Cat in the RV

[John From Detroit]

My CATS, when we pack up they tend to run such that as we move the bed slide in they can sneak into the area under it and hide.. Then they got trapped when we put the slide back out (Lots of room so not a problem except they could not get out)..

So.... I ended up putting in a cat portal so they can get in and out no matter the bed's position.

The area is small enough and they are well anchored enough (the floor is carpet and they have full claws) that I do not worry about them there  and they can get to food/water/sandbox (which is located where they can not go flying splat into the windshield it is also covered so they are caged when inside)  Everything is positioned so that if I have to stand on the brakes, they are safe.  So far it's worked.

 

[Julie and Rod]

We have two cats, one is a great traveler, he sleeps on the back of the RV chair, the other is in his pop up pet tent, he has a small cat box, his bed and a spill proof water bowl. Works great. 

 

[RVMommaTo6]

Cat vs gator;

https://youtu.be/je_9QhJFSR0

Hahahahaha, I watched that full of anxiety, not the ending I expected! That's my cats. We have a 100 pound dog who could swallow them whole, yet they completely rule the roost!

 

[SeilerBird]

Hahahahaha, I watched that full of anxiety, not the ending I expected! That's my cats. We have a 100 pound dog who could swallow them whole, yet they completely rule the roost!

I completely forgot about that video. One of the advantages of getting old is that we can wrap our own Christmas presents our memory is so bad.

 

[BIG JOE]

Our two cats have full access to the back seat of our crew cab tow vehicle. Also back there is the kitty litter pan, two kitty beds, a bowl of water, and some of their toys.

How well does it work? One cat (the rational one) splits her time between sleeping in one of the kitty beds or sleeping on DW's lap. We finally trained her that she can't sleep on my lap while I'm driving.

The other cat insists on sleeping in the kitty litter. It doesn't seem to be at all comfortable, but she has been riding that way for years. At home, or in camp, she uses the litter only for the intended purpose.

Joel

Ditto. Only one Cat now but same when we had two (three once). No cages.. they find their spots and Hunker Down.

Joe

 

[Fyrediver]

Story alert:  First time we took Oliver camping, we just let him wander around meowing in the tow Tahoe with us... he had his catbox, but no go... up until 5 miles down the road, he stepped off my lap, put both front feet on the floor, and peed a hideous warm golden arc up onto my shirt and lap.  Next offramp, I turned around for home, a shower, and new clothes.

My cat Smokey was not happy riding in the car.  On one particular trip he was sitting between the two front seats of the car sort of squatting on the armrest.  I found out later that, in fact, he was squatting and peeing in my coffee cup.  The lid was on and he filled it up.  Quite glad I didn't just take a swig! 
Poor Smokey passed away this past winter.  Miss him dearly.

 

[decaturbob]

We been traveling over 3 years with 2 cats in a Class C. While traveling we keep litter box in shower with the door held open. Once at destination we put litter box in cab between the front seats on too of a tarp spread over seats, dash and floor. With a privacy curtain up between cab and coach, cats have no issues and we have no issues with them when using the box. When traveling, one the cats usually on wife's lap, otherwise they are in back bedroom or up on loft bed.

 

[RVMommaTo6]

My cat likes to ride up on top of the slide so we never put the slide out without making sure we have her. 

 

[Wayne Smithlily]

Howdy, Wayne from Aus. Our three cats do their business in the scrub when we stop. One sleeps outside at night, the other heads out about 3am and comes back covered in burrs and mud. The old one only comes outside for the barbie at night. They are all trained to come in when they hear the bell.  Bus is npr 400 izusu winnie. Cheers

 

[SeilerBird]

Howdy, Wayne from Aus. Our three cats do their business in the scrub when we stop. One sleeps outside at night, the other heads out about 3am and comes back covered in burrs and mud. The old one only comes outside for the barbie at night. They are all trained to come in when they hear the bell.  Bus is npr 400 izusu winnie. Cheers

I hope you are not camping out west. Coyotes love having cats for dinner.

 

[Great Horned Owl]

Q - What's the difference between cats and dogs?

A - When a dog needs to pee, it scratches at the door to be let out. When a cat needs to pee, it scratches at the door to be let in.

Our two cats sit out in the camp site with us. From time to one or the other will go to the door, asking to be let in. A few minutes later, she would be crying to be let out again. I finally realized that they were going in to use the litter box. They don't seem to understand that when outside, they are walking around in an enormous litter box.

Joel

 

[Wayne Smithlily]

Gidday mate. We don't have coyotes in Aus. Got dingos, crocodiles,wallaby eating pythons,taipans and other not very nice snakes,funnel webs and that annoying little red back but so far the closest shave the cats have had is being taken by a wedge trailed eagle!!
The male loves playing hide and seek with cattle!
Cheers. W

 

[Tom55555]

I have a cat question.

I'm a dog person but was outvoted when my daughter wanted a cat meaning my wife said yes. Our dogs and cat got along great.

Our first new dog after my wife and I were married, my wife wanted to put a leash on our dog in our yard; I would have none of that. I told my wife you just have to teach them.

I / we could never teach our cat. It would leave our yard and not come back sometimes for days. Three times our cat came home limping and bleeding so bad we had to take him to the vet. It was a big cat at 18 pounds and lived 20 Years.

How do you keep your cat on your campsite and what would you do if they don't come back and you want to pull out or do you just make them stay in the RV?

Funny note: The only thing our cat was trained was to never enter the kitchen. Both dogs we had at the time would nudge the cat out of the kitchen. When my wife would cook, both dog(s) and cat would sit side by side at the border line of the kitchen. LOL 

 

[SeilerBird]

I have a cat question.

I'm a dog person but was outvoted when my daughter wanted a cat meaning my wife said yes. Our dogs and cat got along great.

Our first new dog after my wife and I were married, my wife wanted to put a leash on our dog in our yard; I would have none of that. I told my wife you just have to teach them.

I / we could never teach our cat. It would leave our yard and not come back sometimes for days. Three times our cat came home limping and bleeding so bad we had to take him to the vet. It was a big cat at 18 pounds and lived 20 Years.

How do you keep your cat on your campsite and what would you do if they don't come back and you want to pull out or do you just make them stay in the RV?

Funny note: The only thing our cat was trained was to never enter the kitchen. Both dogs we had at the time would nudge the cat out of the kitchen. When my wife would cook, both dog(s) and cat would sit side by side at the border line of the kitchen. LOL

Outdoor cats don't live as long as indoor cats so I have never let any of my cats outside.

 

[Rob&Deryl]

We plan to take our 2 cats with us.

We have concerns with one of them distracting the driver of the truck. She is very active. The other, not so much - she sleeps lots.

For traveling we modified a cage for a medium dog (22?w x 36?l x 24?h) with a second level (leisure deck). The 2nd level has 2 kitty beds and is carpeted. Bottom layer will have a rubber mat, a splash proof water bowl (thanks to someone here that linked it), and perhaps some dry food. The ?transporter? would sit in the rear of the crew cab mostly behind the passenger seat. There will be a hatch on the drivers side end to access a covered litter box.

At campsites, they will live in the trailer. I am building a bench seat (ottoman) to replace 2 of the chairs at the table. We call it the Cattoman. It will contain a litter box. The lid will hinge for cleaning.

We have been training the cats with leashes. They don?t like the leash but at least we will be able to take them out when we are lounging. Also, at the campsite, we plan to store the ?transporter? under the 5th wheel kingpin area. On nice days the cats could come out to there.

Anyway, that is the grand plan. I hope it works.

 

[Tom55555]

Outdoor cats don't live as long as indoor cats so I have never let any of my cats outside.

We treated our cat like our dog(s) and let him in and out as he wanted. That cat lived 20 years and could jump on top of a 6 foot fence from the ground.

I can take my dog to a soccer field and say "RUN" and she will run full speed to the end of the field and back.

We always get rescue dogs and my wife always lets me pick them out. I prefer mutts because they are normally more loyal, obedient and intelligent. I've lived with dogs since I was a baby short of college. I can read their eyes, ears and body posture.

 

[Great Horned Owl]

We have two cats, Spunky and Wispy (who is now 18 lbs). They understand lots English, but like most cats, either pretend to be deaf, or that they don't understand a word.

Initially, ours were totally indoor cats. Whether any of this will work with a cat that used to going out, is questionable

We started training them in our (very wooded) front yard. We established an imaginary perimeter.
We would take them out, with our supervision. When one would cross the perimeter, she would receive a loud, stern, correction. That usually worked, but when one of them would "become deaf," she would be picked up and put back in the house for a while.The next step was to teach them the meaning of "Go Home!" The entire process took about two days. Cats are very fast learners.

Transferring the lessons to a camp site was almost automatic. I thought that since "Go Home" meant go back to the house, but the cats immediately understood that it applied to the camper just as well. Wispy decided to make a game out of it. More often than not, when I tell her to "Go Home," she will dart under the 5er to the other side, sit down. and refuse to come back. I have to walk around to the other side, and as soon as I get there, she runs back underneath. I walk back around again, and find her sitting on the top step, looking smug.

Once, I was outside with just Wispy. I told her "Spunky, Go Home." She didn't move an inch, or even look up at me. I told her again, "Spunky, Go Home," and got the same result. Finally, I realized my mistake, and told her "Wispy, Go Home." She jumped right up and ran for the door, at top speed. Had I just told her "Go Home," she would have obeyed, and being the only cat there, she knew perfectly well that I wanted her to go in, but would ignore me until I stopped addressing the command to Wispy, and addressed it to her.

As further evidence of their level of understanding, If I just holler "Come" while they are in another room, they will become totally deaf. Telling either one of them to come won't work a bit better. However, "Come. Let's Go Out" will have them both standing at the front door. Similarly, "Come. Dinner" will see them magically appear in the kitchen.

The bottom line, is that cats respond to training quite well, so long as there they have an incentive to obey, or they know that there will be consequences (such as being put back in) for not obeying. However, lacking either incentive or consequences, they will either become totally deaf, or will pretend not to understand a word of English.

Joel

 

[Tom55555]

We have two cats, Spunky and Wispy (who is now 18 lbs). They understand lots English, but like most cats, either pretend to be deaf, or that they don't understand a word.

Initially, ours were totally indoor cats. Whether any of this will work with a cat that used to going out, is questionable

We started training them in our (very wooded) front yard. We established an imaginary perimeter.
We would take them out, with our supervision. When one would cross the perimeter, she would receive a loud, stern, correction. That usually worked, but when one of them would "become deaf," she would be picked up and put back in the house for a while.The next step was to teach them the meaning of "Go Home!" The entire process took about two days. Cats are very fast learners.

Transferring the lessons to a camp site was almost automatic. I thought that since "Go Home" meant go back to the house, but the cats immediately understood that it applied to the camper just as well. Wispy decided to make a game out of it. More often than not, when I tell her to "Go Home," she will dart under the 5er to the other side, sit down. and refuse to come back. I have to walk around to the other side, and as soon as I get there, she runs back underneath. I walk back around again, and find her sitting on the top step, looking smug.

Once, I was outside with just Wispy. I told her "Spunky, Go Home." She didn't move an inch, or even look up at me. I told her again, "Spunky, Go Home," and got the same result. Finally, I realized my mistake, and told her "Wispy, Go Home." She jumped right up and ran for the door, at top speed. Had I just told her "Go Home," she would have obeyed, and being the only cat there, she knew perfectly well that I wanted her to go in, but would ignore me until I stopped addressing the command to Wispy, and addressed it to her.

As further evidence of their level of understanding, If I just holler "Come" while they are in another room, they will become totally deaf. Telling either one of them to come won't work a bit better. However, "Come. Let's Go Out" will have them both standing at the front door. Similarly, "Come. Dinner" will see them magically appear in the kitchen.

The bottom line, is that cats respond to training quite well, so long as there they have an incentive to obey, or they know that there will be consequences (such as being put back in) for not obeying. However, lacking either incentive or consequences, they will either become totally deaf, or will pretend not to understand a word of English.

Joel

Sounds like you're good with cats; I didn't have much luck with mine in 20 years.

I'm good with dogs because they talk. There's the moan, grunt, hop, dance, licking your face and of course the traditional bark and growl. I teach my dogs not to bark but okay when momma (my wife) pulls into the driveway.

 

[shantafire]

I have one cat, Stevie, who was born blind. She was the runt and her eyes didn't develop properly. As a single working mom, I was seldom home it seemed. At 4 weeks old I separated her from her mom and siblings when I caught her sisters preventing her from eating. I was fortunate to have a job where I could take her to work with me. I kept her in a sports kennel under my desk with a litter box, food and water and room for her to move. It was the large one. I would take her outside during my breaks and that quickly led me to putting a leash on her.
She easily adapted to the leash, traveling, the kennel, a pet back pack, and a wide variety of situations. My husband and I got married in 2019 (Stevie was 6 yrs). We had bought a motorhome about 7 months before and I was still trying to convince him that 1) Stevie was coming with us on our honeymoon, 2) I was able to keep her litter box clean and the motorhome wouldn't end up smelling like a litter box and 3) Stevie was an excellent traveler. Today my husband wouldn't dream of not including Stevie on a road trip.
At 8 years old, I have taken Stevie has gone with me to my son's Soccer, Baseball, Football, and hockey games, has attended car and bike shows, gone camping in the mountains, been to the Sturgis Rally and attended the outdoor concerts and bars, been to Yellowstone Park, Devil's Tower, Crazy Horse Memorial and Mt Rushmore, and gone fishing with us on a boat. She loves being outdoors and will fall asleep in her backpack during a Rock concert. She loves our motorhome and will kick back on the bed when we head down the road.
I think that if you can start early in a cat's life it is easier for them to adapt to a leash, traveling, and strange environments.

 

[John From Detroit]

I started with 2 cats. Amber was trained to a leash and gave no problems.
Alex.. Well when out with Amber he'd tolerate the leash but on his own he would fight it. (Guess he wanted to look good for her)