If you travel out of town a lot then owning a pet could be out of the question for you. However, for animal lovers everywhere, there are pets you can keep even on a busy schedule and on frequent travel. There are pets you can easily travel with while others can be left home for long without incident.
If you want a pet traveling companion by plane, choose a cat or dog. If you’ll mostly be driving, take your rabbit or rodent along. If you’ll be leaving your pet at home for long periods, you need a low-maintenance pet like a ball python, turtle, or tarantula.
For anyone who’s either super busy or away from home for long periods but still wants a pet, there are a few viable choices. Depending on whether you want to travel with your pet or leave them at home, you can choose a mid or low-maintenance pet.
What Is the Easiest Pet to Travel With?
Most pet owners love their animal companions and would love to take them everywhere with them. However, job, airline, and accommodation restrictions limit how, where, and when you can go with your pet.
Apart from such restrictions, you also want an animal that loves traveling or is at least unbothered by travel. Outgoing pets enjoy traveling more than skittish nervous pets. An ideal traveling pet companion would have some or all of the following characteristics:
- Animal with a calm, quiet nature
- Species with a clean appearance and has clean, hygienic play, eating, and toilet habits.
- Non-shedding species for either fur, feathers, or skin.
- Small size and light weight to qualify for in-cabin travel.
- Not a snub-nosed species that could have breathing problems in high altitude or high-pressure conditions. Bulldogs and Persian cats wouldn’t be ideal.
- No quarantine restrictions or animal travel policies for moving the pet from one area to another.
With such qualities in mind, some of the pets that are easiest to travel with include:
Dogs
Dogs are widely accepted all over the world. Many hotel chains, motels, inns, and restaurants have dog-friendly policies. With a few exceptions in the Arab world, the rest of the world is quite accepting of dogs in public places and indoor areas.
Airplanes, airports, trains and other passenger vehicles often have special features to accommodate dogs. If you’re a frequent traveler, stick to small friendly breeds. Unfriendly dogs would find it difficult to meet strangers during your many journeys. Large or giant breeds may be limited by space constraints when booking flights and accommodation.
Cats
Cats can be good travel companions. Cats are not as bothered by regular travel as dogs. However, cats are more difficult to train or restrain.
They can easily get lost if left out of their carrier. They get lonely and stressed if left in their carrier too long and this makes them miserable.
Nonetheless, cats are easier to carry in-cabin and in cars or buses. They’re friendly yet independent. You won’t have to clean after them as long as you provide a litter box. You also don’t have to come to feed them on schedule.
Rabbits
A pet rabbit could be a good traveling companion. They are largely silent and don’t need much cleaning up after. They are cute and lovely to watch or stroke and a favorite with kids.
Rabbits don’t form strong attachments to humans, so you can leave them in anyone’s care without the risk of separation anxiety. A rabbit can be restricted to its cage for most of its life without being miserable. However, they are often better off when paired with another rabbit companion.
Rodents
If you’re often traveling by plane, a rodent may be out of the question. However, if you’re traveling by road or rail, a small caged rodent could be the most ideal pet.
Rodents typically don’t eat much, don’t need much space, you won’t need special safety gear, and you don’t have to do much to clean up after them. Some of the best rodents to have as a traveling companion include:
- Rats
- Mice
- Hamsters
- Guinea pigs
- Gerbils
- Degu
- Chinchilla
What Is the Best Pet If You Travel a Lot?
Since we have discussed some of the best travel companions, let’s take a look at the best pets you can leave at home when you travel.
Fish
Fish make great pets for people of any age. Watching fish swim can be soothing during those times when you’re home. The fish don’t need you to exercise them or groom them.
Fish are low maintenance and self-sufficient. All you need is a regularly cleaned aquarium, a clean water source, the right kind of light, and a food supply. A water filtration system makes maintaining the aquarium even easier.
Fish can be left alone for weeks, even months, as long as their food source keeps going and their water remains clean. An automatic food dispenser keeps your fish well-fed while you’re gone.
Fish are quiet, don’t need much space, can live solo or in a community, and don’t depend on human affection. They don’t require much space and can be amusing to watch without you having to take them out.
Ball Python
One of the best pets for busy people is a ball python. You only have to feed it about once every week or two. You don’t need to clean it or walk it. A young snake could be fed one small mouse every 5 days while an older snake could be fed one medium-sized rat every 12 days.
Even though the daily chores aren’t much, there’s much to do when constructing the enclosure. Ball pythons are adept escape artists and you have to ensure all the fittings are set up correctly.
What Is the Best Pet for A Busy Person?
Every pet lover has a preference for the kind of pet they like. However, if you’re a super busy person, your choices narrow down to only a few low-maintenance species. Some of the best pets for busy people include:
Turtles and Tortoises
They are small, quiet, and easy to care for. In the correct habitat and with the correct diet, you may never even have to come to feed them. They eat grass, green vegetation, worms, and small fish. You may also provide pellet feeds to enhance their diet.
Tarantula
If you like spiders then a tarantula could be the perfect pet. They don’t need light. They only need to be fed about once a week. Adult spiders only eat about once a month. Perfect for the busy traveler.
Tarantulas don’t need cleaning or grooming. You don’t need to clean their home often. They get most of their water from their food, so you don’t really need to keep a regularly replenished bowl of freshwater.
