Cats are animals that are very sensitive to the environment around them and can be frightened very easily. Whether due to the arrival of a holiday, fireworks or because it is a cat that has been adopted from a shelter, this attitude is more common than you think and is a reason for consultation at the veterinary clinic.
From our site we want to help you with some tips to know what to do if my kitten is very scared, how can I help him? In these At times we must know how to handle the situation so that it does not become a lifelong trauma, since in adulthood fears are more difficult to eradicate.
Meeting our kitten
Doubts often appear when a cat comes home, especially if we haven't been able to enjoy living with one before. We'll start by watching him and letting him investigate on his own. We must see how he behaves before the new and the unknown, how he discovers the spaces, if he wants us to accompany him to go introducing him to his new home, etc. First impressions are always important. We will try to ensure that he does not have bad experiences so that his adaptation is successful.
We can show him the different cat toys to see how he reacts to them, if he likes the ones with feathers, bells or lights better. If we see that one disturbs or bothers him, we will withdraw it and, perhaps, we can offer it to him when he is an adult, at that time he may see it with different eyes.
To get to know him better we will continue to encourage explorationof the environment in which he lives, something that may take time. If the custom in our home is to play music in the morning, we may be surprised to learn that cats like music. We can use it as one more way that allows us to transmit specific emotional states, such as calm and relaxation.
Basically what we must take into account are the Hertz level (unit of sound measurement) in cats ranging from 30 to 65,000 HZ, while we, as humans, only hear up to 20,000 Hz. It helps us understand why cats are so sensitive to sounds in general. Music in the house at low levels does not usually bother them, regardless of the taste of the owners.
A safe environment
At the moment of receiving the kitten at home, the mission of creating a safe environment must already be studied and reviewed to avoid accidents. But we know cats and we are aware of their exploratory nature. They, in their attempt to discover, will find dangers that we would never have imagined.
The kitten socialization stage is very important for a correct integration in the family and home, also to avoid fears in its Adult stage. Socialization begins early, but it is around 8 weeks of life when we must be alert so that he does not have negative experiences that affect him throughout his life. They are the famous "traumas" that trigger fears of shoes, vacuum cleaner, washing machine, scrubber, etc.
Reactions vary from cat to cat, but the most common are to run away, run away from the "attacking object" and perhaps find a hiding place to hide until the attacker is gone. This can happen in front of us or when we are not at home with them, which will be more difficult to identify when trying to help them.
If we believe that our home is a safe place for our fur ball, it surely is, until it proves otherwise and then we must act. Providing protection, comfort or simply letting him see that the "offender" is not so bad trying to get us to go to him.
This is usually very useful for inanimate objects that do not generate annoying noises for the child. Kind caresses or bits of food are often an excellent reinforcement for our kitten to positively associate with the objects or people he is afraid of.
Holidays and stressful times for kitty
The days of meetings, parties and celebrations are usually a time of stress for our cat. In general, in big cities it is usually worse, and our pets have a terrible time and we suffer for them without knowing what we can do.
Since it is a kitten, we still have time to avoid the appearance of fears in the celebrations, so the first thing will be try to make a good impressionof them and also feel accompanied at this time. The use of reinforcement is again very important in this case.
Remember that we should never move the kitten or leave it alone on these dates since we don't know how it will react, something that can put it at risk your emotional stability and can even incite you to a dangerous situation, when trying to hide, for example.
At the time of the fireworks, there are few who will not be frightened. The ideal is to be with them and observe their reaction. They may seek to escape to a safe place (closet, under the bed, shelf, etc.), stay by our side with a state of alert or not respond to anything and try to flee anywhere.
Let's remember that always the so-called imprinting or first impression when faced with something unknown is what counts, so if we try to take it in our arms to comfort him and he doesn't want to, let him look for what is safest for the little one, which is not always what we believe or want. We are going to let him explore and discover what feels best for him right now that we can't qualify him for a better time
How to help a skittish kitty?
Now that we know our little one and how his reactions are, we can act accordingly If we see that our consolation was not of much help and that he spent the whole night in the bathroom behind the toilet or stuck inside a closet, it's time to take action on the matter.
If through reinforcement and patience we do not get our cat to calm down, we can always go to our veterinarian to tell him what happened and together find alternative paths according to our preferences. We don't need to take our furry friend to the specialist since we don't want to cause him more stress, but we do want to tell him in detail what happened.
We must remember that the cat must follow his routine, like every day, and for this we must not change his places of food and drink or hygiene. Nor should we be frightened or excessively excited, in this way, the kitten will feel that we are a protection for him and lastly, do not forget to respect him as a living being, if he wants to hide, let him do so, it is part of coexistence to respect each other.
Very serious cases
Especially indicated for the festive times in which fireworks are used, there is the option of offering allopathic medication, such as Calmex or Calmotonine. However, remember that drugs will not help your fear go away, it will simply reduce your stress levels. It should be our last option.
Like holistic and natural veterinary I advise against this type of solution, especially in a very small kitten. What can be useful are Homeopathy and Bach Flowers For both small and adult cats, the results are excellent and we have no side effects. To do this, we must talk to a veterinarian or holistic therapist for guidance.
