Cats have a reputation for hating change, which is roughly ninety percent true and entirely fair, so deciding to take mine on a week away rather than leaving her with a sitter felt like a truly questionable decision from the moment I made it. But the sitter fell through late, the option was either cancel the trip or bring the cat, and so, against most sensible advice, the cat came too.
The journey itself went better than expected, mostly because I'd spent the week before letting her get properly used to the carrier at home rather than only seeing it on vet days. A blanket that already smelled like her usual spot on the sofa went in with her, and that one small detail seemed to matter more than anything else I did to prepare.
Arriving somewhere new, she did exactly what I expected, disappeared under the nearest piece of furniture for roughly six hours and refused to acknowledge either of us existed. I'd read that this is completely normal and tried very hard to believe it while also slightly panicking that I'd made an enormous mistake bringing her at all.
By the second day, she'd emerged, cautiously, and started doing the thing cats do where they methodically investigate every single corner of a new space as though conducting a full survey. Watching her slowly map out an unfamiliar cottage room by room was oddly one of the more entertaining parts of the whole week, and by day three she'd claimed a windowsill as her own and settled properly into it.
The bit nobody warns you about is how much a change of location changes a cat's entire schedule. Her usual routine at home is fairly fixed, but somewhere new, with different light and different sounds, she was awake and prowling at times she never would be at home. A few disturbed nights were the trade off, though by the end of the week even that had mostly settled down.
Looking back, I think the actual mistake wasn't bringing her at all, it was underestimating how much a change of scene asks of a creature who thrives on things staying exactly the same. Next time, assuming there is a next time, I'd build in a proper settling day before attempting anything more ambitious than a short walk around the garden together.
I'd also pack considerably less than I did this time round. Half the items I brought never left the bag, and a lighter kit would have made the whole thing feel less like a full scale operation and more like the fairly simple trip it should have been.
Would I do it again. Honestly, probably, though I'd build in more settling time and fewer ambitious day trips away from the cottage than I attempted this time. She came home slightly more clingy than usual for about a week afterwards, which I've decided to take as evidence that she didn't actually hate the whole experience, even if her first six hours under the sofa suggested very much otherwise. Some cats travel brilliantly. Mine tolerated it, eventually warmed to it, and made it very clear on the drive home that she'd rather this remain a rare occurrence rather than a habit.
