I have two cats. They are lovely, aged 13 and 14- one is still "young at heart", but the other acts pretty old. I am not sure I should bring them with me when I move- the move itself would be pretty stressful- also they have always been indoor cats living in a small apartment, and would move to a large-ish house with a garden/ yard, so that would be strange and maybe difficult for them too (they have never seen a dog!) , and they'd need all their shots (they have none right now). But I have had them for such a long time, and will miss everyone/ everything from Ireland when we move. I want to do what is best for them though. I have a friend here who would probably take them if I asked.

Those of you who have older pets, did you bring them over? If so, how did they adapt?

Oh, I fully feel for you! I moved here from Canada with 6 cats. Fortunately, we were able to drive although it was a two day trip. My eldest who was 15 at the time had a very stressful trip and developed a urinary tract infection. When we got here, she decided to stop eating. We took her to the vet, got her on medication, but no matter what we tried she wouldn't eat. I was taking her into the vet every day for IV fluids and eventually taking an IV kit home and giving her fluids at home. It was no use. She succumbed to hepatic lipidosis caused by not eating - caused by stress - and I had to put her to sleep 6 weeks after we arrived. She was always a very shy and reclusive cat on her own, hid whenever there was company, and was used to a small apartment. While she didn't seem to have a problem with the larger house, she restricted herself to just the bedroom and the living room. The other cats - the eldest of whom was 10 - made the transition without a problem, although there was definitely an adaptation time of a number of months.

Only you can decide if the trip would be doable for your cats or not. A lot would depend on their personalities and their health because flying especially is very stressful. You may wish to talk very honestly with your vet about this, and then decide how to proceed from there. You may also want to talk with Mags on these forums as well - she flew her two cats from England to the States. I am leaning towards not subjecting the cats to the stress, even though I know how much it would hurt you to leave them. If you can find a safe good home for them without that stress, it might be better for them. Good luck with your decision.

Have you checked with your vet to see what he/she has to say. Maybe they can give your cats a sedative to make the trip easier for them. As for adapting, I have two cats as well but the oldest is 7 years-old and it takes them about 2 days to a week to adjust to a new environment. After that, it's pretty easy.

Diana

i decided to leave my 16 year old cat with my parents, even though i had her since she was 8 weeks old i decided not to bring her! it broke my heart, but it would have been too stressful for her...... nevertheless, she didnt eat too much after i left and she started to get really lazy, stayed inside all the time and was sleeping. she passed away 6 weeks after i moved to the states

when i moved to England from the US, i took my 14 year old cat with me; she adapted very well and lived another 6 years quite happily----my alternative would have been taking her to a shelter that pretty much told me that they would euthanise her automatically because of her age, so i think taking her was the right choice...

moving back to the US from England, i've taken my 2 dogs, ages 6 and 13, and they're happy as clams in our new place

i would check with your vet regarding vaccines and health checks, but take them along if it's at all possible

anna

I'd say to be careful to separate an older cat for yourself. They tend not to adapt well. I had a cat that lived to 18; she handled 3 moves in her last 3 years, but she nearly died the one year I had to leave her with my parents before that (not eating, sulking, etc). Love and attention from their main companion goes a lot further than a familiar surrounding.

No, no, no. Never sedate a cat on a flight. Sedation and pressurized cabins can cause major problems. Most air carriers won't accept sedated cats anymore.

My advice is take them to the vets first of all and get them checked over. Tell the vet you are considering flying. He'll check their hearts and, if okay, they can fly. Dodgy tickers will mean no chance - the air carrier won't take them.

Secondly, are you flying over on your own? If not, I suggest considering taking your cats in the cabin with you. Most airlines will let you book them on at the same time as you book your tickets (has to be done in advance as only 2 cats are allowed per flight). It costs around $50 per animal - way cheaper than sending them in the cargo area. It does vary from air carrier to air carrier though.

However, they will only allow one animal on per person - so if you have someone flying with you (fiance, for example) you can take one each.

This way of taking a cat is much less stressful for them. You can be with them at all times, sooth them etc and they won't be stuck in a noisy cargo area.

Basically, I think it depends on what you think. Do you think your cats will cope well with the change? You know them better than anyone.

You can take cats in the cabin on transatlantic flights? I did not know that!
There will be 4 of us travelling (husband, myself and twins ages approx 1 year), so that might be an option.

Yup, they are classed as hand baggage. Work out which airline you are going to use and give them a ring to see if they accept them. I travelled with Delta and they do, as far as I can see on their website, still accept cats (or small animals) as hand luggage.

Jeraly here on VJ is also doing this, I think she is using Air France.

Also there is oftens useful information on the Airlines websites...I have a puppy who will have to fly from WA to Alaska - the website gives all kind of information about what they will do and what they expect from the customer such as proof of vaccinations etc .... good luck

Jeraly and her cat have just landed, so you can ask her how it went. Not sure how old her cat is though.

Mags - I have updated the cat wiki page with your sage advice above! Importing pets