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Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / January 2008Feline Separation Anxiety? ? ? ?
I have a loveable 8 year old fixed male cat named Hercules. He was a resuce and extremely sick and needy when I got him. After nursing him back to health over a period of several moneths her has turned into a happy healthy cat-Now! But he has also become extremely dependent on me to the point of being excessive . If he can't see me he starts crying. It is becoming worse and worse as time goes on. Last night while I was downstairs helping take down our tree he began his crying and whinning. It got worse over time and more intense the longer I was downstairs. Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her living space.. Hercules got so upset at not being able to be with me that he peed on the floor. He has NEVER gone out of the box. Could he simply have stressed WAY to much and had an accident or is this a sign that his separation anxiety getting worse and past being reasonable? I have just never heard of a cat with this problem.. If he was a barking/whinning dog we would have been evicted from our apt. a long time ago. > Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her > living space.. Hercules got so upset at not being able to be with me > that he peed on the floor. He has NEVER gone out of the box. Could > he simply have stressed WAY to much and had an accident or is this a > sign that his separation anxiety getting worse and past being > reasonable? Yes, that could be due to separation anxiety. I'd recommend first trying some Feliway diffusers in the rooms he frequents most. I've also had some good results with Rescue Remedy in kitty's water bowl. If those steps don't work, you might want to talk to the vet about the possibility of medications to help with the anxiety. Even kitties need anti-depressants sometimes! Have the cats always been separate from your Mom's space or is this a new thing? >> Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her >> living space.. Hercules got so upset at not being able to be with me [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > possibility of medications to help with the anxiety. Even kitties need > anti-depressants sometimes! > Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her > living space.. Why on Earth would you do that????? Does she dislike cats? I live in a "retirement" facility, and nearly half the residents - many of them a good deal older than 83 - have pets (mostly cats). Petting a companion animal can lower blood pressure and relieve stress, so nowadays it is recognized that their presence is really therapeutic, rather than harmful. >> Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her >> living space.. > Why on Earth would you do that????? Does she dislike cats? > I live in a "retirement" facility, and nearly half the [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > recognized that their presence is really therapeutic, rather > than harmful. When my 87 year old mother comes to visit, we have to watch her and Sonny constantly. He appears out of nowhere and trips everybody, even those used to his ways. Sonny is the most dangerous cat we've ever had. Bobble >> Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her >> living space.. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > can lower blood pressure and relieve stress, so nowadays it is recognized > that their presence is really therapeutic, rather than harmful. Right. My mother was 94 when her little dog died, and the only thing that consoled her was the company of my sister's dogs. Joy >> Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her >> living space.. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > recognized that their presence is really therapeutic, rather > than harmful. She may well dislike cats; she might even be afraid of cats. She may be allergic (although keeping a cat blocked from her living space wouldn't necessarily negate dander and fur transfer). She may, as bobblespin pointed out, be in danger of tripping over a cat darting around. I'm nowhere near 83, and Persia certainly isn't 'Speedy Gonzales', but I am still occasionally surprised to find myself practically tripping over her. Just yesterday I didn't realize she was sitting behind me on the kitchen floor. I turned from the stove to walk over to the pantry and almost fell over her. Me, I'd probably have just gotten some bruises and cussed a blue streak (and had a scared cat). But for an 83 year-old a fall like that could be very dangerous. Jill > She may well dislike cats; she might even be afraid of cats. > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > and cussed a blue streak (and had a scared cat). But for an 83 year-old a > fall like that could be very dangerous. LIFE is "dangerous" - better trip over a cat occasionally than do without their companionship because some well-meaning relative decides I'm "too old" to be trusted near them! And 83 is no longer considered all that "old". (Plenty of people nowadays are living into their hundreds - why else would greeting card companies provide assortments of birthday cards for centenarians?) > I have a loveable 8 year old fixed male cat named Hercules. He was a > resuce and extremely sick and needy when I got him. After nursing him > back to health over a period of several moneths her has turned into a > happy healthy cat-Now! > But he has also become extremely dependent on me to the point of > being excessive . If he can't see me he starts crying. It is > becoming worse and worse as time goes on. Last night while I was > downstairs helping take down our tree he began his crying and > whinning. It got worse over time and more intense the longer I was > downstairs. > Because of mom's age-83-we keep the cats blocked from coming into her > living space.. Hercules got so upset at not being able to be with me > that he peed on the floor. He has NEVER gone out of the box. Could > he simply have stressed WAY to much and had an accident or is this a > sign that his separation anxiety getting worse and past being > reasonable? When Smudge was a kitten, she sort of acted like this. She just hated to be left alone in the apartment and would howl piteously when I left. Some neighbors told me that she sometimes kept up the howling for a long time even while I was gone. This problem was solved completely when I adopted Roxy. Suddenly she had company for when I was gone, and she didn't get upset anymore when I had to leave for work. Does Hercules have another kitty to play with? Maybe, like Smudge, he's just a very social cat and gets lonely easily. That, coupled with the fact that he had a very hard beginning to his life, might make him more anxious than usual about being left alone. If he had another cat to play with and curl up with, it might not be so bad. Is that an option for you? Joyce  SignatureTo send email to this address, remove the triple-X from my user name. >I have a loveable 8 year old fixed male cat named Hercules. He was a > resuce and extremely sick and needy when I got him. After nursing him [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > barking/whinning dog we would have been evicted from our apt. a long > time ago. Crying may well be seperation anxiety but it cold be something worse as well. Hercules may be going deaf and/or blind, or might even be suffering from kidney failure (the going outside the box is another symptom of kidney failure). At 8 years old, its unsual but not unheard of it have it. That its slowly getting worse suggests rather than it happening because of some change that has happened in your lifestyle there is something medical going on and you need to Hercules to the vet. It could be seperation anxiety,a nd then perhaps the vet might prescribe a kitty version of prozac, but it could be the onset of something that needs careful treatment. Please don't ignore the crying - it usually means something is up with the cat. Yowie my tiger is like this, but I can usually calm him by talking to him, when hearing one of us it calms him, Lee > I have a loveable 8 year old fixed male cat named Hercules. He was a > resuce and extremely sick and needy when I got him. After nursing him [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > barking/whinning dog we would have been evicted from our apt. a long > time ago. > my tiger is like this, but I can usually calm him by talking to him, when > hearing one of us it calms him, Lee<hercules3...@gmail.com> wrote in message [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > > - Show quoted text - OK , all of the info and advise is greatly appreciated, BUT I have 3 cats and they all get along and love eachother and play so Hercules is not lonely. My mother loves all my cats and would love o have them around all the time. BUT she suffers from Post Polio syndrome and falling is a constant threat. The safety of the cats is as much an issue as the safety of my mother. I think I have just simply created a wimp. We did discover a possible answer to the problem Hercules is having. Mother has a bird and on this particule day I was spending an unusual amount of time down stairs with mother and the bird. We have an intercom so Mother can call if I am upstairs. Well, Hercules could hear me talking to the bird and I was saying things to the bird like I say to him. He could come down stairs replying to me and then I would tell him to got back up stairs. Confusion could be the answer. Cats think if you are talking, you are talking to them, Especially when I said the key words "come here" to the bird, Hercules knew I was talking to him cuz he reacts to that command when directed to him. He has been find ever since, more or less. He still preferrs me tobe upstairs with him however. So he may just be a Spoiled Brat he could be spoiled or you could have a point he could have got confused... since your mom likes the cats it would be cool if you could get her settled and then let them in for a bit of time with all of you when she is secure she will be sitting for a while, good luck, Lee On Jan 6, 6:42 pm, "Stormmee" <rgr...@consolidated.net> wrote: > my tiger is like this, but I can usually calm him by talking to him, when > hearing one of us it calms him, Lee<hercules3...@gmail.com> wrote in message [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > > - Show quoted text - OK , all of the info and advise is greatly appreciated, BUT I have 3 cats and they all get along and love eachother and play so Hercules is not lonely. My mother loves all my cats and would love o have them around all the time. BUT she suffers from Post Polio syndrome and falling is a constant threat. The safety of the cats is as much an issue as the safety of my mother. I think I have just simply created a wimp. We did discover a possible answer to the problem Hercules is having. Mother has a bird and on this particule day I was spending an unusual amount of time down stairs with mother and the bird. We have an intercom so Mother can call if I am upstairs. Well, Hercules could hear me talking to the bird and I was saying things to the bird like I say to him. He could come down stairs replying to me and then I would tell him to got back up stairs. Confusion could be the answer. Cats think if you are talking, you are talking to them, Especially when I said the key words "come here" to the bird, Hercules knew I was talking to him cuz he reacts to that command when directed to him. He has been find ever since, more or less. He still preferrs me tobe upstairs with him however. So he may just be a Spoiled Brat |
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