Hi,

Has anyone taken their cat when moving to Switzerland lately?
Have an old cat and not sure if he'd take the journey.
Is it a fairly easy process? Or would he have to be quarantined?
Would break our hearts leaving him , but afraid he wouldn't cope with the change.

Thanks
Helena

What alternative do you have for the cat if you do not bring him?

similar topic was recently raised and I can already give you a brief summary of different opinions you will get here:

a) cats are territorial and do not cope with changes well. He's old and if you can find a loving family back home who can take care of him, he will be better off there.

b) of course you should take the cat with you! it's not that complicated!

c) if your cat is old, you should consider his needs and not move anywhere yourself either. Pets are not disposable.

As for the procedure, you find a lot of info in the pet forum here.

i'll second that.

depending on how old the cat is. moving can cause lots of stress. but i do understand very well: i left my two cats behind and its still breaking my heart......

We moved here with our cat, and she settled in fine, admittedly she wasn't that old. Mind you, we were living on a farm at the time, which made it easier.

I wonder that too..
will he be rehomed? that is going to be stressful too, to change house and family..
I would consult a vet and if she/he says that it is ok for him to travel I would definitely bring him over.

You only need to have him micro-chipped and rabies vaccinated one month before his entry in Switzerland.

If we don't take him. Which seems to be the best option.
He'd be going to my boyfriends mum.
She lives in a ground floor flat with 2 cats and a big garden at the foot of the torrs(coast line) and woods.
Think he'd be happy there.

He's 17 years old so wont be happy with any change, just trying to do whats best.

Thanks for all the help.

I had to leave my 17 almost 18 years old terrier behind with my mum when I moved as our vet certified that she was unfit to travel. It broke my heart to leave her behind but its for the best.

I doubt a 17 year old cat will survive the travel and you're doing the right thing.

I have this problem

We are planning on moving to Zurich in May. We will be moving to an apartment that is two floors up and two small balconies. We will also be travelling a bit around Europe to visit family in other countries.

Currently my cat is 5 years old, has a huge back yard and can live with my mother with her back yard next door. However my mum is getting old and when we move out of our house, the cat may return here as it is close to my parents place. My mum is happy to look afr her however.

My cat is also quite wild and I feel will not be able to hande the change.

It is a real dilemna for us, we love our cat and it would break our heart to leave her here but feel living in an apartment and not able to go outside will drive the cat crazy. Also the dlimena we will have of travelling around a fair bit when in Europe.

Any productive advice would be welcome!

old cat... I would suggest you let him with your boyfriend's mum.

I vaccinated my old cat (he was 16) and he died a few weeks after....
(he was in a great shape before)

And I'm a local.... no need to move...

I left my cat behind as I now live in a second floor apartment. He loved to be out roaming and I knew I just couldn't lock him in going from a free spirit to an indoor cat at 12 years old.

I still have the guilts but I get updates on his new family, he is loved and has settled very well, still with a nice catflap into a very large garden. So this helps me to deal with the emotions!

I would say leave him where he is, the slight change will suit him far better.

Good luck making your decision, I know how hard it is.

Gal x