Advise on taking my cat with me please

Most states if you have a pet or child in the truck they cannot stop you from idling. I have been to California many times and with the idle restriction on ben approched by sheriffs deputies and hyway patrol they see the cats they walk away.

 

When I first started driving once I got hometime I wanted to take my kitty snuggles,her name fits her.But then thought she grew up at home and never road in any vehicle except the day I brought her home so I got a dog instead.I still have spolied snuggles.Tiny my dog is just as spolied.

 

last fall I was delivering to Walmart in Loveland, CRE was ahead of me in line at the driver check-in, she reeked of cat urine/feces. It was so bad that drivers were gagging from the smell, no one would get within 10 ft of her. After she left they used an entire can of lysol to fumigate the hallway. After she dropped the trailer and checked in, she went for a shower, it didn't make a difference, I counted 3 cats and two women in the truck. Even walking by the truck it reeked, I suspect when she gets out of it, they will just burn the truck to save time.

 

yeah, I'm sure the heat from the exhaust would never exacerbate the problem of odor from the litter box

 

I took my cat OTR with me, and he LOVED it! This was in a T600, a CFI company truck. He would lay on the dashboard in the sunlight for hours, or on top of the closet behind my seat, where he could get sunlight through the window in the sleeper roof. The only thing that bothered him was the outside noise that happened when I opened the door, particularly when I was on a truckstop fuel island.

I put his litterbox on the floor behind the passenger seat. Under the bunk would be better, if your under-bunk area is open to the sleeper. Just keep a scoop and a supply of walmart bags (or large zip-lock bags), and scoop the litterbox once a day. You can throw the bag full of scoopings into any trash can.

Make sure you get a large (oversized) bowl for water. When you fill it, don't fill it all the way up, that way the water won't slosh out as you're rolling. A good idea is to get some vulcanizing rubber spray (home improvement warehouse or hardware section at Walmart), and spray the outside of the bowl with it - this will keep the bowl from sliding around, and will help keep the water from sloshing out.

Your cat will need something to his claws on - you don't want to pay for claw damage to the truck's interior. If he has a scratching post or something similar, bring it. Otherwise, you can train him to use pieces of cardboard that you can keep handy.

Taking your cat with you will make you and the cat much happier than you two being apart. Petting the cat will help relieve the stress that comes with life in the road.

 

That's what happens when you don't care.Women like these can't smell the trk.I worked with a guy that had a cat and I had to stand back to talk to him.The smell of his trk literally made my eyes water.If you have a cat and keep up with the litter box,the trk won't smell.

 

It's not the cat that smells. Cats are independent creatures and can clean themselves. It's the litterbox. You'll notice that smell long before the actual smell of the pet itself.

 

Does your cat go outside now at all. Get a good harness and leash, and not a collar, they can get out of a collar too easy if they get spooked by a noise. Take it for a short walk in yard to get it use to the harness, then hopefully if you get out of the truck you can keep it anchored to something just in case it decides to jump out and follow you.

Take kitty for short car rides to get it use to the motion and cars, people, etc. You may have to get the med from a vet to keep it's stomach from getting sick till it gets use to the road.

Get one of the scoopable litter with odor killing properties in it.

Have a carry/house crate in case you are at a terminal; I don't believe most terminals will let you take them in the building, they have to stay outside if you are in the shop, etc. (which to me is cruel in the heat or cold, esp if you have them in a crate), and you will have to keep it crated at dealers if in for repairs. There may also be some areas where you deliver or pickup from that won't let pets in. And some areas where you won't be able to idle such as Walmart. This would be when it is great to have an APU, or inverter and a small airconditioner of some sort to keep it cooled down a little if you have to.

Some companies charge $500.00 at least for a pet deposit, I think it is refundable, some will take it out on installments.

If your cat is attached to you the only thing you can do is try it out and just remember to be watchful and keep in anchored till you know for sure that it won't jump out on you; I don't know if I would rely on it will come back if spooked, you may be on a short time frame and not able to wait till it comes back. It will be nice for company and I think a lot easier to keep on a truck vs a dog which has to be walked all the time.

 

we found a cat that was maybe 4 months old when someone dropped off at a rest area.. took us 3 months to get him to the point i could hold him and get him to the truck (stopped by 2x a week for 1-2hr's).... got him home and to the vet checkup and shoots..... have had him in the truck for 6 months and he loves it...

he has his harness on all the time in the truck and when needed on the leash but really when we open the door he jumps up on the bad and goes to the back wall and lays down until we come back......

we went to walmart and they have a folding pet carrier (about the size of a briefcase when folded) water dish is metal 4" x 3" deep inside is straight up/down (less slooshing around that way) and keep it less than 1/2 full. food dish is smaller they like it when you feed them so give them a hand full when you get up and when you go to bed.... btw we use bottled water not tap water..... with a mat under both (less mess to clean up) litter box also from walmart it's a tote a little smaller than a little box BUT TALLER (again less mess) and has a snap on lid comes in handy when going to a motel..... scoopable cat litter and clean it 2X a day (when you get up and when you go do bed).. feeding and cleaning takes 10min a day

most important CAT TOYS and something the scratch on.... remember you can't play with him when your driving so he/she will need something to play with

 

I need to catch one of my neighbor's cats, stuff it then put it on the dash.

The dander and hair may clog the HVAC filter quickly assuming the cat is alive