Cat Suddenly Scared

[terestrife]

Hello,
NOTE: I had an issue a few weeks back where my cat chased after the dog hissing at him. They've been getting along just fine.

I got home today, and my cat ran to greet me. Something happened in the 10 minutes I was showering. My niece says she saw that cats suddenly running around, and the dog was staring at them.

She suddenly started hiding in the bedrooms. I had to force her out of my nieces bedroom, and she hissed at me when i grabbed her. She ran to the kitchen cabinets.

My cat ate fine this morning. I found poop next to her toilet, and near the stairs there was a lot of poop. She's always had this issue especially when she has hair balls.

But if it was hair balls she wouldn't eat. She's hiding in a cabinet, and I put food near her and she's eating all her food. She let me pet her, and i rubbed her all over, she doesnt seem injured.

After a few minutes she came out of the cabinet, and was hanging out in the living room. I gave her treats near the dog, and Elsa, and she acted completely normal.

what in the world happened? this isnt like her at all. she usually only runs away like this during a hairball attack.

by the way i took her recently to the vet, and had a blood test. everything is normal.

its been an hour, and she sometimes goes into the cabinet, but shes walking around and going near the other animals.

 

[5starcathotel]

How old is she?

If hairballs make her act so strangely, it might be worth a change in diet or grooming routine to try to avoid such issues in her digestive tract. So my first guess is some other discomfort in her digestive tract caused her behavior.

Other than that, unless there is some environmental reason for her to suddenly feel threatened in her territory ( new people, new animals, or a new stray in the yard), her behavior seems a little too bi-polar. It's never a good idea to jump straight to "medicate", but if her odd behavior continues, a 2nd opinion/exam from a different vet might be helpful (especially for any digestive issues!).

 

[terestrife]

Hairballs usually cause her tummy to hurt so she won't want to be touched. And she won't eat. But yesterday she was eating so it wasn't a hairball. Something scared her.

Today she's back to normal.

 

[neely]

Today she's back to normal.

I understand your concern but glad she's acting normal today. That's definitely a good sign. I would watch and supervise her for the next 24-48 hours before rushing to any conclusions. She may have had a confrontation of some sort with your other cat or even the dog when you were in the shower. Sometimes cats exhibit strange behaviors that we can't explain and sometimes there is a reason for them that we are not aware of which is why I suggested keeping a close eye on her. BTW, she is gorgeous. Please keep us updated on her progress.

 

[di and bob]

Somethig did scare her badly, it's not unusual at all for a cat to poop when fighting or scared, it is a defence mechanism. Maybe one of the other cats snuck up on her and jumped on her or one of the dogs. The second cat could have been trying to play and she didn't see them. My cats do this when they are intent on listening/looking at something else and another cat comes up behind them. They totally freak out, especially if they just heard a strange sound or a dog barking!

 

[terestrife]

I understand your concern but glad she's acting normal today. That's definitely a good sign. I would watch and supervise her for the next 24-48 hours before rushing to any conclusions. She may have had a confrontation of some sort with your other cat or even the dog when you were in the shower. Sometimes cats exhibit strange behaviors that we can't explain and sometimes there is a reason for them that we are not aware of which is why I suggested keeping a close eye on her. BTW, she is gorgeous. Please keep us updated on her progress.

Thank you got the compliment! I've been keeping an eye on her and so far she's been back to normal. Just freaked me out because normally only fire works scare her, or cat rides. She's not easily scared while at home.

Somethig did scare her badly, it's not unusual at all for a cat to poop when fighting or scared, it is a defence mechanism. Maybe one of the other cats snuck up on her and jumped on her or one of the dogs. The second cat could have been trying to play and she didn't see them. My cats do this when they are intent on listening/looking at something else and another cat comes up behind them. They totally freak out, especially if they just heard a strange sound or a dog barking!

That makes sense. Elsa is younger and loves to play. Kitty does too but she's older.

So far this week it hasn't happened again.


Thanks again for the advice!

 

[Kflowers]

Does anyone in the house have rather long hair = a couple of feet or more? Sometimes a cat will get a piece, one piece of your hair and swallow it. It becomes enmeshed in the rest of her waste products and then she poops. However, the hair is not completely pooped out and the cat thinks her poop is chasing her. This will cause a frantic run through the house until the hair breaks and the poop ends up in an unusual place.

We've had this happen a couple of times a year with one or more cat. It doesn't seem to hurt them, except for the mad -the monster is chasing me - which is unfortunate. the memory doesn't seem to haunt them nor does it stop them from eating another hair. Some will pull the hair from your head.

 

[terestrife]

Does anyone in the house have rather long hair = a couple of feet or more? Sometimes a cat will get a piece, one piece of your hair and swallow it. It becomes enmeshed in the rest of her waste products and then she poops. However, the hair is not completely pooped out and the cat thinks her poop is chasing her. This will cause a frantic run through the house until the hair breaks and the poop ends up in an unusual place.

We've had this happen a couple of times a year with one or more cat. It doesn't seem to hurt them, except for the mad -the monster is chasing me - which is unfortunate. the memory doesn't seem to haunt them nor does it stop them from eating another hair. Some will pull the hair from your head.

I didn't know that was possible. Lol no, our hair is really not that long. But thank you for the input I'll keep that in mind. Lol

 

[tomcat60]

Wow, I'm having the exact same problem with my siamese. He started hiding in the bedroom two days ago and just eats a little. He acts like he is scared of something, but we have not changed or added anything new. He is 11 years old and has IBS. Has the vet looked for IBS in yours?

 

[Kflowers]

Right short hair has advantages.

have you researched all the side effects from any and all medications your cat is taking, you too, tomcat60

 

[tomcat60]

Right short hair has advantages.

have you researched all the side effects from any and all medications your cat is taking, you too, tomcat60

Yes, I have looked into his meds. He is on prednisone and B-12. I'm not too happy with the prednisone, but it does seem to help him a lot.

 

[terestrife]

Wow, I'm having the exact same problem with my siamese. He started hiding in the bedroom two days ago and just eats a little. He acts like he is scared of something, but we have not changed or added anything new. He is 11 years old and has IBS. Has the vet looked for IBS in yours?

no, i havent checked for IBS. if this keeps on i'll have her checked.

Right short hair has advantages.

have you researched all the side effects from any and all medications your cat is taking, you too, tomcat60

kittys not on any medications.

---

ever since i posted this shes been fine. sometimes i get home and shower before feeding her. i did this all this week. today she got scared again. today i got home, she was excited to see me. i showered. she was waiting for me outside my door. i took not even 2 minutes changing. by the time i went downstairs, i couldnt find her.

she wouldnt come down for her food. so i found her again hiding in my nieces room. my niece doesnt like her in there, so i had to get her out. she immediately ran down and hid in a cabinet.

what in the world is going on? my niece says shes fine during the day. shell hang out in the cabinet, but she sees her walking around.

she did see her run up the stairs to go to her toilet. but that she was fine afterwards.

i dont see anything odd when im home.

i finally got her to eat in her hiding spot.

while scared:


a few minutes later:



EDIT:

Her bathroom area when i got home. Again, she was normal when i got home. Excited for her food and wanting attention. normally the mat is right in front of her toilet, it looks like she kicked it away from the toilet. when she got scared i didnt check to see if her toilet was used. im starting to wonder if i should set up their second litter box in case they are fight? i havent seen them fight over the toilet though.

its 8:49 pm now. she used her box normally and is giving me affection. she ate her treats like she does every night.

 

[terestrife]

Update

I've started feeding her as soon as I get home. She hasn't acted scared since I've been doing this.

Can cats act afraid and desperately hide because they are upset? Never seen her act like that except for during fireworks.

 

[Kflowers]

Yes, being upset and being afraid are things that happen at the same time when you are a prey animal, which cats are. You are upset your endocrine system kicks in and the flight or fight urges are triggered. If you are upset your inner self believes something is out there that wants to do you in.

Many people suffer from this as well.

 

[terestrife]

Yes, being upset and being afraid are things that happen at the same time when you are a prey animal, which cats are. You are upset your endocrine system kicks in and the flight or fight urges are triggered. If you are upset your inner self believes something is out there that wants to do you in.

Many people suffer from this as well.

Thank you! Its so weird that she would act this way just because I put off feeding her a few minutes. cats are such a mystery. Thank u!