How To Help A Cat Overcome Its Fears?
The first step in helping a cat overcome its fears is to acknowledge them, a task that may not be that simple. It is essential to know your pussy well. A naturally shy cat can be afraid of many things and spend much of its life in hiding.
On the other hand, a naturally safe cat will have less fear and will recover more quickly from frightening events.
the specter of fear
There are a variety of signs that help you identify if your cat is frightened. Often, the trigger for feline fear is not a stimulus you can identify.
In the case of panic, signs may include active avoidance behavior and increased out-of-context and potentially harmful motor activity. The fear response is a complex behavior that involves several neuronal structures. For this reason, the response intertwines sensory, motor and emotional processes.
The different manifestations of fear
Next, we will present the main manifestations of the fear response. Often the answer is defensive:
- Somatic: being on alert (or alert), retracting the ears against the skull, showing the nails, arching the back, wagging the tail, showing the teeth or opening the mouth.
- Vocalizations: growl, hiss, meow, snort or spit.
- Neurovegetative (involuntary) responses : dilated pupils, bulging eyes, increased salivation, piloerection, increased sweating, loss of urinary and anal sphincter control, anal gland release, increased respiratory rate and heart rate.
- Displacement: freezing in place, standing, walking in circles, chasing, scratching, biting, fighting, hiding, or running away.
Long Term Consequences of Living in Fear
Among the classic signs of sympathetic activity, there may be persistent diarrhea that triggers an inflammatory bowel disease or irritable bowel syndrome. In addition, a fearful cat can develop obsessive behaviors such as licking and biting itself.
How to help a cat overcome its fears?
If your cat likes to hide but is healthy, leave him alone. It will come out when it’s ready. Forcing him to come out of hiding will only make him more afraid.
Make sure he has easy access to food, water and a litter box. Clean the litter box and change the food and water every day to see if he is eating and drinking.
Food is a great motivator for cats. So if your pet is afraid of a person in the house, give him the duty to feed him.
Is it possible to prevent a cat from being fearful?
Although some cat breeds are predisposed to have a shy personality, owners may want to consider the following facts:
- Cats deprived of social and environmental exposure up to 14 weeks of age may be afraid of contact.
- Phobias and panic can be triggered by a history of being unable to escape or withdraw from the stimulus that causes the phobia and panic. That’s why cats who have suffered from being locked in a box or been in abusive situations feel fear.
- Cats with a history of abandonment, multiple owners, relocation, or previous abandonment often have separation anxiety.
- Maintaining good health: Any illness, intoxication or painful physical condition increases the cat’s anxiety and contributes to the development of fears, phobias and anxieties.
Diagnosis and Treatment to Help a Fearful Cat
The first point is to rule out other health conditions that may be causing your cat’s behavior. If your veterinarian diagnoses a simple fear, anxiety or phobia, prescribed medication may be the solution.
However, it is very likely that the provider will make specific recommendations based on your cat, depending on the fear trigger and how he or she can alleviate your cat’s fears and anxieties through behavior conditioning.
To help a kitten with extreme panic and separation anxiety, you need to provide protection until the medications take effect, which can take days or weeks. Hospitalization may be the best option in some situations.
