Kitten hiding under the bed

BeccaT

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I apologise if this is in the wrong section, I'm unsure if this is a behavior issue or a medical issue but I thought the health section was more relevant.

Me and my husband adopted a kitten about 3 weeks ago, she's now 3 months old. She's recently recovering from some pretty bad diarrhea that we've taken her to the vet for, she was given some medicine and special food and she's been much better in that area. The first week we had her, she was a big ball of energy and was always playing, whether it was with us or alone with her toys. Then the diarrhea started, unsure why but we think it may be something to do with the food the pet shop gave us when we adopted her (they claimed she was already eating this food but it clearly didn't agree with her). Anyway, she seems better in that sense but she's still sleeping a lot and she's recently taken to hiding/sleeping under the bed after she eats. She comes out to eat, drink, use the litter box and sometimes wander around but she's always back under the bed.

She doesn't seem scared thankfully, and there is an LED light strip under there that gets warm so I'm wondering if it's just the warmth? If we're in bed, she'll often come and hop up and sleep with us on the bed, but she used to curl up in my lap or on my desk (both me and my husband are WFH and spend 90% of our time in the bedroom where our computers are) but she doesn't do that anymore. Our situation kind of forces us to keep her in the bedroom with us and not let her wander around the house that much, but we do let her when it's appropriate but she always seems to want to be nearby. She follows me into the kitchen when she's awake, and then follows me back into the bedroom but never seems to come and sleep with me at my desk anymore, so it's not like she's scared of being in here with us and wants out of the room as she hardly ever actually leaves when the door is open.

I'm worried that she might be depressed or there's something else wrong with her. As I mentioned, she is recovering from diarrhea but she's been given medicine and probiotics to sprinkle on her food but she doesn't seem to want to play as often anymore, no matter how much we try. She's due for another round of vaccines next week so if she's still this way, we'll mention it to the vet, but I thought I'd ask here in the meantime if I should be worried or not. Thank you.
 

Flybynight

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The change in behavior would worry me.
Could you ring your vet and ask if they think you should bring her in?
 
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BeccaT

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The change in behavior would worry me.
Could you ring your vet and ask if they think you should bring her in?
I could, I've also emailed the vet before when I had a question about her medicine so I may do that. Thank you for the response!
 

fionasmom

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Welcome to The Cat Site! I don't think that this sounds behavioral as she is bonded to you and was a very playful kitten when you got her. So this is not the "kitten under the bed" scenario because the kitten was feral originally, or scared of the new surroundings. Given that you are in the bedroom with her, I also don't see depression as part of this. If she were locked in there by herself and isolated, depression might be a factor but it sounds as if she has plenty of companionship.

Everything is normal with her litterbox use and eating and drinking?

I would be concerned about this and you are right to bring it up to your vet.
 
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BeccaT

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Welcome to The Cat Site! I don't think that this sounds behavioral as she is bonded to you and was a very playful kitten when you got her. So this is not the "kitten under the bed" scenario because the kitten was feral originally, or scared of the new surroundings. Given that you are in the bedroom with her, I also don't see depression as part of this. If she were locked in there by herself and isolated, depression might be a factor but it sounds as if she has plenty of companionship.

Everything is normal with her litterbox use and eating and drinking?

I would be concerned about this and you are right to bring it up to your vet.
Thank you for this! I’m glad (in a way) it couldn’t be depression related. Her litter box habits are normal now thankfully the diarrhea has cleared up, and she’s eating and drinking just fine. When she’s out and wandering about, she seems fine and happy, I can even sit on the floor and she’ll come and sit with me. It’s just odd that she seems to be favoring under the bed so much when she didn’t before and it made me worried.
 

fionasmom

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Cats can make odd choices about where they want to be. If your kitty seems to be okay, it is probably just some odd preference.
 

Cat McCannon

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When your cat is under the bed, can you easily get her out? If not, block it off. If your cat has an emergency, or of you have to evacuate your home, you don't want to be wasting time trying to drag your cat out from under the bed.

Cats hide in places like under the bed because they are feeling small and insecure and those hiding places do nothing to boost your cat's confidence. Hiding places like that keep your cat feeling insecure and small because those place keep your cat from feeling like they own their territory. Block of anyplace that your kitten can disappear to.

Instead, provide your kitten good, safe places to hunker down, places you can get to her quickly and without drama. Cat caves and cat condos set where she can watch as much of her domain as practical. It's part of the "catification" process and will boost your kitten's confidence.
 

maggie101

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Anytime I am concerned because of my cat acting differently, it's time to see a vet. Do you feed her canned or dry? I removed the box springs under my bed so my cat can no longer get underneath. She probabl would like it for warmth.. I would! Not now though. It's still not winter in Houston. At 3 months old my cat Maggie would get under the bed on her back,put her claws up,then crawl all over like spiderman. Very activee when 3 months old. Have you watched her use the litter box? Does her food have fish in it?
 
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BeccaT

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I wanted to give a brief update that a day or two after I posted this, she was back to normal! She's back to her playful, active self and only rarely sleeps under the bed now. I made a little makeshift bed under a table with a blanket covering it so it's slightly sheltered, and she likes to sleep under there too, so I think it's the fact it was warm and hidden (she has plenty of regular pet beds, one is even sheltered but she refuses to sleep in it).
 

stephanietx

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She may prefer to sleep in small enclosed spaces. You might look to see if you can find a teepee type bed for her.
 
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BeccaT

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She may prefer to sleep in small enclosed spaces. You might look to see if you can find a teepee type bed for her.
We actually bought a bed just like this for her before we adopted her, and slept in it the first day we got her and then hasn't touched it since. I've considered getting a bed like this though because I've found her burying in some blankets before! But she can be very picky.
 

fionasmom

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Welcome to the world of trying to please your cat. I have two beds like the second one in your post and only one cat, Chelsea, ever used it. I am not trying to discourage you as they are very plush, luxurious beds and I hope that your cat will like it.
 
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