During holidays—especially big ones like the Lunar New Year—many pet owners choose to drive and bring their pets along, because this way they can avoid the hassle of shipping their pets and also keep them close instead of leaving them behind at home.

However, there is one important thing that many people overlook: cats can get carsick too.

When dogs get carsick, they often show very obvious signs like becoming restless, vomiting, or even losing control of their bladder or bowels, but cats usually don’t act this way, which makes many owners think that cats are naturally “good travelers” who can handle car rides easily.

But the truth is, cats do get carsick—it’s just that their symptoms are much less obvious.

So today, let’s talk about how to recognize and deal with carsickness in cats.

1. Common Signs That Your Cat Is Carsick
1) Drooling

If your cat starts drooling during a car ride, don’t assume that it’s because they’re hungry.

In reality, this is often a sign that your cat is feeling very uncomfortable, because carsickness can affect the nervous system and disrupt the digestive system, and when drooling happens, it usually means the carsickness is already quite serious.

2) Lip Licking

When cats feel uncomfortable in the car, they may repeatedly lick their lips, often more frequently than usual.

This is usually a sign of mild carsickness, and it’s one of the early warning signals that many owners miss.

3) Vomiting or Diarrhea

Cats are naturally very clean animals, and most of the time they will try their best to hold it in rather than making a mess.

However, if the carsickness becomes severe, it can disrupt their digestive system and lead to vomiting or even accidents like urination or defecation.

2. Less Obvious Signs That Are Easy to Miss

While the signs above are easier to recognize, there are also some subtle behaviors that many cat owners（see more at https://catcarelife.com ） tend to ignore.

Some cats may start meowing loudly and seem restless, moving around constantly in the carrier or scratching at things, almost like they can’t settle down, and in this case, it’s very likely that your cat is feeling carsick.

On the other hand, some cats do the opposite—they become very quiet, lie still, and look calm or even “well-behaved,” but in reality, they are not relaxed at all; they are just feeling uncomfortable and don’t have the energy to move.

3. How to Prevent Carsickness in Cats

After learning all this, the question most cat owners care about is: how can we prevent carsickness?

First, your cat needs time to get used to riding in a car, so you shouldn’t start with a very long trip right away—if it’s your cat’s first time in a car, taking them on a journey of hundreds of miles is simply too much.

Instead, you should let your cat experience short car rides more often, and make sure their first few experiences are as calm and positive as possible, because this helps them gradually adapt to traveling.

Second, avoid feeding your cat too much before the trip; ideally, you should let your cat eat about four hours before getting in the car, and during the ride, it’s usually enough to just provide water instead of more food.

Finally, make sure the car has good airflow, such as slightly opening a window so fresh air can come in, and if possible, let your cat see outside, because watching the scenery can help distract them and reduce the chance of carsickness.