Stress with cats

Cats, just like people, can suffer from stress. This might be caused by different factors, namely: environmental factors, physical factors and mental factors. Below I will further discuss the factors that cause stress.

Environmental factors
You might be surprised how scary and nervous cats can react on changes in their environment. Cats mainly are, more than any other animal, creatures of habit. They may find it very awkward if their daily routine will change out of necessity.
Stress factors in the cat’s environment:
•  Moving
•  Too many other pets in the household to which the cat belongs
•  involuntary confinement
•  Lack of fresh air or daylight. Especially for cats which used to be going outside
•  Changes in the daily routine

Stress factors which might influence the physical health:
•  Corpulence
•  Illness
•  Psychological trauma
•  Operations
•  Fleas, worms and other parasites

Emotional stress factors:
•  boredom and loneliness
•  Death of a human or animal family member
•  Fear
•  Competition / jealousy 

Other changes in the family. Cats can show their agitation on many different ways. Below some symptoms which might be stress indications.

Stress indications:
•  Excessive fur care or no fur care at all
•  Refusing food
•  Chewing uneatable things like cloths
•  Urinating/shitting in the house, although the cat normally always uses the cat’s box.
The solution you choose strongly depends on the cause of the agitation. Try to find the cause of the agitation and remove it. Of course, some stress factors will not influence the cat anymore after some time, because he gets used to it. For example, you cannot change a divorce or baby.
Have your cat checked by the veterinarian in order to exclude a physical cause and/or to discuss a plan of action concerning the corpulence or possible worms, fleas and parasites. Should the cause be competition/jealousy with respect to another animal, temporarily separate these animals then and give them food and attention on different hours. Introducing a new pet is a process which takes time and patience. It might take weeks or months before a cat is used to a new pet in his surroundings. If your cat urinates on other places in the house than the cat’s box and you think that this is caused by stress because a cat recently joined the family, you might consider purchasing a cat’s box. You can also experiment with different kinds of cat’s boxes. The general rule is that each cat should have an own cat’s box.

If your cat is stressed and he is the only cat in the household, it might just be loneliness. Taking a new cat might be the solution. But should you not have the possibility to take another cat, or shouldn’t you want a second cat, make sure then that you have enough toys to amuse him. Give your cat enough attention and regularly make time to play with your cat. Some cats like it when you turn on the radio or TV when you leave the house.

Despite of the number of cats you have: cats like to have a spot in the house which enables them to look outside. Cats also like to lie or sleep on a nice spot in the sun. Your cat will certainly love a nice place on the window-ledge. If you have tried everything to remove the factors that cause stress (and the veterinarian excluded a physical cause), and you cat still has stress symptoms, you might consider a consultation with a good cat behavior expert. He/she is specialized in the cat’s psyche and together you might find a solution to make your cat satisfied again.