Non-recognition aggression PREVENTION

cleoandsuki87

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I had an incident earlier this year where I took one cat to the vet, and then dealt with non-recognition aggression for literally almost 3 weeks, after this 1 hour vet visit. I had never heard of it and didn't know it could happen. My cats are due for their vaccinations. Honestly, I typically wouldn't bother as they are indoor only and show zero interest in trying to get out, but the pet sitting company I use when I'm out of town requires them.

I am interested to hear from people who have specifically dealt with the non-recognition aggression and were able to prevent it later- i.e. what actually works. The "vanilla trick" did nothing the first time, so that's out. I read that taking them to the vet together isn't even always safe, because even though they both theoretically smell the same, it doesn't matter because the other still smells like "vet" to them, and they still get aggressive.

I am considering booking a vet that does house calls, because theoretically if they're both staying in the house, there won't be any issues, right? I'm sure it costs an arm and a leg but it's worth my sanity. I also considered taking them on separate days and separating the one who went to the vet for 24 hours immediately upon coming home. I'm not sure that will work though, because there might be issues through the door/the "home" cat may still be able to tell there is something off.
 

ArtNJ

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The house call vet should be 100% safe if all your doing is vacinations. Taking them together in a 2 cat sized carrier should be . . . pretty safe? Not like there is any hard data, and some cats are more or less prone to redirected aggression, so YMMV for sure.

Have you tried rescenting them with a towel or blanket when they come home? You know, if there is a blanket they routinely lay on, rub them with that when they come home.

Not too surprised the vanilla didn't work. Some people here recommend it, but to me, them smelling different is what causes the problem in the first place, so I'd rather use a favorite blanket to rescent them
 
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