Nervous Peeing

[darlenam8]

I wonder if anyone has any recommendations for me.

My cat, Cezare, has developed a bit of a phobia about going to the vet. In the beginning, he didn't mind our yearly check-ups to the vet. He'd pretty much just chill out in his carrier for the 10 minute ride.

However, in the past 4 months, we had more than 10 trips to the vet, including 2 to a specialist about an hour away. Both times on the hour ride, he's peed in his crate on the way there, and on the way back.  I feel so bad for him, he seems to get so anxious now. On the ride home, he's usually so nervous he just sits there and shakes. This is a cat who was always a super cool cucumber

I've done the whole lining his crate with puppy pads in case of those accidents. I've tried spraying the crate with Feliway calming hormone spray. I've given him one of my shirts to curl up with in the crate.

I'm running out of ideas.

I've tried to reintroduce my car to him in a pleasant way recently. When I pull in the driveway, I leave the door open and invite him to jump in. I encourage him to climb around and sniff everything, front seat, back seat. etc. I also will play with him in the car so he sees not everything around the car is negative.

What else can I do besides drugging him which I don't want to get into?  He's not old, sickly, or anything like that- so the peeing has nothing to do with his health. (We've been see a dermatologist for skin/food allergies)

Any suggestion would be most appreciated right now.

I'm frustrated and feel bad that he has to go through this and be so nervous. We have another trip to the vet on Thursday

Thank you in advance!

 

[lwarzy]

I am by no means an expert on the subject, but my cat Bugs does this all the time too. Even when our vet was almost literally a block away. What I seem to have found is that he does not care for enclosed spaces. When I moved an hour away a couple of years ago, I borrowed a friend's large dog crate for him in particular and he was happy as a clam. No accidents whatsoever. That's not really practical for trips to the vet however, so I'm been using a smaller crate. I think it must be too small for him though because he has peed the last couple of trips to the vet. So, something to think about! I am fing to steal your puppy pad I rea for next time though!

 

[Columbine]

I'd try a calming supplement, such as Composure or Zylkene. They're food based, non drugging and really do work. Give it about an hour before the stressful event.

It might be worth getting a new carrier of a totally different shape/style etc to help break the negative association. At the very least, make sure you thoroughly clean every inch of your carrier with a pet safe cleaner - there's a specific scent released when a cat is anxious, and that scent will linger in the carrier if it's not cleaned, likely escalating the nervous/fear response with each subsequent trip. Cleaning the carrier between visits removes this scent build up, and gives you a fresh start each time [article="30316"][/article]