Camp Cat: Keeping Your Fur Babies Safe at the Campground
Updated: May 24
Maintaining a strong bond with your cat is crucial for keeping them safe. Cats are capable of recognizing their owners and responding to their names. Training your cat to come using treats and positive attention is a great way to establish trust and strengthen your bond. I recommend keeping your cat in a harness when taking them outdoors. Walking your cat around your campsite when there are fewer people or animals around can help them become familiar with their surroundings and reduce the likelihood of them getting spooked. When Chuck did become scared, he instinctively return to his safe space, his home on wheels.
To enhance Chuck's outdoor experience, we bought a pet pen for him to use while not on his harness. He enjoyed sitting with us and watching the birds, squirrels, and other wildlife. However, after a camping experience in the Sierras, we learned to put the pen away when not in use. There was a large population of feral cats and kittens at the campground, it was fun to watch them running and playing in the pen until we found out one of the kittens had been taken to the vet by another camper and was found to have worms.
This made us realize the potential diseases other animals could bring to the pen and we started to close it up or put it away when not in use. We ended up leaving that pen behind and purchased a new one for our next trip.
I can't find the playpen we purchased but this one is similar and has good reviews.
Another item we purchased was a whistle GPS Pet Tracker & Activity Monitor. Although we never lost Chuck, it gave us peace of mind knowing he had it.
Don't forget to make sure your cat is protected from disease. While Chuck was an indoor cat the vet said most of his vaccinations were unnecessary. This changed once he started going outdoors, even if always supervised. We also checked him regularly for ticks and other parasites and treated him regularly with Advantage to help protect him.
Read other Posts:
Harness training– Teaching an Old Cat New Tricks
RVing with Whiskers - How To Get Your RV and Cat Ready
Hitting The Road: Training a Cat to Enjoy the Ride