Dr. Faith Whitehead, DVM

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine 

An anxious cat will hide, pee improperly, scratch excessively, and vocalize overly. Some cats are innately apprehensive, while others may experience worry for no apparent reason.

A variety of factors can cause anxiety in cats. To determine what's going on and identify answers, veterinarians and behavior specialists look at the cat's physical and mental condition and instinct features. They use the H.I.S.S. test (health, instinct, stress, and symptoms) to discuss and find methods to minimize feline's anxiety.

Examining Potential Health and Behavioral Issues

Anxious behavior can be seen by cats that aren't feeling well. Stoic cats with concealed ailments display relatively minor symptoms if any at all. A damaged paw may not result in a limp but instead causes the cat to hide or become clinging. Anxiety behaviors are frequently relieved by resolving the underlying health condition.

Stress Reduction

One of the most common causes of worry is stress, which you can manage. The way cats react to stress is primarily determined by their personalities, how well they were socialized as kittens, and even their D.N.A. A significant number of cats (and dogs, people, and other animals) are just born with a tendency to be "anxious." Anything has the potential to cause tension and anxiety in cats, but their surroundings are at the top of the list.

Crowded circumstances, temperature, resource availability, and, notably, living and competing with other cats are all environmental stresses. To deal with environmental stresses, try building a cat-friendly setting with plenty of feline resources that provide healthy outlets for natural and usual cat activities. Once you've figured out what cats do most of the time, you can make those activities more pleasurable for them, lowering the risk of tension and anxiety.

Set up a Cat Tree

Cats prefer to hide in locations that are dark and difficult to notice. They also choose inaccessible areas where they may readily defend themselves. Confident cats prefer elevated resting locations, but frightened cats may hide at ground level. Favorite places include under the bed or other low-lying furniture, basements, under stairs, closets, or inside boxes or mounds of debris.

Because cats spend so much of their time napping or relaxing, providing them with the appropriate cat tree may help them relax. Multi-cat families offer a range of perching possibilities throughout the house to reduce ownership disputes. Cats stretch and scratch when they first wake up, so placing scratch toys near resting locations will help the kitty feel more at ease.

Combining Food and Entertainment

Cats spend a significant portion of their awake hours hunting or eating. Use food puzzle toys to handle both, or set up a "treasure hunt" with tiny servings on plates strewn about the home. Playing and exploring can alleviate tension and anxiety by simulating hunting behaviors. Cats are more likely to examine homemade toys, and rotating toys enhances novelty and interest.

Make the Litter Box a Better Place to Visit

Anxious cats pee outside the box by squitting on moist flat surfaces or spraying urine against vertical surfaces. This is most typically used for territorial/marking purposes, with the cat using the fragrance to identify "owned" land, warn off other animals, or provide self-comfort by smelling familiar. Property significant to the cat, including owner-scented things such as the bed, near windows or other lookouts (where they view stray cats), or by doors, are common targets for urinating (where they hear or smell stray cats).

To prevent this behavior, give the most excellent litter boxes and spread them out over the house instead of clustering them in one spot. Because cats do not have to share, the one-plus-one rule (one box per cat plus one) decreases anxiety. It's also crucial that all litter boxes be kept clean. A soiled box can hinder appropriate elimination and might exacerbate or induce anxiety.

Provide Anxiety Relief through Kitty Comfort Spray

A great way to relax your cat is to use the Kitty Comfort Spray, which is a fast-acting remedy intended to make the cat calm and collected. Kitty Comfort Spray is a popular choice, and it's available in a spray bottle. It's a feline spray that helps to relieve tension caused by territorial and environmental stress.

 Kitten Comfort Spray, is a fast-acting solution developed to help your nervous kitty convert into a calm and collected cat, and promotes peace at home. This tension relief spray is comprised of the pet parent’s scent through a patented extraction process known as HME® and entirely natural substances that assist in reducing stress and anxiety-related destructive behaviors. A change in the surroundings, loneliness, territorial issues when introducing additional cats or housemates, or simply general anxiety/depression can all contribute to a stressed-out cat. This drug-free serenity remedy can address and cure unwanted behavior, including urine marking, hypersensitivity, frequent meowing, impatience, and an overall drive toward destruction. 

Behaviors of Proofing and Problems                        

Be patient if your cat does not adjust to any adjustments, you make right away. After ruling out any potential health issues, try to make your cat's environment as relaxing and appealing as possible. If one option doesn't appear to be working, try adding another and seeing how the cat reacts to the mix.

At the same time, keep in mind that a cat might be stressed by change. Make a point of not making too many changes at once. Similarly, if your family has just transformed—moving to a new home, adding or losing a family member, or even changing the furniture—do your best to offer your cat everyday items. A beloved toy or an old scratching post might provide your cat with great relief. 

While you wait for your cat to come around, try to keep your environment as peaceful and stress-free as possible. You don't have to walk on eggshells for fear of upsetting the cat, and they should become accustomed to your "regular" surroundings. Many worried cats eventually settle in and find contentment.

Cats have a horrible reputation for being detached to their humans, but the fact is that they adore you and your scent! This is why we find them resting on our filthy clothing or laundry baskets; it's full of their favorite person's aroma, which is you!

Your smell comforts secure and satisfies your cat. The team of aromatherapists of the Kitten Comfort Spray meticulously blends each unique bottle to assure the most significant level of safety and efficacy. Through the Company’s revolutionary HME® process, each bottle of Kitty Comfort Spray combines your unique aroma and 100% Therapeutic grade essential oils like Lavender, Geranium, and Roman Chamomile.  It is very important to work with reputable sources when using essential oils as they can be toxic to animals.  Never apply directly to your cat, spray in the air in the room your cat enjoys spending time in.  Only purchase products that are created and crafted by trained certified aromatherapists to ensure the safety of your cat. 

What Can You Do With It?

Before using, give it a good shake before spraying 2-3 pumps into the air in locations where your cat likes to hang out. This relieves tension in cats afraid of change, anxiety, separation, travel, or loss. Do not spray directly on your cat or his bedding, toys, or other items. 

What are you waiting for? Grab your Kitty Comfort Spray and calm your anxious cat!