Pet Cats on Board

SanderO said:

I brought 2 kittens from St Marten to LIS. I was single handing. I tried to literally hold the kits and I took my 20 minute catnap... pun intended.... But they got free and went on deck and hunted flying fish. I made a litter box from a poly bin with a nylon fishing line grid for them to stand on. At first in harbor I had sand in there but once they learned the routine no sand was needed. Easy to clean by dipping over board.
They made it to Westport where a friend took then and immediately they ran up a tree and the fire dptmnt had to get them down. Their names were Sancho Panza... aka Sideshow... and Dr. Would... aka Wouldie. I trailed a towel at the stern in case they went over board and needed to climb up. Never happened.

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MikeOReilly said:

We used to sail with our cat. He liked the boat when it was at anchor, but got scared and seasick if things started rocking too much. There's nothing more pitiful than a seasick cat 🙁. Like most people, he got better with it the longer he was on board, but we eventually donated him to a relative. He's a happy fat apartment cat now.

We kept the litter box below the companion way ladder, in front of the engine compartment. Never had an issue with him using it, with him falling or jumping in.

If I were to go year-round on our boat (right now we're on for 1/2 the year) I'd probably get a kitten and start it off fresh. I think they're great for boat life, but not all older cats can easily adopt to the life.

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wrwakefield said:

There is a great group of boaters owned by cats on FB: 'Gatos del Mar'. Consider joining that as well. Lots of good info.

Our land cats readily adapted to being full time boat cats on our monohull ketch.

We use (or at least the cats do...) the Breeze litter system to minimize dust and grit onboard, and so we can pack around a year's worth of supplies in the same space one tub of clumping litter. (And clumping litter in the bilge is a hazard...)

Read our articles about having cats onboard if you are interested in more details and links to some great resources.

Have fun with your Gato del Mar...

Cheers, Bill

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wrwakefield said:

There is a great group of boaters owned by cats on FB: 'Gatos del Mar'. Consider joining that as well. Lots of good info.

Our land cats readily adapted to being full time boat cats on our monohull ketch.

We use (or at least the cats do...) the Breeze litter system to minimize dust and grit onboard, and so we can pack around a year's worth of supplies in the same space one tub of clumping litter. (And clumping litter in the bilge is a hazard...)

Read our articles about having cats onboard if you are interested in more details and links to some great resources.

Have fun with your Gato del Mar...

Cheers, Bill

Click to expand...

wrwakefield said:

There is a great group of boaters owned by cats on FB: 'Gatos del Mar'. Consider joining that as well. Lots of good info.

Our land cats readily adapted to being full time boat cats on our monohull ketch.

We use (or at least the cats do...) the Breeze litter system to minimize dust and grit onboard, and so we can pack around a year's worth of supplies in the same space one tub of clumping litter. (And clumping litter in the bilge is a hazard...)

Read our articles about having cats onboard if you are interested in more details and links to some great resources.

Have fun with your Gato del Mar...

Cheers, Bill

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zeehag said:

bubba daboatkat has a fb group called gatos del mar. is all sea going catties who allow their humans to go along for the ride and be can openers for the trips and fishie catchers. bubba has spent his 16.5 yrs on board boats . he loves his formosa. his litter was under dinette table his food was under dinette table and he slept with his mom. he is happy cat. we got second cat, also loved boat. the best thing about cats on board, aside fromthe companionship is the fact they find issues you will need to address. pressure water leak -- cat willface down. it hisses. ok good kitty. and no bugs on board.. good kitty. and no rattties or mousies on board ..goood kitty., and birdees dont hang around a cat's boat for long. good kitty. and on cold nights cats add warmth to boat.

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zeehag said:

bubba daboatkat has a fb group called gatos del mar. is all sea going catties who allow their humans to go along for the ride and be can openers for the trips and fishie catchers. bubba has spent his 16.5 yrs on board boats . he loves his formosa. his litter was under dinette table his food was under dinette table and he slept with his mom. he is happy cat. we got second cat, also loved boat. the best thing about cats on board, aside fromthe companionship is the fact they find issues you will need to address. pressure water leak -- cat willface down. it hisses. ok good kitty. and no bugs on board.. good kitty. and no rattties or mousies on board ..goood kitty., and birdees dont hang around a cat's boat for long. good kitty. and on cold nights cats add warmth to boat.

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Lanealoha said:

We second the 'fabreeze' litter system. Think of it as a composting toilet for kitties, no smell, no little bits of clumping litter dragged/ kicked/ or thrown around, its by far the best system for any dwelling type......

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capta said:

I would be attentive to your cat when she is out on deck at a dock. Cats have a wonderful ability to jump, but they can't take into account the movement of the boat. Be sure to hang a very big 2' to 3" diameter line (a bit frayed) over the side whenever you are not underway, in case your cat falls overboard.

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