Svenuk Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 Hi We are due on a hire boat Monday for a midweek break. Has anybody on here ever brought their cat with them. Just wondered if they had some tips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YnysMon Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 I’ve been watching some narrow boaters on YouTube (The Narrowboat Experience) who have cats. In one of their vlogs they explain how they keep their cats safe. Okay, canals are a different environment, but interesting nevertheless. The main thing seems to be keeping them indoors when not moored up. Never heard of anyone bringing cats along on the Broads though. I would have thought you’d have to be extremely careful not to allow it on deck. Our dog almost fell in the first time we brought her to the Broads. She was trying to hop back onto the boat and missed with her back legs. Luckily she had a life jacket on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stumpy Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 We saw one a few years ago on a hired bathtub curled up on the stern - "ooh look, someone's brought one of those stuffed ships cats from Nauticalia!" Then it started washing its bum! There also used to be a liveaboard about (Bourne 40??) with a catflap let into the side of the sliding canopy so it can be done. I don't think I'd trust any of our four on board though. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorfolkNog Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 Swancraft always had a condition that no cats were allowed on their boats. I can't recall if I ever asked why - I guess maybe cats tend to scratch so there were maybe concerns about the seating etc. Bridgecraft have their own resident cat on the yard which quite happily will jump on and off the boats to be fussed. I think cats are naturally wary of water. A confident cat may be OK but I would think twice about taking a timid one who might shoot. I suppose if given time to acclimatise and kept under surveillance it might be OK. I think one of the original mods (long gone) on the site brought a cat on board. Our own cat is extremely timid so we leave her at home and a friend pops in to look after her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trambo Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 Have often taken a cat on a boating holiday but only once on the Broads Generally I think they prefer it to staying in a cattery but the distance from Runcorn to the Broads is a too far for them. When we did take our cat, Sabina, to the Broads in the mid 70s we travelled by train which cats seem to prefer. Immediately the engine started she would find some obscure place hide but real enjoyed it when we moored, even found her stalking cows at Geldeston. Today catteries are much nicer places (also a lot more expensive, over £450 last year) and also Silver Cloud as a non-pet boat , we don't have the option. anyway 11 minutes ago, NorfolkNog said: Swancraft always had a condition that no cats were allowed on their boats. I can't recall if I ever asked why - I guess maybe cats tend to scratch so there were maybe concerns about the seating etc. I think it was a scratching problem, also a lot of people are allergic to them. Posted this before but you can see Sabina at the stern of Navigator II with typical 1970s H&S standards in place! Fred 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trambo Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 Found this fetching little number for the feline out and about the Broads. https://www.crew-safe.co.uk/acatalog/Cat-Buoyancy-Aid.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIr-3J3pWZ6wIVwrTtCh3QSwMuEAQYAyABEgKbmvD_BwE Fred 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorfolkNog Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 37 minutes ago, trambo said: also a lot of people are allergic to them. That's true, never thought of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RumPunch Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 8 hours ago, trambo said: Found this fetching little number for the feline out and about the Broads. https://www.crew-safe.co.uk/acatalog/Cat-Buoyancy-Aid.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIr-3J3pWZ6wIVwrTtCh3QSwMuEAQYAyABEgKbmvD_BwE Fred Getting that on my moggies would be painful, and the thought of trying to pick them up by the handle hilarious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oddfellow Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 Freedom has a policy of no cats. I suspect we aren't alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polly Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 We had Cleo on board Brilliant. She loved it except when we were sailing, then she went into the ‘wine cooler’ under the bunk until we stopped. She viewed her life jacket as an immobilisation device and just sat there looking annoyed until we took it off. She did a bit of fish watching off the stern but showed no desire to join them in the water. The reason we didn’t make a habit of taking her with us was her hatred of car travel, very vocally expressed all the way, and she was an oriental (very loud). Also I was always on edge, worried we might lose her, we also saw a big dog otter crossing our mooring to the wood behind, where she liked to explore. On balance, the lovely cattery we always used was a better option. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyMorgan Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 I personally would leave my pussie at home. I once took my beloved 'Buzzy' out on my rowing boat on a very still morning. Stupid critter decided that the mirror like water was akin to firm land and jumped off the back of the boat, presumably to walk back to his basket or milk saucer. Nothing more pathetic than a half drowned cat! I was also involved in a search for a holiday maker's cat. In the end they had to go back home I promised to keep an eye open for their pet. I did eventually find it, dead, behind the piling where they had been moored up. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puddleduck2 Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 We have our own boat and always take the cat with us for a trip of 3 or 4 days. However, it has been brought up with the boat and is purrfectly happy. Its litter tray is kept in the shower and its not allowed on deck except when we are moored. For longer trips it stays at home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ranworthbreeze Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 One of our owners used to bring his African Grey parrot complete in its cage 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanetAnne Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 Our Amazon loves boating but enjoys a busy mooring much more. He is at his best sat on the rear deck somewhere really busy like Wroxham talking away to everyone he can see. We used to take the cat regularly without issue as well. These days he is a bit old so stays home and gets proper spoilt by the neighbours. I think he just enjoys the break from.the dogs really. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyMorgan Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 1 hour ago, ranworthbreeze said: One of our owners used to bring his African Grey parrot complete in its cage Did he also have an eye patch and a wooden leg? 1 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
addicted Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 We used to occasionally look after my daughter's British Blue. He used to lay under the front screen in the cockpit sunning himself and took pleasure in sitting in the cockpit baiting the swans. He also liked to go out through the saloon window and walk round the boat, across the bow. coming in through the galley window. Carole 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vaughan Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 1 hour ago, addicted said: We used to occasionally look after my daughter's British Blue. At least it wasn't a Norwegian Blue. Remember Monty Python? 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldBerkshireBoy Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 Nailed to the perch whilst pining for the foirds or merely sleeping? Great sketch. 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbo Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 Off topic I know, but we did tell Gracie that Dave @JanetAnne was a pirate. After a few minutes cogitation and weighing him up, Gracie decided that he couldn't be a real pirate as he didn't have a parrot. Her face was a picture when she saw him at the Beccles Wooden Boat Show complete with a parrot. Of course I told her that pirates have wooden legs and the way to test is to hit their toes with something heavy. So if you spot JanetAnne hopping around it's probably Gracie...testing! 2 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyMorgan Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 5 hours ago, Timbo said: it's probably Gracie...testing! Rumoured to be her fetish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyMorgan Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 12 hours ago, Vaughan said: At least it wasn't a Norwegian Blue. Remember Monty Python? For those who don't remember it: 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cockatoo Posted August 15, 2020 Share Posted August 15, 2020 Top Tip Make sure you take a landing net Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Svenuk Posted August 22, 2020 Author Share Posted August 22, 2020 Sorry for late reply. Heres a couple of photos of KitKat sporting his life jacket on and off. He has a great time on and in the boat and was quite a celebrity with plenty of fellow boaters admiring him and even taking photos. No problem with the boatyard Barnes Brinkscraft at Wroxham. Certainly will take him again. 11 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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