I will be moving for a year about a 10.5 - 12 hour drive from home (depending on the number of pee/driving breaks) with both of our Bengals. I drive a VW Golf TDI and while it can haul the majority of what I need to take (bare essentials--clothes, a few sheets and towels, a few pots/pans, etc, but no furniture), I'm struggling to find room for both of our rigid carriers. One is fine, but the other is too small and won't fit anywhere reasonably with the other one, so I'm looking into soft-side carriers.
Amazon is full of horror stories about breaking shoulder straps (wouldn't be an issue, I'll hand carry them in and out of the vehicle one at a time), escaped pets, broken zippers, and much smaller than advertised. My boys are fairly large at 17 and 14 lbs and would NOT be able to spend one hour, much less 10 - 12, sharing space in a carrier, so I'm going to need two reasonably priced carriers. I have tie-down brackets in multiple places in the car, once the seats are laid down, so them sliding is not an issue (I've done it with the hard-side ones already). I'm wondering what others use in regards to soft-sided carriers that are roomy enough for longer travel for bigger cats. They're only going to make the trip once out and once back, then just trips to the vet, so I'm not worried about long-term or frequent use issues. I'd prefer top-loaders as Maxwell is a master escape artist when he puts himself in reverse... like a dang armadillo, balling up and rolling backwards.
I'm well versed in travelling with a cat, though my moggie was much more low-maintenance. But, I already have plans for stops, room for a litter box and food/water access during breaks, towels with our scent on them. And, I started working on car training this week. Both wear their walking jackets during travel even to the vet and they seem to work like Thundershirts... calming both and keeping them from jumping/climbing about when stressed. I'm leaving in about 6 weeks, so any thoughts would be really helpful in regards to the carriers!
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