Not just a road trip---a moving trip

Hey everyone, I'm new here. :)

My husband and kids are planning on moving to Las Vegas. We currently live in Michigan. So about a 2020 mile drive for us. We have 2 kids (6 and 18 months) plus 2 dogs, 2 cats, 2 hamsters and a hermit crab. Any idea at all on how to make this trip a little less stressful and easier on us all?

We plan to rent a U-haul, then tow my husbands truck on that. I plan to follow behind in my Saturn. I'm trying to decide how to bring the animals. Is there a law when driving that far that they need to be crated or "in something"? We have a Boxer and a Pug, as well as 2 Himalayan cats. The one cat meows non-stop just when I take him to the groomers so any suggestions on what to do about this when taking a trip across country? (besides getting rid of him? LOL)

Also can anyone recommend some cool places to stop at on the way out there? When I mapped it through AAA it was taking us through Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, the tip of Arizona and finally Nevada. I'd like to make this a fun trip for the kids so anything a 6 year old would find cool, I'd like to take the opportunity to have him see it. He loves Army stuff and Dinosaurs (chance of seeing one of them on the road? Haha)

Also any other suggestions would be MUCH appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Tiffany

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

Packing up a family of this size (including the pets) is going to pretty much inevitably make for some stessful situations. Speaking as someone who has moved cross country, with kids and pets, the single best thing you can do is to not try and overwhelm yourself and remember that your task at hand is already pretty overwhelming.

As far as transporting the pets go, most states don't have specific laws, and its up to the owner as to how they want to transport them. There are a number of crates and other restraining devices that you can choose from. Your biggest problem may simply be trying to find room for everyone and everything inside the passenger compartments of your car and uhaul. On a positive note, even though your cats appear to hate traveling, after a while they will get used to it - they might not like it - but they should get into a position where they can sleep for much of the trip. Here are some more recommendations for traveling with pets.

I will say that the pets could make it a little difficult to add a lot of real extensive stops. I know I don't like leaving my pets alone in a car any longer than I have to. Instead of looking for real interesting places (of which the possibilities are many), I think I would keep things simple. Look at stopping at parks and enjoying things like the hotel pool might not be as exciting as possible, but they might make for the best trip overall.

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Look at stopping at parks and enjoying things like the hotel pool might not be as exciting as possible, but they might make for the best trip overall.

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If your move is going to occur during hot weather, you just can't leave your pets in the car for any length of time as it could be deadly for them. As a mother myself, I can assure you that kids that age are thrilled with parks, especially those with playground equipment. This can make them happier than just about anything else and helps make the drive better because they have used up energy and are more likely to relax and/or nap while in the car. And your pets will thank you for the chance to stretch their own legs, get food/water, and take care of their "business".

So I would really focus on those types of stops. City parks, school playgrounds, and, sometimes, rest-stops, will easily provide these opportunities. You may also sometimes find state parks close enough to the highway to also provide a welcome diversion like this from the road.

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Originally Posted by typhanie78

Any idea at all on how to make this trip a little less stressful and easier on us all?

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Adding to the comments of Michael and Judy above, here is a great article about how we deal with the heat with our critters in Las Vegas in the summer.

Mark