Humans are not the only living things that have emotions. The ability to feel happiness, pain and fear can be possessed by animals to survive. Reporting from The Emotional Intelligence of Animals, there are five examples of animal emotions that appear human.
The five emotions are a sense of justice, a desire for revenge, maternal affection, heartbreak, and empathy. Apart from the five emotions that have been mentioned, animals can also experience feelings of stress/depression.
Cats are one of them. What are the causes of a depressed cat? What are the signs of a depressed cat? What to do when your cat is depressed?
There are various causes of a depressed cat. The causes are:
- Moving home: Move to a new home will make cats have to adapt to the new environment so that most cats will be quiet or panic suddenly.
- Childbirth: Cats who are not ready to have children can also experience stress and usually do not want to breastfeed their children. Here’s what you should prepare for cat breeding preparation.
- Disease: Cause of stress can occur because the cat is sick due to discomfort arising from the pain.
- Do not have a partner: Cats that do not have partner, especially when they are in the lust period can also cause cats to become stressed and develop into depression.
- Travel: Carrying a cat while traveling will make it easier for the cat to be stressed due to shocks. Maybe you can leave them when you only travel for a short time. How you prepare cat emotionally before you travel without her?
As a cat owner, you need to know some of the possibilities of them experiencing stress and depression.
1. High and low voices
High and low voices of a cat in front of you can indicate they are happy or sad. The sound of a depressed cat is generally low-pitched. Unusual changes in a cat’s voice can be an indication they are experiencing discomfort.
2. Body expression
Depressed cats give signs with their bodies such as ears, tail poses, and other body parts to explain their feelings. Examples of body expressions shown are the movements of the cat holding its ears, tucking the tail, and the cat’s fur that looks as if it is standing.
3. Likes to be alone
Sometimes, cats like to stay in cages and hide in confined spaces. Including signs of cats experiencing stress, cats like to be alone and ignore everything around them.
Besides being alone, sometimes cats like to be quiet all of a sudden, and most likely, the mental state of the cat has decreased. If the cat has a severe mental attack, the cat will get sick and experience stress.
4. Experiencing vomiting and diarrhea
Characteristics of cats experiencing stress, which is experiencing vomiting due to digestive problems. Food consumed by cats usually causes it.
Cat owners must always check and research before giving food to the cat, so they don’t experience stress. But if you have watched the cat’s food healthily and adequately, but the cat is still vomiting, it means that your cat is experiencing stress.
5. Pee outside the litter box
If a cat pees outside the litter box, it can cause you to feel irritated by the smell and traces of urine. If your cat pees frequently, you should pay more attention to his health and behavior.
Most likely, your cat is experiencing stress, and the cat is trying to tell its owner by giving a sign of urination outside the litter box.
6. Don’t want to eat
Sometimes, cats also have no appetite. Sometimes, the greedy cat eats until it’s full, but the cat is also sometimes lazy to eat. If you see the state of your cat like that, it could be that your cat is experiencing stress with a problem in the digestive system.
7. More aggressive and defensive
One sign of a depressed cat is to have a more aggressive nature towards all things, both other animals, people, and cat owners themselves. The cat is defensive because he feels uncomfortable with what is around him.
What You Need to Do When Your Cat is Depressed
If your cat is experiencing depression, here’s how to deal with your depressed cat:
1. Play with them
A lack of attention causes depressed cats, and also they have no friends to play with, so they feel bored and even unnoticed. Especially when their owner is away. You may check out cats’ behaviors without their owners at home here.
Encourage your cat to play using toys that are usually in a pet shop, where this will help cats to be active and their hearts happy. In addition to providing toys that can be played together, you can also offer toys for cats that can make cats play alone. Check out these signs of cats that wants to play!
2. Give favorite food
Some cases make a cat depressed is from food that they eat. Sometimes cats will feel bored with the food that has never been replaced. Give the food your cat likes and still pay attention to the nutrition that is needed. Here are the best nutrition facts that should be contained in cat food.
You can make your variations of food by mixing chicken or fish. When your cat depressed, most of them will stop eating. Put your cat’s favorite food close to their nose. This method will help the cat to be interested in the menu.
3. Give attention
Cats are one animal that has feelings and can recognize the hearts of their owners. When cats are depressed, the most effective way is to always pay attention by gently stroking them.
It needs to be done so that the cat can understand that you love them so the cat will feel uplifted again and be able to move frequently. In addition to stroking them, you can always speak to them softly so that the cat slowly understands that you are there for them.
4. Pay attention to cat cleanliness and the environment
Cats are sometimes depressed because there are problems in their body. One of them is the problem of lice, which can create stress.
Fleas that attack will make the cat’s body feel itchy and make the cat always scratch their bodies. Besides, cats will also feel uncomfortable or disturbed by the presence of these fleas themselves and make them feel uncomfortable.