My cat is depressed – Causes, symptoms and treatment

Is your cat depressed? Sad? Have you stopped eating? The moment we observe our pet apathetic and unwilling to play, it is normal to worry though, quiet, sometimes it can happen for reasons beyond our control. From these symptoms, we will have to determine the causes that have caused sadness in our feline to help him recover his habitual emotional state.

In this article we will propose some of the most common causes of depression so you can find out why your cat is depressed and we will propose some tips and practical solutions to try to alleviate this situation.

Keep reading and discover some tricks that he proposes:

Symptoms of depression in cats

Cats, like people, are social animals susceptible to suffer emotional problems. For this reason, knowing the character of our cat is essential to be able to quickly detect a change in its psychic state.

Even so, sometimes it is difficult to detect the sadness in our beloved cats since they are usually very quiet animals. It can also happen if we have recently adopted you and do not know your daily routine well. If you have detected any of The following symptoms, your cat may be suffering from depression or simply be sad for some reason:

• Apathy
• Inactivity
• Lack of appetite
• Little affectivity
• Scary attitude
• Changes of character
• Prolonged sleep
• Lack of game

Although these symptoms can be indicators of depression in cats can also alert of the presence of some ailment, for that reason if you observe your dog without eating or with a very different attitude from the usual, we recommend that you go to the vet to rule out a possible disease. Do not forget that the specialist is the only person truly qualified to diagnose depression or find out a possible problem in his health condition.

Why can a cat be sad? – Causes of depression in cats

There are many causes that can cause sadness or depression in our pet, but to detect the exact cause we must review some significant factor that could have triggered this emotional problem. Here we explain the most common causes of depression in cats:

• Change of residence or family: Some people say that cats are independent and solitary animals, but this is certainly not the case. Cats are sociable animals and they feel very affected when a change of housing happens or they move away from their loved ones.
• Loneliness: Although their character is not comparable to that of dogs, cats suffer when they spend long periods of time in solitude. In these cases it is ideal to offer intelligence toys and even think about adopting a partner. Affection and affection are important for the cat.
• Bad relationship with another member of the household: A prolonged or recent enmity may cause our cat to be distrustful, isolated and unwilling to spend time with us.
• The arrival of the baby: The arrival of the baby is a reason for happiness, but it is not always for everyone. If you have neglected the attention towards your cat or you have not prepared it properly for your arrival it can happen that your cat feels sad and displaced.
• Adoption of a dog or cat: The “competition” for food, the best place on the couch or your caresses can cause serious sadness and depression in your cat. Before the arrival of a new member it is very important to continue paying attention to our feline
• Disease: As we commented at the beginning of this article, a disease can radically change the character of our cat, making it apathetic, not wanting to eat and sad. Going to the veterinarian is essential whenever we detect any anomaly.
• Stress and anxiety: The fights, the punishments, the mistreatment and even the lack of some of the liberties of the animal welfare can repel in high levels of stress and anxiety. It is very important to offer our pet the best care so that he feels happy to be by our side.
• Traumatic shock: An aggression or a terrible experience can lead our cat to suffer depression and sadness. In these cases, the ideal is to go to the specialist to offer personalized guidelines for the specific case.

Each of these reasons may or may not affect the pet and is that only if we know it well can we determine what factors have altered the safety and tranquility of the cat. These causes if they relapse seriously in psychology of our pet can be the cause of the reluctance, apathy and even high levels of stress, depending on the case.

Treatment of depression in cats

Depression directly affects mental health, whatever the animal. Anyone: a cat, dog or human only needs support and affection to overcome their ailments and forget all traces of such depression. Do not think that a cat is antisocial, on the contrary, it is a tremendously affectionate animal that needs to feel that it belongs to a family nucleus. Here are some tips to solve depression gradually:

• Talk to him Although you do not understand a sweet and affectionate tone will awaken in him feelings of affection. Avoid scolding and punishing and provide the best care.

• It is important that you spend time with your cat nearby: skin-to-skin contact stimulates their sensitivity and fosters a better relationship between you.

• So that the contact between you is gratifying for the cat caresses and massages relaxing and soft, although it seems funny or absurd is a good therapy to improve their quality of life.

• Spend at least 30 minutes a day playing with your cat. Get a duster, a robot rat and even a ball with a rattle. Any option is good as long as you both participate in the game. Do not remove the toy if it is in your mouth, take it when you stop paying attention to keep it active. Discover some proposals about cat toys.

• Find a suitable distraction for those moments when the cat is alone. You will find in the market surprising games of intelligence that are going to make your cat dedicate whole hours to find a solution, the most popular one is without a doubt the kong for cats.

• Make him feel useful. If your cat hunts a cockroach or brings a dead pigeon to your lap, congratulate him! We know that it is not pleasant at all (it’s more, surely you want to vomit just to see it) but in spite of everything you must accept it for what it is: a gift. Find out more about why cats bring dead animals.

• Increase your cat’s contact with the sun and nature. Although it seems that the sun is only there, receiving its rays is very beneficial for mood and regeneration.

• If your cat has lost someone, either a member of the family or another pet you can try to alleviate the pain if it is sociable. Adopt a new pet so they can keep each other company and have a best friend by their side.

• Stimulate him with catnip grass or catnip although you should take precaution when you do. Some cats become tremendously excitable.

These are only some of the causes that can cause depression in the cat but there are many more. Paying attention to our pet and offering the best care are the most effective tools to overcome this problem.

Severe cases of depression in cats

If you have followed the aforementioned advice for at least a week and do not observe a significant improvement in the behavior of your cat, you should weigh see a specialist.

The veterinarian can recommend the use of medications since in the market we find variants of antidepressants dedicated exclusively to animals. However, this type of drugs can have serious consequences, creating addicted animals or requiring lifelong treatment. Alternative therapies such as homeopathy can also help.

At your choice is to choose what type of treatment your pet will receive, although it strictly follows the advice of the professional to prevent the problem from lengthening over time. Do not forget that the more deeply the behavior of the cat, the more difficult it will be to treat it.

This article is merely informative, in .com we do not have the faculty to prescribe veterinary treatments or make any kind of diagnosis. We invite you to take your pet to the veterinarian in case of any type of condition or discomfort.

If you want to read more articles similar to My cat is depressed – Causes, symptoms and treatment, we recommend that you enter in our section of mental problems.