Cat is very nervous after earthquake

[cocobutterfly]

We experienced an earthquake in SoCal shortly after 1am this morning. It was a 5.2 so not the biggest one but big enough to startle all of us awake. It was our cat's first earthquake, and when I went to her room to check on her seconds after the shake, she wasn't in her bed but crouching in the corner of the room with her eyes wide open and looking around as if an intruder was in the house. We were all spooked by the shake, but she was really freaked out. Just a little back story, our cat actually likes sleeping alone in her own room. We keep all the bedroom doors open at all times so she can wander in and out as she pleases, but she likes to sleep in her own room on her own bed at night.  

She's been jumpy, nervous and on high alert all day today. She usually naps a little between breakfast and noon, but she hasn't. She's been pacing around the house like she did when we first brought her home. I went to sit next to her, and she walked away. I opened my closet door, and she was startled and bolted out of my room. She seems kind of afraid of me and nervous to be around me. 

I know she'll calm back down in a day or two, but I'm now really concerned about the July 4th fireworks in our neighborhood. How do you all get your cats through loud thunderstorms, fireworks, construction noise, earthquakes, etc.?

 

[rickr]

Hi, I'm sure the quake was scary for everyone.  I don't have experience with earthquakes.  But I do live in the south where we are plagued by thunderstorms (and fireworks).  Most of the time my cats ignore the storm.  Every so often though, we experience a particularly severe storm that literally shakes the house on its foundation.  The comotion freaks the cats out.  I've had good success rubbing a few drops of Demeter Self-Heal between their shoulder blades.  Sometimes I also add a few drops of Aspen.  That seems to help.   I know many people report good success with feliway; however, it hasn't worked for us.  You might also give that a try. 

During storms and fireworks I open a closet and lay a sleeping bag on the floor to give the cats a safe heaven.  It gives them a someplace to hide until they feel comfortable.

I wish you the best.  Like you said, I'm sure your cat will settle down soon.      

 

[sirentist]

About the earthquake -- I know cats are super sensitive to vibrations and such. Is it possible she could be picking up on tiny aftershocks that humans (and perhaps even machinery) don't register? Ooh, or maybe she's picking up on tiny signals about the upcoming big one! Ackk! Run for the hills!

No, seriously, I do sympathize with wanting to somehow make it easier. Cats don't make it easy to make things easier, do they! Does she have a tiny hidden spot to retreat to? Even a box in a closet or something?

My cat is terrified of loud sounds -- particularly fireworks, thunder, and the dreaded vacuum -- and accepts absolutely no consolation whatsoever. The best I can do is make sure she has some good, dark, semi-enclosed places to hide. She'll sometimes opt to go under my bed, and other times will head for the back of a particular closet that's very deep and dark. I try not to make too big a deal of things when she's freaking out. I'll sometimes go into the room where she's hiding, and if I can get a second of eye contact, I'll do that, while just talking in my normal matter-of-fact voice, like, "Oh, you found a great safe spot! All right, I'll see you when things settle down!" or something. When the cleaners are here, downstairs, vacuuming, and she's hiding under my bed upstairs, I'll just sit on the bed with my computer and talk as though she were being totally normal and sitting beside me.

She's gotten better over the years, even to the point of nervously riding out the occasional thunderstorm without diving for cover. But she still hides. She usually comes right out once the din has subsided, and that's when I'll be all admiring of how brave and amazing she is.

Good luck getting your little one settled down!

 

[manemelissa]

I live at the other end of California, so while earthquakes don't bother us much, fireworks and occasionally thunderstorms do. My cat tends to hide in one of her "hideyholes" when these things happen and depending on how loud the sounds were or how long they lasted, she will be skittish the next couple of days. The same goes for construction.

All you can do it what RickR and Sirentist said and just be patient and wait for your cat to realize that the threat is gone.

We'll see how mine does this July... I'm going to be moving a week before the 4th, and the place we're moving to is closer to where the city fireworks are set off.

I hope yours calms down soon! <3

 

[missjosiemarie]

My cat reacts like this to almost any loud noise/movement. Even changing the bin bag she looks as if she's seen the end of the world. I'm going to give calming products a go to see if they help but once a cat has had an experience like that they say it stays with them. I think it's a good idea just to make sure they know that they are safe, make sure you are there to comfort them, perhaps a treat would be nice too

 

[Geoffrey]

Earthquakes are very rare in Australia but I recall that, many years ago, we were living in Sydney and one night my wife awakened me because Kinky was sitting on her chest!  His eyes were dilated and ears back and he was clearly terrified.  In the morning we heard on the radio that there had been an earthquake at Newcastle, a city over 50 miles away!

We had felt nothing, but our backdoor wouldn't shut.

Regards,

Geoffrey

 

[NewYork1303]

With fireworks, our main concern is making sure that we don't have any accidental escapes. We close the cats into our bedroom and hang out with them. They will often sleep under our blankets on our bed cuddled against our legs and sleep through the booms.

 

[sirentist]

Earthquakes are very rare in Australia but I recall that, many years ago, we were living in Sydney and one night my wife awakened me because Kinky was sitting on her chest!  His eyes were dilated and ears back and he was clearly terrified.  In the morning we heard on the radio that there had been an earthquake at Newcastle, a city over 50 miles away!

We had felt nothing, but our backdoor wouldn't shut.

Regards,
Geoffrey

That is so sweet, that your cat's safe spot is your wife. If I found my cat on my chest like that in the middle of the night, it would be because she had decided the earthquake meant the downfall of civilization and she was calling first dibs on my body as a food source.