Many cats are sociable and active. However, when you suddenly notice that your cat becomes quiet and calm, it could be a sign of sadness.
Many owners fail to recognize the signs of a depressed or sad cat. It is very important for you to know the various causes of sadness in cats and the best ways to make them happy.
Cats are emotional and can become stressed or depressed. The most common signs of an unhappy cat are cowering, hissing, and running away.
But sometimes your cat may not show obvious signs of stress. This is why you, as a pet owner, need to know how cats behave when they are depressed.
- Reasons why your cat is sad
- Losing a loved one
- Trauma, damage
- Disease
- Signs of a Sad Cat Low Energy Levels
- Changes in care
- Pain
- Changes in appetite
- Changing your daily routine
- Aggression
- These include:
- Buy toys for your cat
Signs of a Sad Cat
Your cat may show subtle signs of stress, making it difficult to notice any changes in behavior. To determine if your cat is unwell, check for these possible signs of depression:
Low energy level
Cats usually sleep a lot. A depressed cat will sleep even more. If you notice a sudden change in your cat's sleep pattern, it means she may be unhappy.
Unusually low energy levels are a red flag for an unhappy cat, suggesting mental or physical problems.
Changes in care
Depressed cats usually stop grooming themselves, leaving themselves unkempt.
Pain
Pain is one of the most underdiagnosed conditions in cats, especially in older adults. This is one of the main clinical signs of depression.
Changes in appetite
If your cat changes its usual eating behavior, it could be a sign of depression. Sad cats may lose interest in their regular diet.
Changing your daily routine
A cat that suddenly changes its behavior may be stressed. Have they stopped using the litter box? Do they leave their usual sleeping area? A sad cat may lose interest in the activity that initially made him happy.
Aggression
A sad cat becomes more aggressive. Examples of aggressive behavior in cats include hissing, biting, chasing, and growling. If you notice this behavior, it may be time to visit your veterinarian.
What to do if the animal gets worse?
If such a symptom is combined with an externally unhealthy appearance of the animal, then consultation with a veterinarian is necessary.
If your four-legged friend hasn’t eaten or drunk all day, but he goes to the toilet normally, is cheerful, and plays, most likely nothing bad has happened. You need to constantly monitor your pet, and if he licks his lips, offer him food and water. But when the cat’s condition is severely disturbed, she has suddenly lost weight and it is clear that she is feeling unwell, it is necessary to urgently take the pet to the hospital. At the initial appointment, the veterinarian will examine the animal, ask the owner about disturbing symptoms, and collect other important information. To understand what to do next, you need to find out the cause of this condition. For this, additional diagnostic methods are prescribed:
- blood and urine tests;
- coprogram;
- biochemistry;
- Ultrasound of internal organs;
- radiography.
How to make a cat happy
There are several ways to make your sad cat happy.
These include:
Make time for games. Depressed cats will get rid of their aggression if you play with them.
Pet the cat. Cats love to communicate with their owners (although in the case of cats, you still need to think about who the owners are - cats or people). Your gentle, stroking hand can stabilize an anxious cat without restricting its movement.
Using catnip. Catnip is a plant in the mint family that contains the natural oil nepetalactone, which has unique effects on cats. When cats rub or chew catnip, it produces a mild, natural high that is both safe and temporary, but enjoyable for cats.
Specialist consultations. A certified animal behaviorist may be your best choice to cheer up your pet, as they have the knowledge and experience to treat depressed pets.
When to call the vet. If you notice that your cat is showing signs of chronic depression, stress or illness, you should contact your veterinarian. Your veterinarian may recommend medical intervention or simply change your daily routine.
Signs of a sick cat include:
- Loss of appetite
- Changing your sleep pattern
- Crying or searching
- Need for extra attention
- Overall sad behavior
Serious reasons why a cat is lethargic
However, the lethargy of a pet should not be taken lightly: it happens that a cat is lethargic due to illness:
- Stress
. If the cat has become lethargic, it may be due to a mental disorder, which can occur in pets for various reasons, for example, when moving to a new home, changing owners, having a new pet in the house, or suddenly switching to new food. The main signs of stress in cats include lethargy (although in some cases the pet may look very agitated), refusal to eat or literally gorging, constant licking of fur (even to the point of bald spots), bad behavior (the cat marks and shits outside the tray, screams loudly, gnaws flowers, destroys furniture, etc.). As a rule, stress goes away on its own if you regularly communicate and play with the cat, but in some cases it is necessary to take sedatives; - Poisoning
. If the cat has become lethargic, trembles, breathes loudly and heavily, refuses to eat, has vomiting and/or diarrhea, saliva runs heavily, the mucous membranes have turned red or blue, the temperature has risen or dropped (normal temperature in adult cats is from 37.5 up to 39 degrees, for kittens - from 39 to 39.5 degrees), there is a suspicion that the animal has been seriously poisoned by something. What can cause poisoning in pets? Anything: rotten fish, houseplant juice, washing powder, rodent poison and much more; - Jumps in blood pressure
(very difficult to diagnose!). There is a possibility that the cat is lethargic all the time if she has low or high blood pressure, which normally ranges from 105/65 to 135/95 mmHg. Signs of high blood pressure include apathy, red eyes, dilated pupils, blurred vision (this can be calculated by observing an animal that will bump into walls or furniture when walking), noises during breathing, swelling of the extremities, vomiting, nosebleeds, high pulse (more than 180 beats per minute). Low blood pressure can be recognized by constant drowsiness, loss of appetite due to nausea, decreased heart rate (below 80 beats per minute), and loss of consciousness. If your pet has such symptoms, you need to quickly go to the veterinarian; - Endocrine disorders
. In some situations, a cat is lethargic due to diabetes mellitus or Cushing's syndrome. Plus, don’t forget about hormonal imbalance, which often occurs in pets after giving birth, and even after sterilization, a lethargic cat is common. You can figure out from the following symptoms that your pet has endocrine problems: extreme thirst, frequent urination, changes in appetite (the cat either begins to eat very little or constantly asks to be fed), deterioration in the condition of the coat and skin, an increase in the volume of the abdomen, weight fluctuations, cramps, heaviness of gait, blurred vision, low motor activity as a result of weakening muscles; - Diseases of the musculoskeletal system
, for example, osteochondrosis, arthritis, joint dysplasia, bone fractures, joint dislocations, ligament rupture. Find out that a cat has problems of this nature simply by the following symptoms: lameness, refusal to jump, change in gait, pain (the cat growls and bites if the owner touches the sore spot), swelling in the area of the affected joints, refusal to eat and apathy. Cats with diseases of the locomotor system often do not sharpen their claws, take poor care of their coats, and do not wash themselves; - Oncology
. If the cat is lethargic, lies down most of the day, eats very little or refuses food at all, is rapidly losing weight and meows pitifully, suffers from vomiting, diarrhea and internal bleeding, the development of cancer can be suspected. Other signs of cancer in cats include bad breath, the appearance of ulcers and minor swelling on the body (in some cases the tumor is visible to the naked eye), aimless wandering around the apartment; - Infectious diseases
. A cat is usually very lethargic with the following infectious diseases: calcivirosis, rhinotracheitis, leptospirosis, panleukopenia, immunodeficiency virus. Common signs of these illnesses include a rise in body temperature, refusal to eat, shortness of breath, cough, wheezing during breathing, vomiting and diarrhea (usually foul-smelling and greenish), changes in the color of mucous membranes, discharge from the nose and eyes; - Parasites internal and external
. We are talking about the most common uninvited guests - worms, ticks and fleas. Helminthic infestations are recognized by stool disorders (a cat may have diarrhea alternating with constipation), vomiting, weight loss, an increase in abdominal volume, flatulence and rumbling in the abdomen, bad breath, greenish discharge from the eyes. Ear mites can be identified by constant shaking of the head, the appearance of a large amount of dark sticky wax, and itching (the animal constantly scratches its ears). Ticks on the body provoke the appearance of wounds and scales on the skin, hair loss to the point of baldness, and constant itching. Other parasites, fleas, manifest themselves in much the same way. Many owners fight worms with deworming agents, and use insectoacaricides to eliminate skin parasites, but before using such products it is better to consult a specialist; - Inflammatory diseases of internal organs
. Almost any inflammation is guaranteed to cause apathy in the cat and a refusal to play. So, a cat can be sad, for example, with gastritis or colitis, pancreatitis, cholecystitis, pyelonephritis, stomatitis, myocarditis. There are plenty of inflammatory diseases, so it’s difficult to name general symptoms. With inflammatory diseases of the gastrointestinal tract in animals, stool disorders and vomiting, bloating, flatulence, blood in the stool, and fever are observed. If there are problems with the urinary system, the cat is lethargic and does not eat for several days or eats but little, there will probably be thirst and pain during urination. If the heart is affected, the pulse will rise above normal and shortness of breath will appear. And if the cat’s mouth is inflamed, the cat will salivate heavily, the gums will become red and swollen, and the appetite will decrease or disappear; - Hypovitaminosis
. Lethargy can also be caused by a lack of vitamins, for example, with a poor, monotonous diet. Animals with this problem are often inferior in height to their counterparts, they have dull hair and poor skin condition (dermatitis, dandruff), females often have miscarriages, and have problems with bowel movements; - Anemia
. If the production of hemoglobin and red blood cells is disrupted, almost all purrs experience weakness, cyanosis of the mucous membranes, shortness of breath, a drop in blood pressure, pulse fluctuations, and deterioration in the quality of the coat; - Dehydration
. With a lack of water in the body, the cat is lethargic and the nose is dry, the skin loses elasticity, the eyeballs look sunken, the mucous membranes dry out, saliva becomes sticky and viscous, and the pads of the fingers are cold to the touch. A cat in this state does not eat and hardly drinks, although it desperately needs water. If the animal cannot be given water even by force, you should immediately contact the clinic, where the doctor will prescribe an infusion of electrolyte solutions subcutaneously or intravenously; - Foreign body in the pharynx or elsewhere in the gastrointestinal tract
. If the cat is lethargic and does not drink, and also refuses to eat, it often vomits and salivates profusely, its voice becomes hoarse, there is a possibility that something is stuck in the throat or elsewhere in the gastrointestinal tract, for example, a fish bone or small part from a toy; - Various complications after surgery
(suppuration or suture dehiscence, postoperative hernia, etc.). If the cat appears lethargic after surgery during the first 1-3 days, then there is nothing to worry about, provided that the animal drinks water and shows at least minimal interest in food. Fever, plaintive meowing, blood or pus from a postoperative wound, constipation, vomiting are reasons to immediately contact the clinic.
Cat care
Cats are wonderful animals. However, before purchasing one for your pet, you should know what they need and how to make them happy.
Needs of cats. Unlike pets such as a dog, cats do not require much socialization, training, or exercise. They are quite unpretentious.
Cats tend to be more independent and can adapt well if you lead a busy lifestyle. They can also be handy if you live in a small apartment or house.
How to stop your cat from being sad. There are several ways to protect your cat from sadness:
Buy toys for your cat
Toys will keep your cat busy and tired, thereby getting rid of excess energy.
Keep cats in pairs
This will help improve communication and find playmates, reducing or preventing stress.
Let your cat "hunt"
Imitating hunting behavior keeps cats mentally stimulated and active.
Walk the cat
Exercising your cat will help you get rid of excess energy and stress. Contact a professional trainer to teach your cat how to walk on a leash.
If the fluffy doesn't eat or drink, his nose is dry
There is an opinion among owners that a dry nose in a cat indicates the presence of a certain disease. However, this rule does not work in all cases. If you touch your cat's nose after sleep , you will find that it is dry. Therefore, the conclusion that the cat is sick will be incorrect. If your pet doesn't eat for several days and she still has this symptom, then you shouldn't wait any longer and it's time to take her to the vet.
You should not place high hopes on self-medication, since such methods may not always be effective. If the nose is dry, it won’t hurt to touch the cat , because it is possible that its temperature is elevated. If you find this symptom, then this is another reason why you should immediately show the animal to a veterinarian.
