On the move

My cat Xerxes and I left the town I went to college in today. We’re taking a train down to the big city; tomorrow I’ll put him on an airplane back to the US, and the next day I’ll take a train to the Netherlands. I am very grateful to my cousin because she aagreed at the last minute to take care of Xerxes for some time while I travel around. It’s good to have family who’ll look out for you.

Traveling on the train with a cat is very straightforward: I loaded him in his carrier and carried him onboard like any other luggage. The carrier is the right size for him to travel in the cargo hold of an airplane: very roomy. Lots of people stop by and say hello to him; he’s very excited by all the attention. I can tell that he wants to get out of the carrier to hug people and explore his surroundings, but he seems comfortable enough in there. He hasn’t vomited or gone to the bathroom yet, which is a blessing.

About four hours into our six hour journey, Xerxes began to panic. It seems as though he’s not sick of the crate per se: he seems frustrated that the metal grate is seperating him from me. He was mewling pathetically, so I fed him. I hope that he doesn’t vomit. If I stay away from him, he calms down; standing in front of the carrier looking in at him only seems to rile him up. He began to reach out of the crate and rub himself all over it; he frantically began to try and dig his way out. Hang on little kitty—we’ll be there soon.

Unfortunately, the flight wasn’t so straight forward at all: I engaged the services of a shipping company, which was helpful, though expensive; there was a lot of paperwork to fill out and a number of bureaucratic hoops to jump through. It seems as though they’ll take good care of him, but I won’t be sure until I hear that he’s safely at my cousin’s house back in the US.

Here are some pictures of him on the train: