We Moved Tonight, And Kitty Is Stressed

[brdwybaby]

Hey, guys. We moved to a new apartment tonight. My kitty only ever moved once before and she didn’t seem to have this bad a time the first time. She’s walking around growling and restless. I’ve only seen her panting twice, so that’s good. She already used her new litter box and ate three of five treats total. But like I said, she’s walking around crying and (when she goes behind the couch) growling like she’s super angry. And she won’t just settle down. Sometimes she just hides. If she does hide, should I just let her? Her behavior is freaking me out, as my very severe case of OCD revolves around keeping her safe. This stresses me beyond anything I could describe, which I know she can pick up on. So it’s a vicious cycle, What are the normal behaviors I can expect moving her here? Anyone??

P.S. I also already have a Feliway diffuser hooked up in my bedroom.

 

[tabbytom]

brdwybaby , do you have any of her previous beddings, towels, blankets, toys, cat tree, cardboard box or anything with her scents on it? If yes, lay them out around the apartments for her so that there’s familiar scents.

If not, use a few pieces of soft towel and gently rub all over her to get her scents and place the towels at different part of the apartment along with your clean unwashed garments. She needs all these familiar scents to feel safe.

It’s good that she’s used the litter box.

She’s feeling uneasy because the surroundings and scents are new.

 

[brdwybaby]

brdwybaby , do you have any of her previous beddings, towels, blankets, toys, cat tree, cardboard box or anything with her scents on it? If yes, lay them out around the apartments for her so that there’s familiar scents.

If not, use a few pieces of soft towel and gently rub all over her to get her scents and place the towels at different part of the apartment along with your clean unwashed garments. She needs all these familiar scents to feel safe.

It’s good that she’s used the litter box.

She’s feeling uneasy because the surroundings and scents are new.

Yes, I brought a blanket from the bedroom she sleeps on all the time, and another from the living room. I have them set up for her.

As for the smells, I’m super worried now. She’s walking around meowing like crazy, sneezing, and I swear I smell pot coming from somewhere. Obviously another tenant. I hope that smell can’t harm her.

 

[5starcathotel]

If you can, just go to bed. Establish a base-camp in your bedroom (litterbox, blankets, beds, dirty clothes, food, water, you), close the door, and hang out there for the night. Tomorrow you can expand basecamp to the other areas.

My experience moving cats is they find a place to hide (usually, and if I'm lucky, the master bedroom closet with my clothes), and don't come out for 24 hours.

 

[tabbytom]

As for the smells, I’m super worried now.

I've read your other thread and maybe, I guess it's the left over smell that could be making her uneasy as cat's nose are very sensitive to that foreign scents that are not good and will irritate her senses.

Maybe you can air the rooms or whole house, repaint, vacuum, steam clean and get non toxic cleaners to wipe or mop up the place or get a real good air purifier and see if it does the job.

Smoke odor tends to linger on for a long time.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. To expand on tabbytom 's suggestions, is it possible the previous tenant owned a cat? You could get a black light and look for old pee stains that maybe you can't smell but your cat can. Even so, the answer would be the same - steam clean the carpeting using enzyme cleaners such as Fizzion or SCOE10x, which are also safe for any hard flooring, including wood.

See if there are any tips in this TCS article that might help.

How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home

 

[brdwybaby]

Hi. To expand on tabbytom 's suggestions, is it possible the previous tenant owned a cat? You could get a black light and look for old pee stains that maybe you can't smell but your cat can. Even so, the answer would be the same - steam clean the carpeting using enzyme cleaners such as Fizzion or SCOE10x, which are also safe for any hard flooring, including wood.

See if there are any tips in this TCS article that might help.

How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home

The carpet was professionally cleaned before moving in. We’re highly limited on funds right now, so I’m not sure what more we can do there as of now.

The apartment is chaotic. There’s so many people coming in and out. My aunt is VERY loud and opinionated and makes sure she’s heard. The cable guy is coming, and that’s a good three-hour window of strange noise and smells. The maintenance men are also coming to check the thermostat. There’s vacuums (we all know that’s never good). The dryer is being hooked up—so lots of banging. She keeps hiding somewhere in the kitchen when she’s out, and I haven’t been able to locate the exact spot yet. I’m not sure if she’s eating or drinking. She might have in the night, but I can’t tell for sure. She HAS taken to her litter box, urinating once and defecating twice. Currently I have her locked in my room with me, but when I confine her like that she FREAKS. I mean, she’s all bug-eyed and wailing and sometimes growling. I think it’s stressing her more to be locked up, but I can’t let her out right now. I have the Feliway in here—doesn’t seem to be doing anything. I just basically want to know that this behavior is normal for now. Because watching her like this and hearing those sounds is seriously like listening to my own child beg for its life. That’s not an exaggeration—that’s literally what it does to my OCD. Last night they had to call an ambulance for me because my blood pressure was way too high at the mere thought of moving her. I feel physically sick over this, and if I knew it was normal I’d be better.

 

[FeebysOwner]

With what you just told us that is going on in your apartment, I would say her behavior would be considered normal - not a good thing, to be sure, but not surprising. I know you said she freaks out being confined to one room, but hiding who knows where someplace else that you aren't even sure of may not be any better.

Other than trying some other calming products (which, btw, you should do since the Feliway isn't working), can you confine her to a room with all of her necessary stuff - and some of her favorite things - and play calming music in that room to help drown out the other noises? If not, a fan running? TV playing?

If you have the chance to spend time with her in that room, I would. Maybe just read a book out loud to her so that she hears your soothing voice, that might help.

Edited: Also get a cardboard box, place some towels/etc. with her scent on them, inside. And, see if you can get her to hide out in that.

 

[daftcat75]

Does she like heights? Stack some boxes. Give her a path to some place high that she can survey all the excitement without having to be in the middle of it. This has the added advantage of you knowing where she is. You can make her a little nest out of something that smells like you like your sweatshirt. Place her perch (or perches) in "money" spots: spots that are central, not hidden away, and give her a good view of her kingdom and the goings-on. She'll feel more confident in her new home if she's not hiding.

 

[susanm9006]

If it is any comfort it is all a very normal reaction from her. Hopefully in a day or two the commotion will settle down and she will as well.

 

[brdwybaby]

There’s also a lot more noise in this building than there was in our other one down the road. You can hear the neighbors more because more people live here.

With what you just told us that is going on in your apartment, I would say her behavior would be considered normal - not a good thing, to be sure, but not surprising. I know you said she freaks out being confined to one room, but hiding who knows where someplace else that you aren't even sure of may not be any better.

Other than trying some other calming products (which, btw, you should do since the Feliway isn't working), can you confine her to a room with all of her necessary stuff - and some of her favorite things - and play calming music in that room to help drown out the other noises? If not, a fan running? TV playing?

If you have the chance to spend time with her in that room, I would. Maybe just read a book out loud to her so that she hears your soothing voice, that might help.

Edited: Also get a cardboard box, place some towels/etc. with her scent on them, inside. And, see if you can get her to hide out in that.

Thank you! And also thank you to daftcat75 and susanm9006 ! These are comforting. With my high anxiety, I’m sure I’m overthinking things as well. I haven’t seen her eating or drinking but a few nibbles and sips occasionally, so I hope all is okay. She won’t eat her wet food yet, which she’s usually begging for. She was constantly hiding behind the refrigerator, which concerns me. She doesn’t usually hide. But the commotion has lessened a bit and she’s laying on my bed right now.

 

[brdwybaby]

Also, I don’t know if this is silly of me to worry about... but there’s a lot more noises here in general. A pipe knocking in the kitchen. Kids downstairs, which she’s never been used to and isn’t a big fan of children when they’re around. The air conditioner is also a lot more powerful and louder as a result. So I hope she’s not getting too cold when it’s on and, as for the new noises, I hope that will just be something she adjusts to with given time. The other thing that kind of breaks my heart is that my old place had beautiful woods behind it at eye-level for her to admire the birds and squirrels, sometimes even deer. We’re now on the third floor with way less windows, and the windows don’t even have ledges for her to sit in. There’s still trees, but they’re farther away and lower down. She used to sit and watch them all day. Maybe that’s silly for me to be concerned about—it just kind of breaks my heart and I feel like she’s missing out.

 

[daftcat75]

Can you build out a ledge for her (readymade window sill shelf for cats or some generic shelf) or place a cat tree by the window? Make a path to the windows with shelving or furniture if they are high up. She’ll feel less anxious if she can get up and above the commotion rather than hiding in a corner or behind an appliance. And because no one else is occupying those high spaces, she will find her place in your new home quicker. When she’s hiding, she’s saying, “none of this feels like mine. None of this feels safe.”

 

[Ghoulofnagoya]

I am hoping if you give your kitty some time he will calm down. I moved my cat on a 2 day journey from Japan to USA then a month later a 5 hour drive from LA to new home in Vegas.
The moves are stressful for sure but with time I find get better.
I agree with previous comments: using a blanket or something Cat already has his scent on, try cat calming spray and even give him areas up high to go.
Good luck !!!

 

[brdwybaby]

Can you build out a ledge for her (readymade window sill shelf for cats or some generic shelf) or place a cat tree by the window? Make a path to the windows with shelving or furniture if they are high up. She’ll feel less anxious if she can get up and above the commotion rather than hiding in a corner or behind an appliance. And because no one else is occupying those high spaces, she will find her place in your new home quicker. When she’s hiding, she’s saying, “none of this feels like mine. None of this feels safe.”

I’m going to try and build her a ledge. She seems to like the back door view okay, I think. There’s a cat condo next to the living room window. My room (her “hub”) doesn’t have a view at all, unfortunately. She seems to be doing a lot better. She’s not really hiding much anymore. She’s eating, drinking, grooming, using the litter box normally. The only thing that seems to be bothering her is when there’s any commotion of people going in and out, as we’re still working on moving some boxes and stuff from the other place. But when they leave she seems good. Maybe a little more alert to particular sounds, but altogether starting to relax. She roams a lot, but I feel like she’s just reassessing everything and getting settled when she does that. She did hide under my bed today for a couple hours, but I believe that’s because she was left alone in the new place for the first time for about an hour this afternoon. Now I’m at the point where I’m just concerned about one thing... and it’s probably silly. Our other apartment faced east. We had the sun shine right in her bedroom in the morning and set right in the living room at night, and she’d revel in it! She LOVES laying in the sun! She’d adjust her position to sit in the direct sunlight all the time as it was setting. Unfortunately, here we are facing south. Any windows pointing east have ZERO view (as they’re blocked by the complex we’re in), and the west windows are small and narrow, and with all the trees I doubt there’s going to be any actual undeterred rays coming in. Maybe I’m silly, but that breaks my heart for her. I didn’t even think about it when we chose this place. I don’t know if that’s something a cat would actively remember and miss, you know? I’m just an overprotective cat mama and want my girl happier than I am!

 

[daftcat75]

Giving her perches and paths above the commotion will help with the comings and goings and boxes and all that. If she has a path up and above it all, she’ll be happier than being under everyone’s feet.

That’s sad about the sun. Is there no sunbeams coming in? Even if you have a tiny window with some sun, you can probably redirect the beams to a spot on the ground (or in a perch) for her with a mirror.

 

[daftcat75]

Cats figure stuff out. She’ll develop new preferences.

Maybe you can walk her on a leash. Even if it’s just to some place with some sun to bathe in. I’m sure she’d like that.

 

[brdwybaby]

Giving her perches and paths above the commotion will help with the comings and goings and boxes and all that. If she has a path up and above it all, she’ll be happier than being under everyone’s feet.

That’s sad about the sun. Is there no sunbeams coming in? Even if you have a tiny window with some sun, you can probably redirect the beams to a spot on the ground (or in a perch) for her with a mirror.

Well, I don’t know for sure yet. It’s been rainy all week. I hope so, but with the view the way it is, I doubt it. I really hope that she doesn’t remember her old windows and feel like she’s deprived or anything, if that be the case. I think I’m too sensitive!