Although all cats are naturally cautious, some are more timid than others. Genetics, early handling and socialization, and life experiences all play a role in how a cat’s personality develops.
Craig Zeichner
Kersti Seksel, BVSc, MRCVS, MA, FANZCVS, DACVB, DECAWBM, FAVA
Lucy crouches, her body tense, ready to spring into action. Her ears are pricked and alert, pointing forward, listening carefully to every sound. Her eyes are vigilant, pupils dilated, carefully watching; every movement in the room is closely monitored. Her tail rapidly flicks back and forth. She spots the fly, leaps into the air, catches it against the glass with an expertly placed paw. The buzzing stops. She carefully lifts her paw, very slowly. The buzzing resumes, and Lucy is off again, jumping and leaping over chairs and following the fly around the house.
This is the confident Lucy her owner knows and loves.
At other times, Lucy is not so confident, and Taylor struggles to understand her personality change: “Every time my friends come over to play bridge, Lucy disappears. She is such a pretty cat, and my friends want to greet and pet her, but she is nowhere to be seen until two hours after they leave. I just don’t understand how she can be so outgoing and confident one minute and so withdrawn the next. Does she hate my friends?”
How can Lucy be so mercurial? You may think your indoor cat has an easy life, just lying on the couch and being pampered. Food, water, beds, and toys are all within easy reach. There’s no danger to her. So this change from a confident cat to a timid and withdrawn animal is very confusing. What could she possibly have to worry about?
To a cat, the unknown means danger. Therefore, being cautious and hiding are survival instincts. In addition, cats are creatures of habit; they don’t like change. For them, the world should be predictable, because that is what feels safe. Unfortunately, life does change. People have visitors, move to a new house, buy new furniture, add another pet (or person) to the family, and when the cat is unwell, they take her to the veterinarian. Talk about scary unknowns! A trip to the veterinary office can be one of the biggest terrors for cats—just like going to the dentist may be for some people.
Cats are all individuals, just as people are. In separate papers, Dr. Sharon Crowell-Davis, DACVB, Dr. Jacqui Ley, and I have noted that some cats are extroverts and enjoy company, while others are introverts and prefer a more solitary life. Some cats cope with change better than others—again, just like people. But on the whole, cats prefer an unchanging environment and a consistent routine, or at least for both to be predictable.
Cats can live in a variety of social environments, which helps explain how successful they have been living with people. Although they are solitary hunters (they catch prey that is too small to share except with their kittens), they can be found living by themselves or in large social communities, as well as in many variations and combinations in between. New cats are not easily accepted into an established group, which helps explain why your cat may not like the new kitten you have fallen in love with and just brought home.
As with people, some of a cat’s personality depends on the personality of her parents. According to a study done by Dr. Ilana Reisner, DACVB, and Dr. Katherine Houpt, DACVB, a cat’s father appears to have a greater influence than her mother on whether she is outgoing or timid and whether she is more or less resistant to handling as a kitten. Certainly, a cat needs to have a good mother looking after her to develop into a happy, healthy, well-balanced cat, but the evidence shows that the father has a strong genetic influence on her social development even if he is not there to help raise her. A study done by Dr. Sandra McCune found that early handling and socialization can influence a cat’s friendliness toward people and confirmed the positive influence of having a friendly father.
Cats are (or appear to be) very independent and self-sufficient, accepting interaction only when they want it. This leads many people to think that all cats are aloof and independent and do not need much care, which is simply not true. Dr. Julie Feaver and her colleagues at the University of Cambridge describe three types of cat personalities: sociable, confident, and easygoing; timid and nervous; and active/aggressive. Cats can be social, and most enjoy interacting with their caregivers, but their evolutionary past makes them wary of change and new things.
Although all cats are naturally cautious, some are more timid than others. Genetics, early handling and socialization, and life experiences all play a role in how a cat’s personality develops.
Craig Zeichner
Is it true that dogs have owners and cats have staff? Cats are an enigma for many people. So what draws someone to share their home with a cat? Anyone who has ever owned a cat cannot help but admire the amazing athleticism and fine grace of the domestic cat. She can climb trees, walk a fence like a tightrope, and get herself into all sorts of clever places. Yet she also can be hidden and withdrawn. Most owners would probably tell you that it is, in fact, a cat’s “wildness”—her ability to be self-contained and enigmatic yet still willing to share her life with us—that is at least part of the attraction.
Cats have been human companions for a very long time—more than 9,000 years. The earliest direct evidence of cat domestication is the remains of a kitten who was buried alongside a human 9,500 years ago in Cyprus. That cat was large and closely resembled the African wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica). This discovery, combined with genetic studies, suggests that cats were probably domesticated in the Near East and then were brought to Cyprus and Egypt. Cats evolved in arid areas and are solitary ambush hunters. They do not kill prey next to a water source, for fear of contaminating it and becoming ill.
As cats became domesticated and diverged from their wild relatives, they adapted to hunting mice and other vermin attracted to the food found in human towns and villages. This role for cats created a mutually beneficial relationship, but without much interaction between cats and people. Since then, the relationship has waxed and waned through different times and cultures, with the cat sometimes cherished and sometimes persecuted, until we come to the relationship we have today.
Our cats still retain some of their wild roots, and their response to danger is to flee whenever possible rather than fight—which is what a small animal who is both prey and predator in her natural environment would do. They still prefer not to eat next to where they drink, and to rest up high, away from potential danger. Understanding the evolutionary history and biology of the cat helps us better understand why cats may become anxious when living with us as companions.
Almost every cat will experience fear at some time in her life. Fear is a normal response to potentially threatening things in the environment. Anxiety is a state of worry or unease about something that may happen or an outcome that is uncertain, and most cats will have some anxious moments. But when either fear or anxiety begins to take over and affect a cat’s quality of life, we should consider whether the cat has an anxiety disorder. A study by Dr. Michelle Bamberger and Dr. Katherine Houpt, DACVB, found that although a low percentage of cats are formally diagnosed with anxiety, many behavior problems in cats (house soiling, fighting, urine marking) are undoubtedly driven by underlying anxiety.
Heightened anxiety may be inherited, meaning that some cats were born with an inclination to react more strongly to anxiety-producing events. However, what your cat has learned from previous experiences (good, bad, and neutral), as well as the environment in which she finds herself at any given time, can also contribute to the way she responds to stress and changes in her environment.
Stress is one of the major causes of anxiety. How cats react to stress, though, depends greatly on their personality, how well they were socialized as kittens, and their genetic predisposition. Stress in and of itself is not harmful if the animal can resolve or escape the stressful situation. But continued stress can cause anxiety and be detrimental to a cat’s health and well-being.
An anxious or fearful cat may hide, urinate or defecate in places that you consider unacceptable or inappropriate, spray urine (often near windows and doors if she hears or smells cats outside), overgroom herself, or vocalize more or less. Fear and anxiety also may cause your cat to react with a fight-or-flight response. This is an involuntary, adrenaline-mediated state in which the cat’s instinct to survive takes over. If your cat is afraid, she may run and hide (the flight response), but if she is cornered, she may react by hissing, spitting, scratching, or biting (the fight response). Before she is pushed that far, she may show you two other Fs—freeze and fidget (or fiddle).
Cats exhibit fear and stress in four ways—what we sometimes call the four Fs. This is very similar to the way humans exhibit fear.
Flight. A fearful cat will often try to escape a situation by fleeing. This may be an obvious sudden exit from the room, but it can also be more subtle, such as moving behind an owner or under a table.
Fight. It is a common misconception that a fighting cat is not a fearful cat. Aggression is one of the ways a cat can exhibit fear and communicate that she needs space. It’s important for the welfare of your cat to remember that if she is growling, hissing, swatting, or biting, she is likely in a high state of fear and emotional arousal. Her goal in displaying this behavior is to make the threat go away and create distance between herself and danger, not necessarily to fight.
Freeze. A “frozen” cat is doing her best impression of a statue. She may stand very still, lie down with all her limbs and her tail pulled under her, or move in what appears to be slow motion.
Fidget (Fiddle). When a cat is conflicted about how to respond, she fidgets. It’s one of the most common fear or anxiety responses seen in cats. Conflicted cats seem to be in constant motion and may be excessively licking their lips, yawning, licking themselves, or scanning the room. These behaviors are inappropriate or out of context relative to the cat’s situation. This is the cat equivalent of a person chewing their nails, twirling their hair, or laughing inappropriately during a serious meeting.
Socialization: The process of learning to accept the close proximity of your own species as well as other species. This does not mean every cat has to like every other cat and be best friends or even second-best friends with another cat—let alone like all people, dogs, rabbits, or other species. We don’t like everyone we meet, so why should our cats?
Habituation: The process of learning that things the cat regularly comes across in her environment (sights, sounds, smells) are nothing to be worried about, and even learning to ignore them. For example, if you live on a busy street, after a while you do not hear the traffic anymore. That’s habituation.
Resilience: The ability to bounce back or recover quickly after experiencing change, a new situation, or a potential threat.
Anxiety can arise from feeling uncertain about what is going to happen next. If your cat is anxious, it may be because she has trouble predicting the outcomes of events, and because of her anxiety, she perceives many normal events as threatening. Even if the outcome of an event is pleasant, she is so anxious that she cannot take in that information. Anxious cats do not cope well with changes, however insignificant the changes may seem to us.
The environments that cats find themselves in today are different from the ones their wild ancestors inhabited. We adopt a cat and expect her to adapt to the life we have chosen for her. It is not surprising that some cats find it difficult to do so. We, as caregivers, then struggle to understand why our cat does not behave the way we want her to.
One example of an anxiety-producing change is coming into a home with multiple cats, a scenario that has been discussed in previous chapters. This forces the cat to live in a social group she did not choose. The addition of another person to the cat’s household also can be disruptive. Imagine a scenario in which you and your cat are living in what appears to be perfect harmony. There’s just the two of you, you have a steady job with regular hours, and life has predictability and balance. Then you meet your special someone, and you start dating, staying out late, and staying over at your partner’s place.
What seemed like a perfect relationship between you and your cat has changed in a way that seems unpredictable to her. She begins to hide under the bed when your partner comes over, does not approach for petting from you, and hisses when your partner tries to pet her. Things take their course, and your partner moves in. The cat has been forced into a social group that is nothing like the one she initially had or would form naturally. Suddenly she stops using her litter box and is scratching the furniture. Why is this happening?
Most cats (and people, too!) do not like change. They like to remain in control of their environment, or at least have some ability to predict what might change or to find a safe place to ride out the change. Since none of this is under their control, how might they respond? In some situations, a cat may deposit urine or stool outside the litter box, perhaps because she wants to avoid the new person or pet. Or she may spray urine or scratch in areas other than her scratching post, because marking her territory helps her feel more secure. She may hide a lot or become less active, in an effort to save her energy for whatever might happen next. She might vocalize more frequently. Rather than being spiteful, these are all ways that cats show anxiety and stress.
As we’ve seen, anxiety can be caused by the environment and circumstances in which a cat lives. But cats who are anxious all the time may also have a problem with how their brain processes information, causing them to become worried about things and events that are not truly dangerous or threatening. The brain receives information via chemical messengers called neurotransmitters, which bind to neuroreceptors at the junctions between nerve cells (called synapses). Different neurotransmitters have different effects on thoughts and feelings. Varying levels of neurotransmitters or a problem with them can lead to changes in emotion and create prolonged anxiety and fear.
The rest of the body is not immune to this prolonged anxiety response. This is not surprising when you consider how your own body reacts to prolonged stress. In cats, the bowels and skin may be affected, for example, which may lead to itchy skin or a sensitive stomach. Anxiety can also lead to inflammation in the urinary tract, which can cause pain and result in litter box problems. In the brain, this may lead to difficulty remembering new information. The result is that anxious animals have a hard time learning new things.
Without treatment, anxiety will worsen over time. Each exposure to the situation that is causing the anxiety will make the cat’s reaction stronger—unless we intervene to help her cope and change.
Absolutely not! Be aware of the cat who remains hidden most of the time. An anxious cat may like to hide in dark places where no one can see her, or in inaccessible places that she can easily defend and where she can stay just out of reach. You may often find your anxious cat under the bed or other low-to-the-ground furniture, beneath the stairs, or inside a closet, cupboard, or box.
Both anxious and confident cats may seek out elevated locations, but what distinguishes them is their facial expressions and body postures. A confident cat is relaxed and surveying the land from her elevated perch; a scared cat may be crouched down near the back of the space to avoid detection and increase safety. (See chapter 1 to learn more about feline body language and chapter 5 to learn what stress and anxiety look like in cats.)
While it's normal for cats to scoot under furniture when something startles or surprises them, a cat who hides all the time needs help to feel better.
Kersti Seksei
Cats with anxiety may vocalize more. Sometimes this can be to increase the distance between themselves and the person or animal upsetting them (that’s when you’ll hear hisses and growls) or to reduce the distance by soliciting you to interact. Often this activity is thought to be food seeking, but anxious cats just vocalize more; they’re not always asking for food.
It is important to recognize that cats do not display any of these behaviors (hiding, eliminating outside the litter box, or vocalizing more) because they want to get back at you or are spiteful or vindictive. The behaviors are all expressions of anxiety. This book can help you in many situations, but sometimes it may be necessary to seek professional help. Studies have shown that the longer a behavior problem persists, the harder it is to resolve.
Anxiety and stress can arise from many different sources, so it’s important to try to figure out what is stressing your cat and take steps to reduce or eliminate those stressors. First, always consider your cat’s physical health. Cats who are physically sick may be anxious. They are very good at hiding illness and may show only subtle signs, if any, of being unwell. For example, a sick cat may hide or become clingy. Common health problems that contribute to anxiety are endocrine disorders, arthritis, and infections. The first step toward helping your cat is a visit to your veterinarian. When you resolve any underlying physical health issues, the anxiety may resolve or be diminished.
To help your cat cope in her environment, it is important to meet her behavioral needs. This means providing lots of resources that offer outlets for typical cat behavior. By looking at what your cat does most of the time, you can make her natural activities even more pleasant and reduce the potential for stress and anxiety.
Everything has the potential to increase stress and anxiety, but environmental changes are high on the list. Some common environmental stressors are limited availability of resources such as food, water, and resting places; sharing a house with people, especially noisy and busy children; and living with other cats.
Look around your home and think about the things cats need in their environment (see chapter 3). Can your anxious cat get to all her resources without being harassed by another cat, a dog, or a person? Is she getting enough play and mental stimulation? Are stray cats coming around, making her feel as if she constantly has to defend her territory? What can you do to resolve these situations for your cat?
Being handled, especially by strangers, can be very frightening for a cat who is not used to it. Yet handling is not something cat owners generally teach their cats. Puppy owners take their pups to puppy classes and doggy playdates, and as a result dogs learn how to accept being handled all over their body by new people. But while kitten kindergarten classes have been available for some time (see chapter 4), they are still not widely offered, and kitten owners seldom get the same assistance as puppy owners in socializing their cats to handling.
The most important time for a kitten is between two and seven weeks of age, when she is especially sensitive to socialization. During this period, the kitten is (or should be) still with her mother and littermates. This means that whoever is caring for mom and her kittens must provide plenty of opportunities for the kittens to participate in family life and to learn to accept handling, noises, other pets, and other everyday occurrences. It is harder, though possible, to socialize a cat to these things later on.
Cats are creatures of habit and are very sensitive to changes in their life. To help minimize the stress caused by any changes in the environment, such as new furniture or new people in the home, try to keep your cat’s food and mealtimes the same. Set time aside each day for grooming, playing, petting, cuddling, and sleeping, and try to do each activity at about the same time every day.
If you have more than one cat, you will have to set aside time for each activity with each cat, during which she will have your undivided attention. That way, no cat will miss out, everyone will get her fair share of attention, and they can all relax knowing their special time is coming.
The most important thing is to establish a routine for your cat that you can live with. If you plan to change anything, do it gradually, over a number of weeks. If your cat is not going to be allowed in certain areas of the house, such as the nursery (if you are expecting a baby), shut that door now. You may want to set up a special area for your cat to rest and sleep, as well as to receive one-on-one attention.
To help your cat get used to the idea of a new baby’s presence, let her sniff and explore the stroller and crib, as well as some of the baby’s clothes. Exposing the cat to baby noises and smells also can be helpful. Before the baby arrives, think about how your routine will change and start implementing those anticipated changes now so that your cat has time to adjust. Preparation is the key if everyone is to live happily ever after—together.
Separate studies by Dr. Jane Dards and by Dr. Carol Haspel and Dr. Robert Calhoon have shown that cats spend more than half of their time sleeping or resting, so give your cat lots of places to do so. Having several shelves at different levels and in different rooms will allow her to choose where she wants to be at any given time. She may prefer to be lying in the sun by the window in the morning, snoozing on top of the cat tree in the afternoon, and curled up in a hammock in the evening.
Offering a variety of perching places throughout your home, especially ones that hold only one cat (if you have more than one), will help reduce your cat’s stress. Cats tend to stretch and scratch after they wake up, so place scratching surfaces near where your cat rests.
Cats spend about between 15 and 46 percent of their time either hunting or eating. Some cats are grazers, so they need to have food available all the time. Restricting food to set mealtimes may increase their anxiety—just as feeling hungry can make us feel stressed. If you have a grazing cat, try hiding dry cat food in a variety of places around your home to help her explore and “hunt” as she wishes.
If your cat is a gobbler (or overweight), having food available all the time is not a good idea. Feeding this kind of cat using food-dispensing toys will help meet her needs. There are many such toys on the market, or you can make your own. (See chapter 3 for more on food-dispensing toys.)
If you have both grazers and gobblers living in your home, consider including feeders controlled by microchips or special collars. Only cats with a matching chip or collar will have access to a particular feeder.
Remember, not all cats will accept changes in their feeding routine right away, so implement them as gradually as you can, and give your cat time to get used to them. Don’t try to force her to eat in a way that doesn’t work for her, but also make sure to monitor her food intake and health.
Play and exploration mimic hunting behavior for cats. These activities may reduce stress because they allow cats to exhibit more of their natural behaviors. Cats in the wild tend to have short bursts of activity, so keep the play sessions short and sweet. Because cats are crepuscular (more active at dusk and dawn), early mornings and early evenings are the best times to schedule play. But if you can only play with your cat late at night or in the middle of the day, she will adjust. The most important thing is to schedule daily playtime.
Never play in a way that involves human hands or feet. This can lead to problems with your cat attacking body parts even when you’re not playing, because she will think they are toys. Toys attached to the end of a fishing pole that move around erratically are sure to get her attention and keep her teeth and claws away from you.
Don’t be discouraged if your cat tires of certain toys. Dr. Sagi Denenberg, DACVB, found that if you give your cat a five-minute rest and switch toys, she will be ready to play again. You may notice that your cat gets bored with a particular toy after a few days. The excitement of a new toy or one she hasn’t seen in a while will likely reignite her zest for play, so rotate her toys and toss in something new every once in a while.
Cats love to climb and to sit up high and observe the world. This is part of their natural instinct to feel safe and secure. Cats live in three-dimensional space (unlike humans, who concentrate on floor plans), so vertical space is important to them. Having lots of appealing perching places—on top of cupboards or specially constructed shelves or cat trees—can give them much pleasure and keep them off areas you would prefer they not use (like tabletops or kitchen counters).
Cats are usually attached to their territory and may use scent marking to denote the boundaries. When a cat becomes frightened or anxious, territorial marking with both urine and claws may increase. If scratching posts are not in convenient and accessible locations, the cat may begin unwanted scratching on furniture and other objects. Think carefully about where you place scratching posts so that your cat can easily access them. (See chapter 11 for more on scratching behavior.)
Much as with human children, providing opportunities for your cat to engage in acceptable activities works better than punishing her for unacceptable behaviors. In fact, sometimes punishing unacceptable behaviors just teaches the cat not to do those things in front of you!
Every cat is different, and you are the one who knows your cat best. She may be cuddly, or she may just want to sit nearby but not be touched. When she solicits attention, it does not necessarily mean she wants to be petted or picked up. Even if she jumps onto your lap, she may just want that close contact and warm sleeping spot, not a hug or a cuddle.
Learning her personality and respecting her needs will help decrease her stress and anxiety. And remember, if she does become upset or stressed, cuddling may actually increase her stress rather than decrease it, especially if she wants (or her natural instinct is) to flee.
Cats are naturally cautious and can startle easily, because they’re both a predator and a prey species. But their resilience and their ability to recover from being startled will vary from cat to cat. If your cat has an inherited tendency to be anxious, she may not be predisposed to be resilient when faced with novelty. Cats who are more resilient may still jump at a sudden noise or movement or hide when guests arrive, but after a very short time they’ll recover or come out of hiding. More anxious cats take a lot longer to adjust to even small changes in the household. Some may hide the entire time you have guests and even take a while to come out after they have left.
You can work on increasing your cat’s resilience by carefully exposing her to guests and make meeting new people a positive experience for her. This may mean getting her accustomed to a knock on the door or the sound of the doorbell when no one is actually arriving. When she hears this sound of “impending doom,” give her a small, tasty treat or get out her favorite toy. You can then progress to having just one person visit. When she is comfortable with one person, try introducing her to small groups of people. Remember, “comfortable” does not mean she will come over for a pat; it may just mean staying in the same room and not running away and hiding.
Ideally, when a visitor arrives, your preliminary work in getting your cat accustomed to receiving a treat when someone knocks or rings the doorbell will bring her to a central location in your home, and she will be eating something when the person enters the room. A high-value food such as tuna is a good choice for this situation, as it will motivate her to stay in the room to receive the special snack. The visitor should be very quiet and not move around too much. He shouldn’t approach the cat or speak loudly. Instead, have him sit still and let the cat investigate him in her own time. Spraying a synthetic feline facial pheromone (Feliway Classic) on the person’s clothing or a blanket that he can put on his lap may be helpful.
If your cat approaches the guest, he can gently drop treats on the floor for her. All interactions will depend on the cat. If she is feeling confident, curious, and friendly, she may approach and solicit attention from the visitor. If she is more cautious, she may take more time before she approaches him. Never try to force interactions on your cat; she will approach someone new if and when she feels comfortable.
Building resilience can also involve exposing your cat to low levels of novel noises and objects. (See chapter 6 for more on habituation and how cats learn.) Knowing your cat’s body language will be very important in helping you successfully socialize her and increase her resilience. Being able to identify the subtle signs of fear or stress, as well as the body language cues telling you that your cat is feeling confident and comfortable, will help you know when to progress and when to take a step back. (See chapter 1 for more on being able to read your cat.)
If, despite your best efforts, your cat still remains anxious, fearful, and stressed, a visit to your veterinarian or a veterinary behaviorist may be necessary to help her overcome her anxiety and fear and to improve her quality of life.
Anna worked long hours and was worried about leaving her cat, Sooty, alone all day, so she went to the shelter and adopted Fergus. He had been friendly with other cats in the shelter, and she assumed that he and Sooty would become fast friends, too. But when she brought Fergus home, Sooty started hissing, spitting, and growling as soon as she put Fergus’s carrier on the living room floor. Then Sooty ran off and hid in the bedroom closet and wouldn’t come out.
Hoping it would just take some time, Anna let Fergus out of his carrier, and he began exploring the house. A few days later, Sooty was still hiding from Fergus and spitting and hissing whenever he came near. Anna couldn’t understand why Sooty was so afraid of Fergus and wasn’t sure what to do to improve the situation.
Does my cat need another cat for company? There is nothing more engaging than to watch two kittens play, and it is a great idea to adopt two kittens to keep each other entertained, particularly if you spend long periods of time away from home during the day. However, most cats, once they reach adulthood, spend much of their time sleeping, and they tolerate solitude very well. Combine this with the fact that some cats are less social than others, and your cat could well view any newcomer as an intruder rather than a new brother or sister. Even if she has lived with another cat before, she might not accept a newcomer to your home. Adding another cat is often stressful.
If you really want to add a second cat to your household, the integration should be done slowly and carefully (see chapter 5). The resident cat will probably not like the newcomer and may even attack her. Cats need to be introduced over a long period of time. And that means they should be kept in separate rooms initially so they can hear and smell each other but do not have direct visual contact. Using a plug-in diffuser with a synthetic maternal appeasing pheromone can help the cats settle down, but it is no substitute for a careful, gradual introduction.
This situation can be even more difficult if you’re introducing a kitten to an older cat. Mabel was a three-year-old cat when her owners brought home eight-week-old Missie. They took to each other immediately, and Mabel cleaned Missie and looked after her like her mom. When Mabel died unexpectedly five years later, Missie looked lonely, so they thought she needed a new companion. They got her a new friend, Percy, who was twelve weeks old. The cats hissed at each other immediately, Missie swiped at Percy, and he ran away, which led to a chase. They have been separated ever since.
Owners with a happy, trouble-free cat should think long and hard before introducing a new feline family member. I’ve seen some very sad cases where a family has two cats who get along very well. When one dies, the other grieves, and the human family members, facing their own grief, decide to get a new kitten to keep the resident cat company. The trouble is, the older cat doesn’t want a new companion; she wants her old friend back.
Choosing a cat of similar age and activity level may help both cats adjust. But if, despite a gradual introduction, one cat is still very fearful of the other cat, the fearful cat may be suffering from anxiety and need veterinary help to build up her confidence and resilience. In some cases, it’s the owner who needs to accept that even if the cats learn to tolerate each other, they will never be friends. And sometimes the best alternative is to rehome one of the cats.
Cats may learn to tolerate each other but never really become friends.
Kersti Seksel
Here are some tips for keeping two (or more) cats happy. (See chapter 5 for more information.)
Using pheromones can help reduce some of the anxiety associated with bringing in a new cat. Place a plug-in diffuser with a synthetic maternal appeasing pheromone (Feliway MultiCat) in the house a week before the new feline family member is due to arrive.
A cat-friendly environment will contain plenty of resources spread throughout the home and provide ample opportunities for the cats to be cats.
A good basic rule is one of everything for each cat, plus one extra. This means lots of litter boxes, sleeping places, resting places (up high), scratching surfaces, food and water stations, and opportunities for play and exploration.
Why are trips to the veterinarian so stressful? Veterinary clinics can be very stressful places for pets. The scents there are strong, and often the products that are used to keep clinics clean and hygienic can be overpowering for sensitive cat noses. Additionally, the other animals visiting the clinic will be secreting stress pheromones, which will signal to your cat that there is something to worry about.
Following are some tips to help your cat have a less stressful visit to the veterinarian.
Ideally, there should be two areas in the waiting room with a visual barrier between them to prevent dogs and cats from coming into close contact. Unfortunately, not all clinics have a large enough waiting area to be able to separate dogs and cats. If your veterinary office doesn’t have this setup, arrange an appointment for a quiet time of the day, and wait in the car with your cat until there is an available consulting room. This strategy will avoid the stress caused by waiting in a noisy environment.
Encourage your cat to get in the carrier voluntarily, with treats or other goodies if possible (see the next section). Try to prevent her from becoming stressed before you leave the house.
Covering your cat’s carrier with a towel will prevent her from coming face-to-face with a dog or another cat. Spray the towel with a synthetic feline facial pheromone thirty minutes before you leave home so that the alcohol in the spray will have time to evaporate, leaving behind the calming scent of the pheromone.
When moving the carrier around, make sure to support the base with your hands and wrap your arms around the carrier. This will prevent excessive shaking that may scare the cat.
Is there any way to teach my cat to be less stressed in her carrier? Kelly and Gillian moved into a new apartment last year and decided to adopt a puppy and a kitten from an animal shelter. Neither had owned a dog or cat before, and they were determined to be model owners. On the veterinarian’s advice, they enrolled in a puppy class with their puppy, Ben. The veterinary technician taught them how to handle Ben gently so that he would be comfortable when he needed to come back for vaccinations. She advised them to buy a crate and gave them a handout about crate training. She also suggested that they bring Ben in for nonmedical visits, when the staff would give him lots of treats. As a result, Ben loves his crate and sees veterinarian visits as a great opportunity for treats and cuddles.
Unfortunately, the same opportunity wasn’t available for their kitten, Whiskers. The veterinarian did not offer kitten kindergarten classes. And since Kelly and Gillian were not planning on taking Whiskers out walking every day, they did not realize that she needed to be socialized.
Whiskers loved being petted but did not like being picked up, so they didn’t pick her up. They brought her home from the shelter in a carrier, but when they got home, they put the carrier in the closet and forgot about it until it was time for Whiskers to be revaccinated. It was a busy Saturday morning and they were running late, so they called Whiskers over for a treat, grabbed her, and stuffed her into the cat carrier.
By the time they arrived at the veterinarian’s office, she was very upset. The veterinarian was gentle, but the technician eventually had to wrap Whiskers in a towel so that she could be vaccinated. She was very happy to get back into her carrier. When they got home and let her out of the carrier, she bolted behind the couch and wouldn’t come out for the rest of the day. Kelly and Gillian now had a kitten who didn’t trust them and who disappeared as soon as she saw the carrier. How much easier for everyone it would have been if only they’d done the same training with Whiskers as they had with Ben!
A frightened cat like this one may prefer to remain in her carrier at the veterinarian's office, but she's not likely to want to get in it again.
Kersti Seksel
We often tuck our cat carriers away in storage until we need them to take our cats somewhere. As a result, when we take them out, the cats run and hide. At first, it’s because it is a scary object they do not see very often. But after a few veterinarian visits, they come to associate the carrier with a scary and sometimes painful trip.
To help accustom your cat to her carrier, keep the carrier out in the house, in a place where she likes to spend her time. Put comfortable bedding and toys inside the carrier to help induce your cat to go in and, hopefully, use it as a bed. Cats like hiding under chairs and desks, so you might tuck the carrier in such a place, where it will become a safe space for your cat to retreat to and rest. Spraying a synthetic feline facial pheromone (Feliway Classic) on the bedding at first, as well as scattering treats or catnip inside, may help get her to explore the carrier.
Once your cat is happy in the carrier and goes in willingly to rest, you can progress to closing the door and moving the carrier to another room before reopening the door. This will help her adjust to the sensation of being carried inside the carrier.
You can then advance to taking her on short car trips, which will help you determine if she suffers from motion sickness. If she does, seek advice from your veterinarian about using a medication to help reduce her nausea. (See appendix A for more carrier training tips.)
Pheromones on their own are often not enough to ease moderate to severe anxiety. If your cat is very anxious, fearful, and skittish, and she takes longer than is typical to recover from stressors, she may need medication to reduce her anxiety and help her cope better with the world. The cat’s individual symptoms will help your veterinarian determine what medication may be best for her.
Situational medications may be useful to help her tolerate car travel, veterinary visits, moving to a new home, or other short-term stressors. These medications can reduce your cat’s anxiety and at higher doses provide a degree of sedation that may be helpful in situations where, for example, the veterinarian needs to do something that you know will scare her.
If your cat is suffering from an anxiety disorder and needs long-term relief, the veterinarian may prescribe a daily medication to help reduce her overall anxiety so that she can deal with everyday situations and stressors. These medications can be used in conjunction with situational medications if more help is needed for more stressful events. Your veterinarian also may refer you to a veterinary behaviorist.
All cats are anxious or fearful in some situations, but some cats have especially high levels of anxiety and stress due to differences in their neurochemistry.
Cats like routines; it’s all about same, same, same.
Even small changes in the environment can increase a cat’s stress.
Making sure cats have ways to display their natural behaviors will help reduce stress.
Perceived lack of choice or control is a stressor for cats.
Do not force cats to interact with people or pets.
Start early to get your cat used to the cat carrier and to novel situations and people.
Not all cats want a companion. Being an only child may be a preference for many.
You cannot cuddle cats to calm them. Rather, a stressed cat may regard cuddling as restraint—preventing her from fleeing a scary situation.
Respect the individuality of your cat. Some like cuddling; others just want to sit nearby but not be picked up.
Medication may help reduce your cat’s stress.