As your kitten has grown up, you may have seen your cat go from a wild and rambunctious kitten to a shy and anxious cat. Your young cat’s levels of fear and anxiety have many contributing factors, some of which are out of your control. Genetics, the behavior and health of the cat’s mother, the cat’s own health conditions, early life socialization and later life experiences can all come together to create anxiety in your young cat.
Anxiety occurs when your young cat is anticipating a fearful stimulus. Anxiety can be related to specific situations, such as a veterinary visit or family party, or it can be generalized and nearly always present.
Signs of anxiety are non-specific. This means you’ll want to rule out physical health conditions before assuming your cat is chronically anxious. Symptoms of anxiety in cats include:
- Urinating or defecating out of the litter box
- Hiding under the bed or in other spaces more than usual
- Changes to appetite
- Disinterest in interaction or play
- Difficulty sleeping
- Overgrooming, potentially creating bald spots
- Clinginess
Anxiety is different from active fear. Signs that your cat is actively afraid include:
- Hissing
- Swatting
- Biting
- Cowering
- Huddling into a ball
- Feigning sleep
- Attempting to escape
- Pinned ears
- Dilated eyes
- Fluffy tail
- Arched back
If your young cat is actively afraid, you need to remove the fear stimulus. For example, if your dog is approaching and your cat is hissing and swatting, they’re communicating that they want the dog to leave them alone. So you’ll want to remove your dog from the cat’s space.
Cats who are generally anxious may improve with specific changes to their home environment. The following tips may help reduce your cat’s anxiety:
- Create a safe space. Your cat’s safe space should be a place they can retreat to when they need alone time. This means they’re safe from other animals and children. Consider creating space away from social areas like the living room. This way your cat can retreat when you have company over.
- Use cat pheromones. Cat pheromones (sprays or diffusers) communicate that a place is safe and that the cat belongs. While pheromones are unlikely to be a cure-all for anxiety, they can be used in conjunction with other changes to the home to encourage relaxation.
- Develop an enrichment schedule. Cats can usually self-entertain, but that doesn’t mean they’re immune to boredom! Make sure you’re switching out their toys, using interactive toys and considering other modes of enrichment to keep your cat mentally and physical stimulated.
- Ensure regular mealtimes. When it comes to meals, cats thrive on routine. You should feed a set amount of the same food at the same times each day.
- Check the litter box situation. A dirty litter box or competition for litter boxes can create anxiety. Make sure your cat isn’t getting ambushed by other animals in the home every time they try to eliminate. You should have as many litter boxes as you have cats plus one. Ideally, you would provide a litter box on each level of the home as well. Litter boxes should be scooped at least once daily.
- Play calming cat music. Some studies have shown a positive response of cats to music specifically designed for cats.
If nothing you’re doing at home is working, then it’s time to visit your VCA care team to rule out any health conditions and discuss treatment options. Your VCA care team can talk to you about behavioral modification techniques, such as desensitization and counterconditioning. They also have access to medications that can help manage anxiety, such as gabapentin for short-term anxieties or amitriptyline for long-term anxiety. Dosing for cats is different from dosing for humans. Your young cat should never be given your human medications.
Find out about desensitization and counterconditioning as behavioral therapies for anxiety and fear.
