You might have been in a situation where you are traveling with your pet and the only hotel that you can go to is one that does not allow cats or pets in general. So how would you go about getting around this? A lot of people will sneak their cat in and it’s actually pretty easy to do. Just don’t be stupid about it of course or you will regret it.
Why Sneak Your Pet In?
As I mentioned before, there are hotels that have banned cats from being in the room with you which can be really inconvenient for pet owners. The reason that they do this is because they can make the rooms smell and they can damage and scratch things in the rooms.
What’s even worse, the hotels that allow you to have a cat in the room with you will charge you pet sanitation fees which can cost up to 100 dollars and you do not get this money back. This is a real drag to deal with since hotels are really pricey as it is. Some are cheaper but if you know your cat is well behaved and wont do any of those things its just less money you are forking over.
Things To Consider
I do not recommend doing this if you have a really noisy cat or if they do things like scratching, chewing on objects or even defecating where they shouldn’t be because you might get caught sneaking them in the room with you. If you get caught sneaking them in, they will most likely kick you out of the hotel and you will be banned from ever staying there again.
You might even get fined for doing so. I know someone who was charged 200 dollars for getting caught. But as easy as it is I think its worth the risk just as long as your cat is very laid back and doesn’t get into trouble. Even when you’re inside of your room do not let the maid know you have your cat in there with you as you could get in trouble if they find out.
Putting a “Do Not Disturb” sign on your door can fix this problem if you are worried about it. Some hotels are however removing these signs for security reasons so make sure the hotel you’re staying at still has these.
Last thing I should mention is doing this can be bad for people with cat allergies. Its a very common thing for people to be allergic to cat hair and dander which can make their eyes swell, itch and even cause them severe asthma attacks in serious cases which can take them days to recover.
To be considerate to people with cat allergies I would suggest keeping them in a cat carrier for the whole night if possible and I would put them in the bathroom so there is a less likely chance you will get caught with a cat in your room. There are many foldable ones that you can keep in your bag/luggage.
If you have a hypoallergenic cat such as the Russian Blue you really don’t have to worry about these concerns as people with allergies can tolerate them quite well. Their fur traps in allergens and they produce much less glycoproteins compared to other cat breeds which are the things that trigger cat allergies in the first place.
I would only sneak a cat into a hotel if you have no other choice or if you have a cat breed that is hypoallergenic.
How To Sneak Your Cat Into The Hotel
If you hide them inside of something, don’t let their heads peak out for obvious reasons as you may raise your chances of getting caught. It may seem kind of mean to do to them but it doesn’t take very long to get to your room so they should be OK for the time being.
In fact, your pet might be very willing to get inside of the bag and may even enjoy being in there. Make sure to test their reaction to being put into a bag before you go into the hotel. If they don’t make any noise then odds are you’ll be able to get in.
I would also refrain from using a cat muzzle as well. These do not stop your cat from meowing and might even cause them to meow and hiss even more. Here are some things that I would suggest you hide your pet in.
Backpack: If you want to sneak them in the room with you, the best way to do this is put them in a backpack that doesn’t reveal they are in the bag. If your cat is really quiet, well behaved and doesn’t move around a lot, you will probably succeed in getting them into the room without any problems as they don’t check contents of your bag.
Luggage Bag: If your Luggage Bag is big enough and your cat can fit in there, this would be another good way of getting them into the room with you. If you have a luggage bag with wheels on it make sure not to hit any bumps or your cat might get scared, freak out and raise your chances of them making noise.
Purse: If you have a purse this would be a good option to have if your cat is small enough. I suppose they could fit in a larger on as well. You might want to remove everything in it and put all of the items in your suitcase until you leave the hotel so your cat has more room. Otherwise you might raise your chances of your cat meowing and getting caught sneaking them in.
Check in First Without Your Cat
Another tip to successfully sneaking your cat in is to check into the hotel without your cat first. This will make it a lot less likely for someone that is working there to notice you have a cat with you. Just leave them in the car first them come back to get them once you have your room.
If you came to the hotel without a car then you might have to chance it and hope you don’t get caught.
Avoid The Main Lobby
When coming back to get your cat after you reserved your room you should enter the hotel again through the back door rather than the main lobby. There will be a much less likely chance you will get caught bringing your cat to your room if you go to a larger hotel as they typically have more doors.
How To Hide The Cat In The Hotel Room
Hotel staff have to knock on the door and announce they are entering the room so this will give you some time to hide your pet if they are about the enter the room. I would keep your cat in the bathroom as much as you can for this reason.
I would also keep your backpack or whatever method you used to sneak them in the bathroom as well. That way when they enter the room you will have even more time to hide them inside of the bag. If you do this right, odds are you will not get caught and avoid fees.
Should You Leave Your Cat Alone In The Hotel Room?
I do not recommend doing this if your hotel does not allow pets as you have a really high chance of getting caught with them in the room. If you have to exit the hotel, you should have a friend watch the cat for you. That way if a maid comes in they can hide the cat for you and you won’t get in trouble.
Avoid Damaging Furniture: Claw Caps
If you have a cat that likes to damage things with their claws but you have to bring them into a hotel anyway you could get claw caps for you cat if you are concerned about this.
You put these on by gluing them onto your cats claws. Fortunately, they aren’t permanent and don’t harm your cat. The only con with using these is that they take 2 to 6 weeks to fall off naturally.
What If My Cat Keeps Meowing?
If by some off chance your cat keeps making noise when you didn’t think they would you could try giving them food or water since that is a common reason they will do that. This is especially true if you have been traveling for a long time so it is very likely that they are.
Another way you can get they to potentially stop meowing is to give them some type of sedative. One that I like to use are melatonin chews.
When Leaving
After you have stayed at your hotel obviously you are going to leave at some point. The best thing to do is to leave early so there is a less chance of getting caught by anyone. A good time to do this is around 6 in the morning.
You also want to make sure that your cat doesn’t mess anything up in the room that you are staying in or give any indication that the cat was there with you. You especially want to remove any smells that your cat leaves behind. You can do this by spraying down the room with cat disinfectant. Removing all of the hair in the room is also recommended. You can do this also by using a lint roller.
The hotel will have your credit card information and if they know you brought the cat you could potentially have a unexpected charge on your card which is something you really don’t want to deal with..
Final Thoughts
If you don’t want to do a bunch of sneaking around and you have the extra money on you I would just go to a hotel that allows cats or dogs. It could save you a lot of trouble and you won’t be paying a fine if you get caught.
However, if you really want to avoid paying more then what you need to and your pet is very well behaved, I would suggest doing this if you are really smart about it. Otherwise, As I said, you will end up paying more money rather than saving money.
