When cats feel threatened, they usually respond in three ways to the object, person or situation they perceive as a threat: fight, flee or freeze. Some cats become so frightened they lose control of their bladder or bowels and eliminate right where they are.
Freeze. As an alternative to 'fight' and 'flight', your cat may freeze when they are either startled by something, or when they do not have the option to retreat to safety.
While flight or fight are 2 of the normal responses to something your cat is scared of, "freeze" is another response. Think of a deer in the headlights; it's frozen in place because it's afraid. Sometimes, this happens to your cat, too, when it's afraid. Your cat may become statue-like, frozen in a scared position.
The classic response of getting scared stiff, is as common in cats as it is in humans. Freezing like this often appears alongside hypervigilance, dilated pupils and hair standing on end. When shocked, freezing helps cats to analyse their environment.
Signs of Emotional Trauma in Cats and Dogs
Trauma can also manifest as “shaking, hiding, urination and/or defecation when the trigger attempts to interact, howling, pacing, excessive vocalization, and panting,” says Pia Silvani, director of behavioral rehabilitation at the ASPCA's Behavioral Rehabilitation Center.
Cat anxiety symptoms include:
Hiding, pacing, crouching defensively. New aggressive or overly clingy behavior. Meowing way more than usual. Coat changes from not grooming or bald patches from over-grooming.
As a general rule, cats are sensitive when it comes to smells, but there are a few scents they hate that might just surprise you. They can't stand citrus and as much as you might love the smell of fresh herbs, cats hate rosemary and thyme. Banana and mustard are a big no-no too, as well as lavender and eucalyptus.
Cats have many scent glands on their head, especially in the nose, mouth and chin area; with each rub against you, these glands leave behind a "mark." Rubbing their head all over you is their way of saying, "I love you." In exchange for nuzzling, your cat probably gets a lot of cuddles from you, which is a strong ...
Although long believed to be a harmless way to provide restraint and mimic how a mother cat picks up her kittens, scruffing is actually not a secure way to restrain a cat, and it's also a forceful technique that induces fear and anxiety in most pets.
Fading Kitten Syndrome refers to a kitten's failure to thrive during the period between birth and when they wean from their mother or from a bottle for hand-fed kittens. This period lasts about four to five weeks (when a kitten is most vulnerable to sickness).
Situational (white coat) hypertension is when “false positive” high blood pressure readings occur due to stress.
“Cats use the flehmen response to detect chemical stimuli, such as pheromones, that are present in urine and feces, or areas that cats have marked with scent glands,” says Dr. Sasha Gibbons of Just Cats Veterinary Hospital in Stamford, Connecticut.
While some vets and animal experts seem to agree that cats can get ADHD, the condition isn't recognized by all. Cats can exhibit symptoms or personality and behavioral traits that are often linked to ADHD in humans, especially human children.
Mother cats only carry kittens by the scruff for the first few weeks of life. They can do that because kittens have a reflex in which their bodies go totally limp when picked up by the scruff—a reflex that is lost by adolescence. What is often seen as “relaxation” in a scruffed cat is actually behavioral shutdown.
Signs Of Obvious Distress
Cats are typically very stoic animals, so if your cat suddenly seems to be in distress, it is a cause for concern. Howling, crying, hiding, and otherwise acting in a way that is out of character for your pet should alert you that something may be seriously wrong.
Cats will usually rub against the areas they can reach, such as hands or legs, but headbutting signifies that you're particularly special to them. If you pet your cat in response to rubbing, this tells your cat that you accept them as part of your group, too!
Sleeping near you
If your kitty likes to sleep near you - or even on you - this is an indication that they have total trust in you.
PetMD also points out that cats are territorial creatures. They claim their turf by marking it with their scent. So when they sleep on top of you, they're actually marking you—and your bed—as theirs. We should be flattered by this behavior, apparently.
Catnip and More.
Many herbs we use in cooking are safe and fun for cats to sniff, and some are known to be feline favorites. Catnip, part of the mint family, affects many cats with a scent-induced kitty “high.” Silver vine has a similar effect. And valerian can energize cats.
Texture: Sticky paper, aluminum foil, heavy plastic or a plastic carpet runner (knubby side up) can be placed in areas you want to be off limits. Cats hate walking on these surfaces.
While some cats enjoy having their tails touched, others will recoil and even experience pain from a tail stroke. Take it slowly, paying close attention to your cat's reactions to your touch and always respecting their preferences.
Short answer: yes. When their needs for companionship are not met, cats can become depressed. They can also get separation anxiety. Unfortunately, feline separation anxiety often goes unnoticed until it becomes severe.
As with dogs, cats have a limited concept of time: they can learn to distinguish between different time intervals but only when these intervals are limited to a few seconds. Thinking back into the more distant past is probably beyond their abilities.
Overall, cat cognition research suggests cats do form emotional bonds with their humans. Cats seem to experience separation anxiety, are more responsive to their owners' voices than to strangers' and look for reassurance from their owners in scary situations.