What Stresses Out My House Cat?

Stress is simply a fact of life for humans. It can be caused by everyday things such as your job, school, or family. One thing that many don't think about is the fact that your cat can get stressed out as well. Here are a few things that can stress out your cat and therefore possibly stress you out too.

#1: A New Family Member

Cats don't like having the status quo changed on them. They are accustomed to the way things are and want them to stay that way. When you introduce a new family memberhuman or animalyou disrupt the status quo and stress out your cat. The best thing you can do here is to not rush things. Let your cat get accustomed to the new situation at their won pace, don't force anything.

#2: A Move

Like mentioned above, cats are animals of habits, and moving them to a new house can cause them stress. Some cats may see this as an adventure. As a chance to explore new surroundings. However, most cats will just be scared, and stressed out by this new environment. To relieve the stress of a move, take your cats familiar things, like their crate, their favorite blanket, their bed, their litter box, and their toys. Then, put these things in a room, close the door, and leave your cat in their to get used to and comfortable with just this one small space. Then, open the door to this room, and let them roam around the house at their own pace. Leave the door open to that room with their stuff in it, so they can go back to that room when they get overwhelmed or scared.

#3: Holidays and Parties

Cats are not party animals. They would rather kickback, in the peace and quiet of the everyday norm. Most cat owners know their cat will be nowhere to be found during a party or a holiday in where a lot of people come over. The loud music, and talking scares and stresses your cat. To help them and keep them safe. You should put your cat in a quiet room where they can relax with being disturbed by the party guests. If you don't have a room like this during a party, you can put them in their crate. This is still a safe place for kitty, that makes them feel secure.

#4: A Change in Routine

When going about your day whether you know it or not. You have a certain routine your follow. Your cat picks up on this. They are used to you doing certain things at certain times of the day. They know when you are going to be home and when you're not. Try not to be so predictable. If your cat gets used to anyone thing the will get stressed out when things have to change for any reason. Whether it be a schedule change, a new job, or you simply decide to change your routine. This will stress them out. Shake it up a little. Don't repeat a pattern everyday that your cat can pick up on.

#5: Window Gazing

We all know that cats like to sit on the windowsill and look out the window. This is usually not a problem unless they can see things out the windowsuch as strange cats in the yardthat they cannot get to and get stressed out over it. This will often lead to misplaced aggression. The best thing to do if this happens is to find a way to keep them out of that particular window.

Remember, that cats are creatures of habit, and disrupting their day to day lives will cause stress. You as a cat owner should try to minimize these stresses as much as possible.

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- Kathrynn Kelley