Ever since I got him, this hasn't abated: I've noticed that my cat, Lux's body language is always defensive, except when he forgets himself and starts to enjoy himself and then remembers himself and goes on the defensive again. By this I mean shoulders up and neck tense, ready to move away. He also walks with his tail down just about always, except when he wants food and then it's up. Is anyone else's cat like this? Does my cat really just have an anxiety disorder or something?
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Body language always defensive?
- Thread starter satsumasryummy
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How long have you had him? Do you have any other cats? Have you tried a Feliway diffuser?
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- #3
I've had him for about a year now, and he wears a pheromone collar. If he doesn't, he is considerably more anxious. Acts like he's wired on caffeine, but cat-style. Sometimes he will randomly attack himself with grooming. Doesn't overgroom (no bald patches) but it seems to be something that he does to cope with anxiety, because he does it when he's nervous. I think he might have an anxiety disorder but I'm not sure. Oh and I don't have any other cats, and there are no other cats in the house.
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It's wonderful that you're so attuned to his body language. Assuming (based on your previous posts about him), that he's been seen by a vet and physical conditions have been ruled out, it is very possible that his personality is just a bit like that. Your best bet at this point is just to let him be.
A year isn't enough time to fully acclimate into a new household for a more sensitive cat. He may still change and relax down the road. All you can do is give him time and space and preferably not fuss over him. Even staring at him for long could be upsetting for him. Just try to relax as much as you can around him - he does pick up on your anxiety level and it can certainly affect him.
I have a sweet neurotic scaredy cat at home myself. It's taken him literally years to relax enough to the point where he feels comfortable cuddling up to me. He still doesn't like to be held up and he prefers to come to me when I'm busy typing away on the computer, or, even better, sleeping in bed. It's fine, it's just the way he is and it makes those special moments all the more special to me.
A year isn't enough time to fully acclimate into a new household for a more sensitive cat. He may still change and relax down the road. All you can do is give him time and space and preferably not fuss over him. Even staring at him for long could be upsetting for him. Just try to relax as much as you can around him - he does pick up on your anxiety level and it can certainly affect him.
I have a sweet neurotic scaredy cat at home myself. It's taken him literally years to relax enough to the point where he feels comfortable cuddling up to me. He still doesn't like to be held up and he prefers to come to me when I'm busy typing away on the computer, or, even better, sleeping in bed. It's fine, it's just the way he is and it makes those special moments all the more special to me.
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- #5
That's the "funny" (but not really) thing: I actually have an anxiety disorder (two actually...) and have been wondering if I somehow imparted this to him.
I still believe that he can become at his best with some exta care, because I know I am - it's tricker with me because I have a more sophisticated mind to wrestle with (oh to be an animal), but with him it's a matter of controlling his environment and treatments. So I'm looking for treatments I suppose, and any experiences with this sort of thing. What have you done to help your cat along the way? And did your cat have a rough past?
I still believe that he can become at his best with some exta care, because I know I am - it's tricker with me because I have a more sophisticated mind to wrestle with (oh to be an animal), but with him it's a matter of controlling his environment and treatments. So I'm looking for treatments I suppose, and any experiences with this sort of thing. What have you done to help your cat along the way? And did your cat have a rough past?
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Satsumas,
I totally get this. I suffer from anxiety and I know I project some of this on my child and pets, which of course make it worse. I should probably go talk to someone, but I don't know who. I talk to my doctor and she just prescribes meds, which I hate and avoid.
My anxiety isn't extreme, but I am going through some work stuff that has made it bad, plus we had a dog stolen a few weeks ago, so I have become weird about my pets.
Good luck, have you tried felliway or composure? My feral kitten gets both and they really help. I crush the composure treats and feed them in baby food. They help take the edge off her fear. The felliway diffuser is always on, I catch her going up to it and sniffing it sometimes. It calms her down.
Composure comes in drops also, which in am probably going to order when I get my felliway refills. Amazon is the cheapest place to get both of these. I have prime so it is nice to get them quickly.
I totally get this. I suffer from anxiety and I know I project some of this on my child and pets, which of course make it worse. I should probably go talk to someone, but I don't know who. I talk to my doctor and she just prescribes meds, which I hate and avoid.
My anxiety isn't extreme, but I am going through some work stuff that has made it bad, plus we had a dog stolen a few weeks ago, so I have become weird about my pets.
Good luck, have you tried felliway or composure? My feral kitten gets both and they really help. I crush the composure treats and feed them in baby food. They help take the edge off her fear. The felliway diffuser is always on, I catch her going up to it and sniffing it sometimes. It calms her down.
Composure comes in drops also, which in am probably going to order when I get my felliway refills. Amazon is the cheapest place to get both of these. I have prime so it is nice to get them quickly.
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- #7
I'm sorry to hear you're going through anxiety. It's just an extra, unnecessary thing to drain you on top of the rest of life's goings-on. I hope you can work through your current issues gracefully - I find that spending more time alone helps, if at all possible, and doing more relaxing things.
I pretty much wake up anxious and fall asleep anxious and I also have some compulsive tendencies, and I can see this being reflected in Lux's behaviour. It just makes me so sad that not only does my anxiety sometimes make me off-putting to people around me, but also that I'm harming my pet indirectly just by being myself. I noticed his body language because I know that my body language is more often than not on the defensive, because of unconscious anxiety that I can't control - sure, I can make it less severe, but nothing will make it fully go away. It's upsetting to think that I may have indirectly screwed up his mental health because of that. His previous owner said that he was affectionate and playful, and said nothing about him being nervous. Of course, getting adopted twice may have upset him, so I factor that in, but I can't get rid of the niggling thought that "I did this to him".
I have not tried either of those. I give Lux the pheromone collar every month and herbal calming drops, both of which take him down a few notches but that's not a big difference if you consider his usual state to that of an average, alert but chill cat. He looks like he's about to get eaten at every instant when the collar has stopped working. When it's working, he's jumpy, but not to that extent.
I haven't seen Composure anywhere, so thanks for the tip about Amazon. Have you used the Comfort Zone variety of Feliway or just the regular Ceva? Was thinking about trying E-Z Rest or another homeopathic calming aid. I also tried flower essences with him and had some pretty great progress there but they are so expensive and I need them too! When my finances look up I know I'll be putting into place a new treatment for him, though.
I pretty much wake up anxious and fall asleep anxious and I also have some compulsive tendencies, and I can see this being reflected in Lux's behaviour. It just makes me so sad that not only does my anxiety sometimes make me off-putting to people around me, but also that I'm harming my pet indirectly just by being myself. I noticed his body language because I know that my body language is more often than not on the defensive, because of unconscious anxiety that I can't control - sure, I can make it less severe, but nothing will make it fully go away. It's upsetting to think that I may have indirectly screwed up his mental health because of that. His previous owner said that he was affectionate and playful, and said nothing about him being nervous. Of course, getting adopted twice may have upset him, so I factor that in, but I can't get rid of the niggling thought that "I did this to him".
I have not tried either of those. I give Lux the pheromone collar every month and herbal calming drops, both of which take him down a few notches but that's not a big difference if you consider his usual state to that of an average, alert but chill cat. He looks like he's about to get eaten at every instant when the collar has stopped working. When it's working, he's jumpy, but not to that extent.
I haven't seen Composure anywhere, so thanks for the tip about Amazon. Have you used the Comfort Zone variety of Feliway or just the regular Ceva? Was thinking about trying E-Z Rest or another homeopathic calming aid. I also tried flower essences with him and had some pretty great progress there but they are so expensive and I need them too! When my finances look up I know I'll be putting into place a new treatment for him, though.
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I used comfort zone. I tried the cpmposure treats, which she wont touch unless I crumble them and put them in her wet food or baby food.
Life is fun. I have always been anxious, but I thought it was just nervous energy. Two years ago I had a really rough time making a great career move. I tried meds, but hate what they did to me. Thus I have a little guilt about giving the cat these treatments. But they really seem to make her life better. She doesn't seem doped up. She seems like a more curious and confident kitty.
Life is fun. I have always been anxious, but I thought it was just nervous energy. Two years ago I had a really rough time making a great career move. I tried meds, but hate what they did to me. Thus I have a little guilt about giving the cat these treatments. But they really seem to make her life better. She doesn't seem doped up. She seems like a more curious and confident kitty.
I have given Composure treats and liquid to my cats. The liquid is much easier to give in wet food. I use the Composure Liquid Max. I started giving 1/2 t. in the morning and 1/4 t. in the evening. I gave it every single day for months. I just now after 7 months completely weaned him off. I order it from Amazon too. I have used both the Feliway and Comfort Zone plug ins and cannot tell a difference between the two.
You can try accupuncture (on your cat--or human).
Ritz (semi-feral when rescued from the streets, survived a 20" snow storm) is a stressed out cat. She still startles easily, takes a LONG time to feel safe with people, especially if they haven't been around cats.
My friend who rescued and fostered Ritz is an accupuncturist. Ritz has FHS and she's had two treatments but months apart. While it didn't help her FHS, I noticed she was a LOT calmer, peaceful 24 hours afterwards. Accupuncture should be done at least every other week, weekly is preferable if possible (time and money). If the 30 minute car ride didn't stress Ritz out so much, I'd take her more often.
As an aside, some pet insurance covers the cost of accupuncture if done by a vet.
Also, I have an eating disorder (anorexia), and I think that is part of the reason Ritz is food-obsessed. That and she literally didn't know where her next meal was coming from when she was living on the streets. I feel badly about that (I'm in therapy), but I know my guilt, stress directly impacts Ritz so I try to temper it down. "Act as if."
Ritz (semi-feral when rescued from the streets, survived a 20" snow storm) is a stressed out cat. She still startles easily, takes a LONG time to feel safe with people, especially if they haven't been around cats.
My friend who rescued and fostered Ritz is an accupuncturist. Ritz has FHS and she's had two treatments but months apart. While it didn't help her FHS, I noticed she was a LOT calmer, peaceful 24 hours afterwards. Accupuncture should be done at least every other week, weekly is preferable if possible (time and money). If the 30 minute car ride didn't stress Ritz out so much, I'd take her more often.
As an aside, some pet insurance covers the cost of accupuncture if done by a vet.
Also, I have an eating disorder (anorexia), and I think that is part of the reason Ritz is food-obsessed. That and she literally didn't know where her next meal was coming from when she was living on the streets. I feel badly about that (I'm in therapy), but I know my guilt, stress directly impacts Ritz so I try to temper it down. "Act as if."
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- #11
@Datagrrl: Thanks! And the way I see it, this sort of treatment is more akin to the holistic/therapy style given to humans, because pharmaceuticals are also given to cats. So I don't think there's any need to feel bad! I think medicine overall has been given a bad rap by the likes of pharmaceuticals but holistic and natural care is safe and effective.
@ShadowsRescue Thank you
I will look into the liquid. In terms of effectiveness, would you say the Composure or the Feliway/Comfort Zone was more effective? I need to pick between them because of the cost.
@Ritz: That's an interesting tip about acupuncture. I've heard of it used for cats before, but I never knew it was used for anxiety. It doesn't sound like it's in my budget, but I'll for sure keep it in mind for when my wallet is a bit heftier. And I'm sorry to hear that you suffer with an eating disorder, but thank you for sharing. I have also had ED-NOS for most of my life and am still working on recovery. Stay strong girl <3 You're not alone. I don't intend to be pushy or out of line by saying this, but if you want to talk to someone who has had that sort of experience at any point, you're absolutely welcome to PM me. I just want to put that out there so you know, I don't expect you to write me or anything. And... I also really like your tip about acting "as if" - the power of the mind is pretty amazing and this has worked for me before...at least until I forget about acting "as if" and my mind takes me on some tangent xD
@ShadowsRescue Thank you
I will look into the liquid. In terms of effectiveness, would you say the Composure or the Feliway/Comfort Zone was more effective? I need to pick between them because of the cost. @Ritz: That's an interesting tip about acupuncture. I've heard of it used for cats before, but I never knew it was used for anxiety. It doesn't sound like it's in my budget, but I'll for sure keep it in mind for when my wallet is a bit heftier. And I'm sorry to hear that you suffer with an eating disorder, but thank you for sharing. I have also had ED-NOS for most of my life and am still working on recovery. Stay strong girl <3 You're not alone. I don't intend to be pushy or out of line by saying this, but if you want to talk to someone who has had that sort of experience at any point, you're absolutely welcome to PM me. I just want to put that out there so you know, I don't expect you to write me or anything. And... I also really like your tip about acting "as if" - the power of the mind is pretty amazing and this has worked for me before...at least until I forget about acting "as if" and my mind takes me on some tangent xD
