Dog or Cat?

[44'cruisingcat]

Originally Posted by tp12

You do have to develop an evening routine of catching fish or squid for them though. Or maybe that's just the spoiled Captain Jack!

Here he is, loving Sunday nights catch. How was Monday's lunch?Attachment 188776

It might be better to avoid this routine. Kitty can become demanding.

[tp12]

Originally Posted by 44'cruisingcat

It might be better to avoid this routine. Kitty can become demanding.

I think I would too if I got used to being fed fish and squid every night. Life's good!

[Tornadosailing]

We're going to untie the lines in about a year, and would love to take our dog with us. But the reality of what that means for both her and us makes it impractical. She's a high energy pit bull, and needs plenty of exercise that she won't be able to get on the boat. The hassle of having to take her to shore at least daily, and the attending paperwork in various countries makes it impractical for us. A 20 day ocean passage would be out of the question for her. If we want to take a multi-day excursion inland, we'll have to take the dog with us, which adds another layer of logistics to it.

In the end we will re-home our girl. It will be a sad day indeed but it will be better for her and us. So if you have to bring along a pet, get a cat.

Pepper on committee boat duty.

[Boatsie]

Trying to be tactful. I did read dog or cat.

Years ago I met a lovely couple. Cruisers. Sometimes I'd tender they to shore.
They had a ferret. Nimble, quick, was said to be a pleasure aboard to keep.

My land friends had a ferret. They smell funny is my opinion.

If helpful, my pleasure.

[LoudMusic]

I desperately miss all my animals, cats and dogs, that have died, but it gave us the opportunity to move onto a boat without the complications of pets.

If we were to bring an animal on board now it would be a cat. I would train it to use a toilet because I hate litter. Cats are more amenable to boat life and can actually help with any pests that might make their way on board. Dogs need shore leave regularly which can become problematic.

[SailFastTri]

Originally Posted by LoudMusic

I desperately miss all my animals, cats and dogs, that have died, but it gave us the opportunity to move onto a boat without the complications of pets.

If we were to bring an animal on board now it would be a cat. I would train it to use a toilet because I hate litter. Cats are more amenable to boat life and can actually help with any pests that might make their way on board. Dogs need shore leave regularly which can become problematic.

Bingo. I too miss my past pets and although they were happiest with us, they were happier ashore than on the boat.
Some dogs and cats can be destructive (under some circumstances) if left alone aboard, and that could limit you from shoreside excursions also. Each dog or cat has a different personality and behavior.

[MartinR]

A cat of course. Will take care of the rats

Also easy to keep compared to a dog. Best to train the cat as a kitten to walk on a leash, be on the boat and so on. Cats are easy to train.

[YachtCharter]

I would recommend cats, as someone working in yacht charter business(Hence my not-so-creative username), boat owners are more likely to reject potential customers with dogs. I can tell you they do this out of past experiences.



Hell, cats on boats are even a tradition: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship%27s_cat

[LF4]

I would like to chime in here with a question(s) and comment(s), comment(s) first.

We have an elderly dog who is on his last legs. We are not sure how long we are going to be enjoying his company...we home he can make it through the summer. That being said, we are thinking about buying a cat when our sweet Alaskan Malamute crosses the rainbow bridge.

Cat Questions:

1. What kind of paperwork is required when traveling from country to country and are there certain breeds prohibited from entering any popular destinations?
2. What cat breeds fair well on boats (looking for hypoallergenic and we do have a list of 10 breeds we are interested in. I want to see if the venn diagram of the forum and our list have overlap)
3. Is it cruel to adopt an animal and give it a home for 5-6 years and then re-home it when you go cruising? I tend to think its better to provide that home for the time you can than see an animal euthanized.

Thanks,

M & L

[MartinR]

Paperwork differs between countries, probably the same as for dogs. I once sent a kitten to New Zealand, was a procedure, but worked. Very tough country on importing animals. Most countries vaccination and cat passport will suffice.

Never heard of prohibited breeds, but some rather agile breeds like Bengals better be avoided on a boat.

As for breeds, Siberians are my favourite, I have 3 and was breeding them. They adopt easily to about everything. Also, if you have to give them a new home, that is no problem. As said before, they adapt easily. Hypoallergenic also, but that is a little different from cat to cat. Depends basically on the genetics. Some lines are better than others.

[zeehag]

Originally Posted by LF4

I would like to chime in here with a question(s) and comment(s), comment(s) first.

We have an elderly dog who is on his last legs. We are not sure how long we are going to be enjoying his company...we home he can make it through the summer. That being said, we are thinking about buying a cat when our sweet Alaskan Malamute crosses the rainbow bridge.

Cat Questions:

1. What kind of paperwork is required when traveling from country to country and are there certain breeds prohibited from entering any popular destinations?
2. What cat breeds fair well on boats (looking for hypoallergenic and we do have a list of 10 breeds we are interested in. I want to see if the venn diagram of the forum and our list have overlap)
3. Is it cruel to adopt an animal and give it a home for 5-6 years and then re-home it when you go cruising? I tend to think its better to provide that home for the time you can than see an animal euthanized.

Thanks,

M & L

cats are social animals and love their family. yes itis cruel to kill it for selfish reasons. itis also cruel to abandon it to others while selfishly sailing. bubba hated me leaving to sail caribbean. he performed shredding routine when i returned. i now take him everywhere(except shopping) and he loves being with me even if he is scared. my presence calms him. he is a maine coon mix. i had him as a single pet for 12 yrs before i fell for a mexicat in mazatlan. this little pita is a heavily siamese gened lil screwball.
there a re many breeds and rescued multigened cats residing on boats and cruising this planet. see facebook group named gatos del mar for specifics.
i had to get a rabies titre and vaccine and keep papers for bubba for travelling. noonsite has specifics for each nation to be visited. follow their advice as it works. when in doubt contact the country you intend to visit. i tried to contact some caribbean island nations 6 yrs ago and am still awaiting response. i think they didnot pay attention.
mexico is easy. rabies check, internal and external parasite check and treatment and cool to go .
pix--big one is bubba daboatkat, small black crosseyed one is chico da vato.
bubba has 10000 sailing miles--gulf of mexico, pacific ocean. he also has 6000 air miles and 3000 car miles under his floofy tail. chico is a travel virgin and will be fun to peel him off the overhead when i start engine and take him sailing. will be interesting watching him adapt to a moving home. bubba did well. he loves his momms, as does chico.