Tips On Reducing Cat Stress
You may see your cat curled up in a ball, purring away and not be aware that they can also become stressed and suffer from anxiety. It's more common than you think. A stressed out cat can negatively affect their health just the same as humans, so its important to always keep an eye on this. As always, any changes in your cats behaviour should be checked out from a veterinarian to rule out any underlying health issues.
There is however ways you can help reduce your cats stress and anxiety. Lets jump right in!
Providing Hiding Spots
Its important that your cat has ample hiding spots within the home so they can retreat to whenever they feel the need. For example, one of our cats Luna whenever the door goes or someone unknown enters our house, shes straight under the bed, or up her cat tree into the cubby hole until she knows who it is. Without these hiding places, your cats stress will increase as they will not have the place to feel safe and assess any situations. Another good tip for us humans, its important that you know where your cats regular hiding spots are incase you need to find them quickly in emergencies.
Vertical Height & Scratching Posts
We touched on this in a previous blog post, however its important that your cat has the ability to climb within your home. Climbing is built into your cats natural instincts along with clawing. RIP to your sofa if you don't have any scratching posts! Cats need to scratch to keep their claws sharp, exercise, stretch their muscles and keep their territory. Without these abilities, cats will become stressed and take it out on something not designed to be climbed or scratched. Cat climbing trees and scratching posts are the perfect idea to place around your home.
Regular Play & Attention
How Often are you taking the time to play with your cat daily? Keeping your cats mind stimulated is a great way to help reduce stress. It not only provides your cat with some fun and entertainment, its a great way to introduce exercise and bonding with your furry friend. You may have to figure out what toy your cat loves to play with most, and cycle through different ones to keep them entertained. For our cats Luna & Lexi, the trusty laser pointer is a firm favourite.
Try to spend at least 20-30 minutes a couple of times a day actively engaging your cat in play.
Clean Litter / Toilet Area
We all know that if you own a cat, a litter box is a necessity!
If you have more than one cat in your household, there needs to be be at least one litter box for each cat plus one extra. Litter boxes must be kept clean and should be large enough for your cat to fit comfortably in the box. Find a spot thats in a quiet area of the home so as not to disturb them whilst doing their. business!
Stress Of Moving & Change In Environment
If you have ever moved house with a cat, you know its never a fun experience, for the cat or yourself! Big changes in environment can cause stress for you cats. Ways to limit their stress is to try and keep them out the way whilst the big move is going on, such as giving them a quiet room with some of their toys, bed, food/water and litter trays. Theres also products on the market such as Feliway which helps cats relax in stressful situations and environments.