Cat Suddenly Scared Of Tv

[kinni]

Hi everyone. My 3 year old cat, Opal, is terrified of the TV right now.

She is not a nervous or jumpy cat. She has never been this scared of anything or anyone before. Last night, she was sitting on my lap and I was petting her. The volume on the TV was very low and I was just chatting with my mom. There was no sudden noise, no sudden movement or any sudden flashes on the TV. Out of nowhere, Opal hissed loudly and darted off my lap. She continued to hiss and growl while hiding behind the couch. My other cat came up to comfort her, which did seem to make her feel better. I thought this was a weird one-time thing, but it has happened twice now in the last 2 days.

She eventually gets over her fear when the TV is off. I've turned the TV on and left it muted, which she also eventually becomes accustomed to. I don't want to have to watch a muted TV for forever, though. The problem is that Opal will randomly become scared by seemingly nothing. I'm wondering if there is some kind of high-pitched noise my TV makes that I can't hear, but it seems like the noise would have to be really loud and sudden to scare her that badly. She's also still wary of the TV even when it's muted.

Has anyone experienced something like this? Have you been able to get your cat reacquainted with something they weren't previously scared of? I have tried Feliway diffusers for a separate occasion and it does not seem to not affect my cats in any way. Any suggestions are welcome, and thank you for your time.

 

[ArtNJ]

Interesting idea about high frequency noise. I wonder if a glitch with the tv speakers could cause that. We'd probably need an audio expert to know for sure, although maybe you could google that to discover if it is even possible.

Sorry I can't be more helpful, but it does sound very strange!

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
Can you use headphones?
Maybe have the audio double checked by a technician, or maybe you can adjust the settings?

 

[Maria Bayote]

Or was it something you were watching? Then she thinks everytime the TV is on that "thing" she probably saw would re-appear again?

I remember I saw a short video one time of a cat scampering away from a lion that she saw on TV and that she thought was running towards her.

 

[FeebysOwner]

If there were a high pitched noise coming from the TV, having it on mute might not get rid of it altogether - hence the reason your cat is still acting a bit weird even when there is no volume. If, in fact, there is a noise coming from the TV it might not have anything to do with the speaker system within, but another entirely different part. Something going wrong with the TV in its earliest stage?

You could either have it checked out by an appliance repair person to see if you can rule that out, or you can join some of the appliance forums that are on the internet and pose the question, along with the make/model/year of the TV - as any of the appliance gurus will surely want to know that information.

Why one cat would be affected and not the other is curious, but some cats adapt better than others to new things going on around them.

 

[kinni]

Thank you all for your responses!!

It seems the general consensus is to get the TV checked out. It's a little bit old now so it very well might be a part malfunctioning. I'm not sure why my other cat isn't bothered by it. I think we will take Opal to get her ears checked just to be sure there isn't some particular sensitivity. Thank you all again for offering some explanations!

 

[MoonstoneWolf]

Little funny but maybe there's more to it than noise. When Pepper (1983 to 2006 RIP) was just a year old I had the tv on and the movie Alien was playing. Pepper stopped what she was doing, ran over to the TV, hissed, growled and swatted at the alien that popped out of the guy's stomach. I wonder if cats understand things more then we credit them for. How did she perceive the alien? Makes me wonder what all they understand and don't understand. Treasure loves listening to Investigation Discovery. (hope he doesn't get any ideas lol)

Anyway just wanted to add this in that maybe something on tv scared her?

 

[will2002]

I don't believe there is anything wrong with Opal. I am thinking it is just the bad programing of the television stations/networks.

Sometimes lately while I am watching TV, the shows are so bad and silly, I have a strong desire to run hide behind the couch and hiss and growl myself. Hopefully for my sake and Opals, the new fall television season will be of better quality, and this strong desire to act ugly will come to an end for both of us. JMHO :-)

 

[kinni]

Hi everyone! Just a little update.

We spent nearly 2 weeks with the TV off entirely, and unfortunately Opal has still hissed at seemingly nothing in the living room. We think it might be some kind of noise outside, but we're not sure. The good news is that Opal is recovering quicker each time it happens. Tonight she was able to be out in the living room while the TV was on and the sound was up without any hassle. I'm so proud!

We're not sure what's causing her sudden distress but she seems to be growing accustomed to whatever it is that is scaring her. We still provide her with places to hide in case she does get scared. I just want to thank everyone who responded and offered other explanations! I was really worried about her.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Good to hear! Cats are adaptable, thankfully - even if slower than we might like!

 

[mrgrtt123]

I am happy to know that she is slowly conquering her fear if that is the correct term to use. I hope that everything will go well for your cat.