Separation anxiety can affect cats. Massive
publicity about a new pharmacological medication treatment for
separation anxiety in dogs (Clomicalm, Novartis Animal Health)
has clued most pet owners in to the existence and nature of
separation anxiety in that species. In addition, many parents
have heard of separation anxiety that affects some sensitive
children going to school for the first time. But what most
people don’t know is that separation anxiety can affect
cats, too.
Cats with separation anxiety don’t howl and bay like dogs
and they don’t chew on doors and windowsills in frantic
attempts to escape. Their misery is far less obvious and it
sometimes takes a sleuth of an owner to appreciate what is
going on. Separation anxiety in any species implies a lack of
confidence and an over-dependence on others.
It is likely that genetic factors play a role
in increasing susceptibility to separation anxiety though
environmental factors are ultimately responsible for its
expression. Genetic factors include emotional sensitivity and
a predisposition toward anxiety. Certain oriental breeds, such
as Siamese and Burmese, may be more prone to develop
separation anxiety than cats with more robust temperaments,
like Maine coons.
Environmental factors often involve improper bonding
experiences when cats are young. Orphaned kittens,
early-weaned kittens, and pet store bought kittens are
probably at the greatest risk of developing this stressful
condition. Combine the sensitive personality with
inappropriate early lifetime experiences and you have a recipe
for disaster of this kind.
Signs of feline separation anxiety
Over-attachment to the owner, following that person from
room to room around the house.
Distress as the owner prepares to depart (so-called
pre-departure anxiety). This can take many forms but some
of the more common presentations are meowing, sulking,
apparent depression, slinking away, and hiding.
Vocalization (crying, moaning, meowing) right after the
owner has left (you might need to set a tape recorder to
check this sign).
Anorexia – the affected cat is often too anxious to
eat when left alone.
Inappropriate elimination – often in the form of urine
marking, though fecal marking may also sometimes occur.
Deposits of urine or feces are often near to the door from
which the owner has departed or are on that person’s
clothing, bed sheets, or other personal effects.
Vomiting - only in the owner’s absence.
Excessive self-grooming. This starts as a displacement
behavior but can progress to compulsive self-grooming, if
unchecked. In the latter scenario, excessive self-grooming
no longer occurs only when the owner is away but will also
be expressed during the owner’s presence.
Destructive behavior – rare, but some cats may claw
and scratch door edges presumably in an attempt to escape
from their solitary confinement.
Exuberant greeting behavior – as if greeting a long
lost friend that they did not expect to see ever again.
Treatment
Behavioral: Though in dogs it is possible to train
independence (train them to "stand on their own four
feet"), this is much more tricky in cats. Some aspects of
the canine program might be helpful (see Canine Separation
Anxiety), however, such as encouraging the cat to sleep in a
cat bed in an area where she will be left confined during the
owner’s daytime absences. Enriching the cat’s "home
alone" environment may also help. This can be achieved by
means of:
Climbing frames positioned to give the cat a good view
of the outside world.
An assortment of mobile toys perhaps enhanced with
catnip or hunting lures.
Putting the day’s ration of kibble in a buster cube
put down by the owner on leaving. Although cats with
separation anxiety tend not to eat when left alone, hunger
is a great sauce when other opportunities to eat are
curtailed. The food puzzle should be available only when
the owner is away and should be picked up the moment they
return. Some caveats apply if cats refuse to eat for more
than a day or so. Consult your local vet if this turns out
to be the case and try to work out some kind of
compromise.
Leaving on the radio. The "white noise" effect
of the radio drowns out the otherwise perturbing sound of
silence.
Medical: If behavior modification by independence
training and environmental enrichment do not work it may be
necessary to resort to anti-anxiety medication for the cat for
a while. Medications that might help include:
Clomicalm (clomipramine)– although only licensed for
use in dogs, it can be used in cats "extra
label" under proper veterinary guidance and may be
helpful in feline separation anxiety.
Prozac (fluoxetine) – a human medication. Similar
extra label precautions apply.
Buspar (buspirone) – a human anxiety-reducing drug
that may well help some cats with separation anxiety
(again use is extra label).
Conclusion
Although owners of dogs with separation anxiety are often
concerned about the havoc wrecked on their homes in their
absence or constant barking, cat owners do not have such
issues to concern them. Cats are usually not as destructive as
dogs in the way they express separation anxiety, and the
problem may sometimes be overlooked; however, the emotional
aspects of separation anxiety still exist. Severely affected
cats find themselves in an insufferable predicament when their
owner leaves and may experience almost uncontainable anxiety.
While cats occasionally express their suffering overtly in
ways that their owner finds unacceptable, for example, by
urine marking or hair-pulling ["psychogenic
alopecia"], less obvious forms of the condition should be
recognized and treated for humanitarian reasons. Ask not what
your cat is doing to your home, only what you can do to
improve its existence.
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