Moving cross-country (with cat)

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Dear all,

In the next month or two I expect to be moving from Charleston SC, to San Diego CA. I have a tentative plan for this but am looking for any suggestions or comments! Sorry this is so long.

For my "stuff": I am not bringing any furniture with me and plan on shipping everything in boxes via busfrieghter. Its slow but they are not picky about packaging (I will just slap an address on my Rhino rams for instance) and fairly cheap. The alternative would be to use a trailer. My car is fully ready for a trailer (I have hitch and wiring plus a transmission cooler) but my car struggles with a trailer so am thinking to avoid this.

For my car: Not entirely sure yet, but probably drive. I approximate gas to be around $300. And two hotel stays will put me around $500. I trust the car, although my wife does not (I don't expect her to be with me). I was thinking to reinstate my AAA just in case. The alternative would be to ship the car. I have not requested a specific quote for this but think it would be around $1200. Shipping the car will mean I will be without it here which will add to logistical issues as well.

For the cat: I am waiting to hear back from the vet regarding what to do about the cat. She is my biggest concern by far. Option #1 is to fly with her (~$600 assuming I fly back). She would need to be sedated- she is very vocal when comfortable and happy and would probably drive the other passengers crazy. The alternative is to drive with her. She hates the car and I would be driving for days. If I do this I was thinking to get a larger crate and put her in the back seat. I was thinking for 3 ten hour drives and pet friendly hotels (probably La Quinta). As of now, I think the driving is more likely.

Just for fun I will add my wife's suggestion of selling my car here and buying a new one in CA. Ignoring the expense of this, this sounds like a logistical nightmare as I will be without a car here for an undetermined amount of time and will probably still have the cat with me. Plus buying a new one when I have not even started shopping.

For the driving route I am thinking I-20 to I-40. I have never driven this route or this far. Google maps says there is less construction on this route. I am looking for easy, trouble-free driving and do not care about scenery.
 
Selling the car might be the best long term solution. Have you considered the Ca emission rules? Your car might cost a small fortune to get it to comply. NC emission testing is easy these days. If I were making such a move, I would get a rental car until I could get something locally. Rental agencies might have a rate for such circumstances. Can't hurt to ask...
 
If your car is fully trailer ready why not get the HF 40x48 dealie for $160 or so? You can get some big rubbermaid totes and drill through them with some huge washers or whatever. You'd have a lower center of gravity than a thule rack and arguably better MPG.

My wife's HHR 4 cyl pulls my HF trailer like it's nothing.

You can sell it for about what you have into it when you get there.
 
I would keep the cat in a largest cage I could fit in the car. I would secure down all the cat stuff too (room for a covered litterbox, etc). That and don't leave it in the car hot. I would be looking for a harness for the cat as well.
 
I have driven cross country with a cat; fortunately, he's a superstar in the car. I don't even need to crate him. He just lounges in the back seat. I had a small litter box on the floor, but he never needed it in the car. We did 10 hour days, and it wasn't too hard finding a pet friendly hotel along the way. If your cat does not travel well, Dramamine may be necessary. The age of the cat is also important -- you may need to do shorter days if the cat is older than 8 or 9.
 
When I moved to CO from Noo Awlins in '97, my cat was 14. I left him behind with Miss Linda. I figured the stress on him of sitting in a carrier for three long days, and the stress on both of us of trying to get him back into the carrier in the mornings, precluded bringing him.

My plan was to have Linda send him up by plane after I got settled. Unfortunately he got sick (she says from missing me, which I doubt) and had to be treated and stabilized in NO before she could fly up with him. It all worked out, though.

Point is, it'll be a terrific stress on everybody; and you can't explain it to Princess Feline. If you can, leave her with your wife, who can either send her by plane, or fly with her to join you.

What kind is she, by the way?
 
Originally Posted By: Oldmoparguy1
Selling the car might be the best long term solution. Have you considered the Ca emission rules? Your car might cost a small fortune to get it to comply. NC emission testing is easy these days. If I were making such a move, I would get a rental car until I could get something locally. Rental agencies might have a rate for such circumstances. Can't hurt to ask...


Yeah, I don't know South Carolina emissions laws. If it's anything like the other side of the Savannah River, your car has not been scrutinized at all yet like they do in California. Even Fulton, DeKalb...etc... counties are lax compared to California.

California makes you jump through a lot of hoops to register a non-resident/non CA-emissions vehicle.

I guess I kinda' understand why....so California residents don't flock en-masse to Arizona, Nevada, and Oregon to buy used cars that don't meet the state's emission standards, but it shouldn't be so difficult for out of state/recent transplants.

Another thing to consider: if you are using an open trailer, you will be travelling through New Orleans and Houston if you take I-10. ( Atlanta and Dallas/FtWorth if you take I-20)
Traffic is a nightmare and someone might grab things. (not that they won't steal things in small cities too.)
 
Originally Posted By: thunderfog
I have driven cross country with a cat; fortunately, he's a superstar in the car. I don't even need to crate him. He just lounges in the back seat. I had a small litter box on the floor, but he never needed it in the car. We did 10 hour days, and it wasn't too hard finding a pet friendly hotel along the way. If your cat does not travel well, Dramamine may be necessary. The age of the cat is also important -- you may need to do shorter days if the cat is older than 8 or 9.

When I drove back to NO from Denver, I brought Linda's black cat, Marie-Antoinette, in her carrier in the front seat. I thought she'd yell all day long, but she settled down immediately and handled everything with grace. She was about 8 years old then, and healthy and adaptable.
 
Originally Posted By: Donald
How is your wife getting to Calif? I would consider the small HF trailer. Your sure to loose some stuff if you ship it all. The cat will probably barf.


Wife is already there.
 
Originally Posted By: Benzadmiral
When I moved to CO from Noo Awlins in '97, my cat was 14. I left him behind with Miss Linda. I figured the stress on him of sitting in a carrier for three long days, and the stress on both of us of trying to get him back into the carrier in the mornings, precluded bringing him.

My plan was to have Linda send him up by plane after I got settled. Unfortunately he got sick (she says from missing me, which I doubt) and had to be treated and stabilized in NO before she could fly up with him. It all worked out, though.

Point is, it'll be a terrific stress on everybody; and you can't explain it to Princess Feline. If you can, leave her with your wife, who can either send her by plane, or fly with her to join you.

What kind is she, by the way?


She is just a regular DSH tabby :)
 
I'd drive it. Plan for 8 hour days (or whatever you're comfortable with) that end up near your pet friendly hotel. Make reservations in advance for two reasons - both that there will be a room waiting for you and that it's in a small town away from the big cities (and theft) mentioned earlier.

On the other end, some research into "Californiatizing" it will indicate if you need to modify or sell/trade. You've typically got at least 30 days to register a vehicle in your new state so have that to work with.

Also, plan to stay to the West side of larger cities so as to avoid rush hour traffic in the morning. It's horrible to start out fresh in the morning and have stop-and-go traffic for your first 2 hours because your hotel is on the East side.

Kitty: I don't know much about cats, but I have friends that have moved with a cat and some said the cat adjusted, other say the cat was unhappy the whole way and that some sedation was required. So in your place I'd secure that from the vet before you leave - just in case.

Trailer: if you don't want to tow, consider the cost of the trailer/transport/extra gas vs buying the items you would be bringing along. When the Ms. and I moved from VA to MT, we got a 3 bedroom house down to a 6x12 trailer full, and bought new furniture and beds when we arrived, and saved around $500 over the cost of the huge moving van and fuel we would have needed.

Hope that helps...
 
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When we retired 3 years ago- we moved from San Diego, CA to Huntsville, AL. I drove a F150 with a Uhaul trailer with my tools and Gun Safe (the movers wouldn't insure them for stated value), and my wife followed me for 5 days in our Honda Civic- driving right behind me. It was very relaxing - we had cell phones if we needed to talk, and we both had our own radio stations. I had a Doberman and jack Russell riding with me, and she had the other jack Russell. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I got 11 mph pulling a trailer. She got 39 mph following behind me.
 
The question of registering a non-California car in CA came up here a while back. I seem to remember the hoops not being that difficult to jump through when someone posted some CA DMV information.

If that's the case, I would drive to avoid the stress of finding a new car on top of the move. But consider this comes from somebody who bought a 20-year-old Duster and put about 120,000 miles on it between the Atlantic and Lake Tahoe over the next seven years. AAA probably would be good for peace of mind.

I can't offer any ideas about the cat, but it looks like I-20 to I-10 in West Texas is a more direct route. There's not much pleasure in interstate driving anymore. Even the western stretch of I-40 was congested last time I drove it.
 
Good luck adjusting to California. I looked into changing jobs and going there back in 2006. I rapidly put the idea out of my mind after looking at real estate prices, taxes, price of gas, etc. I did my time in an overly congested metropolitan area from '85-'90 when I lived in the Northern New Jersey-NYC area. No more for me, thanks.
 
Originally Posted By: joaks
Originally Posted By: Donald
How is your wife getting to Calif? I would consider the small HF trailer. Your sure to loose some stuff if you ship it all. The cat will probably barf.


Wife is already there.

Okay, then, you'll either need to bring your cat; or arrange with someone you trust in NC to keep her for a few days, then put her on a plane to CA.
 
Originally Posted By: Kuato


Also, plan to stay to the West side of larger cities so as to avoid rush hour traffic in the morning. It's horrible to start out fresh in the morning and have stop-and-go traffic for your first 2 hours because your hotel is on the East side.

thumbsup2.gif

Won't work in Dallas if he takes I-20. Still have to go through Arlington (roughly the same population as Cleveland, OH) and Fort Worth (roughly the same population as Charlotte, NC) Keep going to Fort Worth or beyond.


Originally Posted By: A_Harman
Good luck adjusting to California. I looked into changing jobs and going there back in 2006. I rapidly put the idea out of my mind after looking at real estate prices, taxes, price of gas, etc. I did my time in an overly congested metropolitan area from '85-'90 when I lived in the Northern New Jersey-NYC area. No more for me, thanks.


I had a good friend that fell so in love with San Diego while he was in the Navy that he couldn't wait to get back.

Of course, while he was in the Navy, he could keep his Texas plates.

He told me all the stories that led to him degrading to a California emissions Sentra instead of jumping through all the California registration/emissions hoops. It was extensive.

It's ridiculously expensive. He was sharing a 1 bedroom with his girlfriend and another friend to afford the rent.
 
Has anyone ever used a pet transport service? This would seem to be a good choice (more comfortable).

I just got a quote for $600, which would be the same as taking her on an airplane without the need for medication or trying to get her through security.
 
Originally Posted By: joaks
Has anyone ever used a pet transport service? This would seem to be a good choice (more comfortable).

I just got a quote for $600, which would be the same as taking her on an airplane without the need for medication or trying to get her through security.



$600? Awfully pricey. Most airlines will let you have a pet in the cabin for an additional $50 (or at least it was $50 several years ago).

One thing I cannot suggest is putting your pet in as cargo. Although there are safety precautions and the ramp personnel do the best they can, it is still a very stressful time for the animal.
 
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