Man's Best Friend in the Outdoors:

[Duzzy]

Hey Guys,

I'm thinking of trying something new, and I'm not sure how it will go over. You see, I live in a small apartment and I'd like to start taking one of my best buddies out with me when I go camping. However, I'm not sure how well my cat will like being in the great outdoors.

I currently have a small dog harness and a leash for her--but I think that carrying her papuse style might be the best way to start. There is too much noise for her in the city, but I think that once she gets used to being outside every once in a while she would enjoy it.

Has anyone ever taken their cat camping with them? If so, does anyone have any suggestions? Or even a system for carrying their cat/small dog when necessary? Any suggestions would be wonderful--anything else isn't necessary.

Thank you in advance.

 

[Bushman5]

You gotta start camping with them when they are kittens. That way they get used to being in a tent, on leash, around campfires etc.

lots of people i know with truck campers have their cats with them. You need to get them used to a vehicle, used to motion, bumps, jolts, etc. Keep their litter changed frequently (pine pellets are best), have water available always.

 

[x39]

My dog is my constant outdoors companion, the cat stays home. In my view, if you care about your cat, leave him home.

 

[NorCalMtn2]

Any suggestions would be wonderful--anything else isn't necessary.

I would be very cautious about taking your city cat to the woods, the cat could end up missing or in harms way. I used to have a cat and both times we moved the cat had what seemed to be a fairly traumatic adjustment period lasting several days. The first move was in the same general area but the second move was out to the country. The cat started venturing out at night(he was an outdoor cat by choice) and eventually didn't come back. I think it was a case of the hunter becoming the hunted.
You obviously have the best of intentions wanting to share the outdoors with your pet but I would suggest you leave her safely at home. If you are determined to do this consider keeping the cat in a carrier or on a tether at all times or risk loosing it.

 

[PJPOCKETS]

If you want your cat dead then go ahead and take it. It will split when you least expect it, and will be food for something else. Please get a brain cell and leave it at home!!!!!!!!! Mike.

 

[tonym]

Let me explain something to you knuckleheads. The OP wants to take his cat camping, he obviously likes his cat. So posting about how you hate cats, and being cruel to them has no bearing on the op's question. There is a forum in bladeforums where you can post about anything you want, no matter how stupid it is. It isn't this one.

When a member who has been here for over 10 years tells you your post is out of line, listen to him.

 

[JK Knives]

Let me explain something to you knuckleheads. The OP wants to take his cat camping, he obviously likes his cat. So posting about how you hate cats, and being cruel to them has no bearing on the op's question. There is a forum in bladeforums where you can post about anything you want, no matter how stupid it is. It isn't this one.

When a member who has been here for over 10 years tells you your post is out of line, listen to him.

:thumbup:

 

[Christian]

I am a cat lover, but I have to agree with those who are saying don't do it. Your cat will get freaked out and split, or get taken down by something like a coyote while exploring. Please rethink the decision to take it with you.

 

[Ultimate]

Let me explain something to you knuckleheads. The OP wants to take his cat camping, he obviously likes his cat. So posting about how you hate cats, and being cruel to them has no bearing on the op's question. There is a forum in bladeforums where you can post about anything you want, no matter how stupid it is. It isn't this one.

When a member who has been here for over 10 years tells you your post is out of line, listen to him.

OP, in that case, we all think that taking your cat camping with you is a great idea. Cats are very obedient and love the outdoors, especially being around a roaring campfire. You will have an excellent time with your beloved cat, you won't even need a leash......please.

Seriously, like a previous poster said: if you love your cat, leave it at home.

 

[DennisStrickland]

cats hate change & as suggested would need to be acclimated as a kitten. since they love to hunt,you would need to watch it constantly. we lost so many cats & dogs in austin city limits that the city hired a full time trapper attempting to bring the yote population down.--dennis

 

[tonym]

OP, in that case, we all think that taking your cat camping with you is a great idea. Cats are very obedient and love the outdoors, especially being around a roaring campfire. You will have an excellent time with your beloved cat, you won't even need a leash......please.

Seriously, like a previous poster said: if you love your cat, leave it at home.

grow up

 

[luckykitty]

I also love my cats, and I have the advantage of living in a place where the cats can go outside, and I have relatives and friends living near by, who can take care of the cats, when I'm not here. Both are from animal rescue and hate driving.

I've also met cats on camping grounds - but they were used to be taken everywhere by their owners from a very early age on. Cats do like some fixed orientations in their lives, and your usual cat takes the surroundings (apparently they have a sound map of their place), and if they get taken around a lot at a young age, they use the voice of the people that are most around them as orientation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cayDb5kXSAo&feature=related

 

[Duzzy]

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Thank you all for the information. Had I been in the position to do so I would have loved to have started my cat out young. However, since it wasn't possible at the time I thought it worth asking if anyone had found a successful way to take their cat camping.

Snip.

No, not funny. At all. :thumbdn:

Your post is out of line and doesn't answer the OP's question in the least. Take your nonsense elsewhere.

Thank you all as well.

I did not write this Thread with high hopes of success or expectation. However, I feel that if you never ask you never know--and for the most part this Sub-Section contains very helpful and knowledgeable folks. To those who chose to embody that spirit thank you sincerely.

 

[DOC-CANADA]

Let me explain something to you knuckleheads. The OP wants to take his cat camping, he obviously likes his cat. So posting about how you hate cats, and being cruel to them has no bearing on the op's question. There is a forum in bladeforums where you can post about anything you want, no matter how stupid it is. It isn't this one.

When a member who has been here for over 10 years tells you your post is out of line, listen to him.

Well said, t. I read this last night and felt the urge to respond, but I thought better of it and went to bed.

Glad I waited. You put it much nicer than I would have.

Doc

 

[Iboschi]

My girlfriend loves our cat and has actually begun walking him around the block with our dog, OFF LEASH. He'll follow her, and needs minimal encouragement to do so. Cats are very territorial though, and feel VERY out of sorts in a new environment. In fact, if you've ever moved and taken your cat, you know this. Cats would rather stay in the old house, and change people, than change houses themselves. Some of this can be altered though, if it is culled early and they are traveled with. I say try it, and let us know how it goes. Don't give up easy, like this person did.

[youtube]sDv6JHpszNc[/youtube]

 

[tonym]

Thank you all as well.

I did not write this Thread with high hopes of success or expectation. However, I feel that if you never ask you never know--and for the most part this Sub-Section contains very helpful and knowledgeable folks. To those who chose to embody that spirit thank you sincerely.

You're quite welcome. Most of us try to keep this forum civil. Hell I crack jokes and am a wise ass in alot of threads. However, I do it in the right place at the right time, and only to those I have built a friendship with.

Well said, t. I read this last night and felt the urge to respond, but I thought better of it and went to bed.

Glad I waited. You put it much nicer than I would have.

Doc

GP, I had to edit my post 3 times before I clicked the "submit post" button.

Unlike some, I tend to read my post before I submit them.... (I didn't always do that, but I learned from my past mistakes)

Take care,

GS

 

[foxx]

I had a cat that would follow me on the dog's walk. He would not go the whole way, and he knew his way home. I would not have ever taken him camping.
Once, I was hiking in The Daniel Boone National Forest, I was several miles in from a trail head, and was approached by a cat. It was very skinny and desperate, it saw a grasshopper jump and grabbed it from the air. That cat ate that grasshopper faster than I've ever seen a cat eat anything. He followed us for a while, but went his own way, still hungry and alone.
Point is, you don't want your cat to be that cat.

 

[sambo.]

don't take your cat camping in Australia.

cats in the wild are deemed Fair Game.

 

[raybadge]

I don't know about cats. I had hats when I was a kid and they seem to do their own thing. I used to have basset hounds when the kids were young. But I don't think I would take them on the trail. Those of you who do bring dogs on the trail with you, what breads do you bring?

 

[x39]

Those of you who do bring dogs on the trail with you, what breads do you bring?

I like Border Collies and mixes thereof. They're very smart, tolerate cold and heat well, are athletic, agile, and have prodigious energy.