How to Help a Stressed Cat

Just like people, cats experience symptoms of stress. Unfortunately, often a cat’s emotional welfare and overall stress levels aren’t taken as seriously as dogs who experience symptoms of stress because cats are often (though not always) less outwardly destructive with their stress. We all know how awful it feels to be stressed so it’s important to pay attention to your cat’s behavior and watch for signs of stress. If your cat is experiencing stress you’ll want to attempt to decrease stressors in their environment and provide support to help your cat cope.

Signs of Stress in Cats

The first step to supporting a cat who is stressed is to be able to recognize the signs of feline stress. Individual cats will express symptoms of stress differently. Some cats will channel their emotional discomfort inward by:

• hiding
• excessively licking themselves
• being withdrawn

Other cats will express stress by:

• becoming withdrawn and disconnecting from people they are close to
• behavioral issues like going outside the litter box

Pay close attention to changes in your cat’s body language and behavior for any changes. Body language to watch for include squinting, avoiding behavior, pinned ears, hissing, and an overall stiff body.

What Are Stressful Situations?

Each cat will respond differently to stress and stressful situations, but there are some things to be aware of that are generally stressful to cats. Being able to anticipate situations that will be stressful for your cat can help you to be proactive in supporting your cat. Situations that are likely to stress cats out include any changes in their routine or environment. This might look like visitors coming into your home, and especially any changes in who is living in the home such as new roommates, as well as friends and family coming over. Cats can also be stressed by new animals coming into the house, or if there is conflict between your pets. Although many cats do live happily with other animals, cats can also be solitary and territorial and struggle with sharing space. Cats can also become stressed by their environment changing such as traveling or moving. Essentially anything that is a routine change like a shift in work schedules or a shift in a cat’s normal environment can be stressful for them.

Establishing A Schedule

A primary way to help cats to be less stressed is to establish a consistent routine for your cat. Routines can help cats to feel more secure and comfortable, which in turn can reduce overall stress levels. The ideal routine for your cat will be determined by your lifestyle and schedule. It doesn’t matter so much exactly what time you do different things during the day for your cat, what matters more is that you develop routines that your cat can rely on. Cats thrive on consistency. Routines can help them to self-regulate their emotions. To reduce stress, try to feed your cat in the same place, and around the same times each day. You can also make sure to set time aside daily to spend quality time together. Be sure to build time into your cat’s routine for enrichment, games, and activities.

Increasing Your Feline’s Enrichment

In addition to making your cat’s environment more comfortable, it’s also beneficial to increase the levels of enrichment your cat receives. Enrichment refers to the idea that we want to create an engaging environment for your cat where not only their basic needs of food, water, and a clean litterbox are being met, but also that your cat has an opportunity to get mental and physical exercise and stimulation.

Giving your cat access to safe and comfortable places to hide and retreat can help cats to relax and reduce stress. Providing your cat with cat trees or shelves so that they can explore naturally is both fun and comforting for cats. You may also want to introduce interactive cat toys for your cat to play with like puzzles. To help provide more mental stimulation, you may also want to consider making your cat’s mealtime more engaging. Instead of feeding your cat their meals in a traditional bowl, you can try feeding in slow feeders and treat-releasing toys.

Calming Support

It’s best to consult your cat’s veterinarian initially to ensure there aren’t any underlying health issues going on, such as a urinary infection, which could contribute to unusual behavior like urinating outside the litter box. Assuming there are no underlying medical conditions, introducing some type of calming support is the best next step. CBD supplements, along with plug-in or spray pheromones, can help reduce your cat’s stress levels, promote relaxation, and generally support their overall well-being, making them more comfortable. There are specific CBD products tailored for cats that are infused with catnip and are designed to be palatable for them. Consistency in administering the correct amount of these supplements is key, and taking into account whether you have a small or medium-to-large cat is also important.

By Sassafras Lowrey CPDT-KA