrek suggests above, the harness had a tag on it with Gizmo's name and my cell phone number, just in case he got out.  I left the harness on him the entire trip.

Traveling long distances in the SUV was the biggest challenge on the trip.  Personally, I found it better to allow the cat to roam free as opposed to carrying him in a crate; when I had him in a crate, he'd tend to cry a fair bit, even if he could see me.  When allowed to roam about, he'd either quietly sit on my lap, on the passenger seat, or on the back seat with the dog.  There's no question that he'd need reassurance and affection a little more often while the SUV was in motion, but the cat never got annoying.  He was very interested in looking out the window for hours at a time.  He also found (and used) his covered litterbox in the back of SUV - a fortunate coincidence that I'd stored it back there the first time, and after that I made sure that it was there on all trips.  Unlike the dog, you can't tell a cat to 'do your business' before heading out on a trip...

Before you embark on a camping trip, you may find it best to take the cat along on short trips around town while you're running errands, just so that he's used to the sounds and motions of driving.

In the trailer, Gizmo's litterbox was stored under the dinette seat.  Somewhat similar to fwunder's setup above, I had cut a hole in the end of the seat to allow us to easily shove shoes out of the way.  It was also a great spot for the box.  For the first couple of trips, I used a small covered litterbox from Walmart, but it was far from ideal.  Eventually, I used a rubbermaid tub into which I cut an entrance/exit hole, which fit better under the dinette seat and was a little roomier (and the cat couldn't kick the litter out).

Gizmo is an indoor cat.  And, while he enjoys 30 minutes or so of being outside on a lead, that's about his limit before he's had enough and wants to return inside.  Fortunately, he really likes roaming around the r-pod, sleeping on the bed, and looking out the windows at passerbys.  He was quite content in the trailer and I was happy to bring him along on trips.
Craig :: 2009 RP171 towed by a 2017 F150
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Posts: 9059 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 23 Aug 2015 at 9:03pm
Originally posted by Outbound

Before leaving the house, I put Gizmo (the cat, not the ex) in a harness

LOL
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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