How to help your cats in stressful situations
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Feliway. All opinions are 100% mine.
Today I have a collaboration with you with a product I have been using for years and years with my cats and when I was contacted I couldn’t resist spreading the word and getting some free product of course. I’m not going to lie that it is a nice perk of being a blogger. And I hope you guys aren’t going to hold it against me.
I have several upcoming events on my list of things to do where I use and buy Feliway® for, so getting it shipped to my house was great.
Our cats are 21, 18 and 17 years old, which means that I’ve used Feliway® many times over their long lives and it all began with the recommendation of several veterinarians.
I’ve used the plug-ins for when we introduced a new cat which happened twice. Do you remember Harry and of course little Monkey? I’ve used it during vacation time, they especially get stressed out when I pack our suitcases which is followed by them getting cared for by a stranger in our house which isn’t their favorite thing either.
I’ve used it for behavioral problems like litter box issues and territorial fighting…
But you can certainly try using it for moves, house guests, thunderstorms and anything that causes your furry baby to stress out.
It is a synthetic product that replicates the natural “Feline Facial Pheromone”, which are produced by pets to create a feeling of familiarity and calmness. It comes in several forms that offer both long and short-term help: a diffuser, spray, wipes (and diffuser with “multicat” formula that helps reduce aggression in multi-cat households). What’s not to like about that? A #FearFree cat is a happy cat.
One thing you should always remember though if your cat is suddenly acting up, is to take it to the vet first to rule out any medical issues. So many times when our Harry went outside of the litter box, he ended up having a bladder infection. In cases like this it won’t matter how many plug-ins you have around the house because your cat has pain when it urinates and only treating the bladder infection will help. Trust me on that one.
Being sick and in pain is stressful too though and I’m sure a plug-in here and there would help on top of the medications your cat gets.
Isn’t Lucy sweet hiding under her towel? Ever since Monkey died before Christmas our little white Lucy has filled the spot of my lap blogging assistant and she also sleeps with me at night now having to touch any area of my body where skin is exposed with her little paw. It’s such a small and adorable gesture.
And guess what? Lucy ended up having a bladder infection and I when those results came in from the lab I had to take her back again to get her injected with an antibiotic that lasts for about two weeks. She is the only one in my house that’s too hard to pill. She barely eats and won’t take pill pockets as a treat and I can’t even get transdermal medication that you spread in her ears because she still acts like she’s being tortured.
Giving treats and food is the only other thing that calms my kitties down 😉 Especially calico Lilly loves to eat.
She’s so photogenic and I couldn’t help myself taking way too many photos of her once again. In the above photo she is enjoying a treat of chicken baby food. I always give them a really good treat after a stressful vet visit to reward them.
Have you ever tried Feliway®?
If you are interested then you can Find out more about each product, as well as to obtain pheromone “common knowledge,” visit their site by clicking HERE and Check them out on Facebook.
I also mentioned them in THIS post a long time ago when I wrote about how I keep our house clean and deal with litter box issues. There are some really great cat psychology books that I recommend.
Tschüß,
(Youleeya)
This post may contain affiliate links from which I will earn a commission at no extra cost to you. View my full disclosure policy.
Thank you so much for the info, Julia! Our vet is 30 – 45 minutes away (depending on the traffic) and it’s always so stressful for Barney and Cecily doesn’t like the ride either. It would be great if this spray would make the trip to the vet more relaxed for them.
aaaw, you are such a good cat mama!
Thank you
Thank you for the info. I have two cats 17 years old and all of a sudden the male is not using the litter box for pooping. I will try this product again and see if it helps.
Did you get him checked out at the vet? One of mine did that when he got sick. He always pooped outside the box when he wasn’t feeling well. I just want to make sure he doesn’t need other help first 😉
I have used Feliway on and off for years as well! We used it most recently for Meisha when we introduced Quito to the house because she gets so stressed out around animals she doesn’t know. It has helped too with ‘territory’ issues between her and Pablo which thankfully seems to have sorted itself out now. But it’s brilliant at chilling them out. I love the idea of the spray though which I didn’t realise they had. I had to take mine for their annual vaccinations/booster shots on Monday and it would have been great to use in the cat carrier – for Meisha again (Pablo is so chilled, he doesn’t really mind anything). I will say, however, she was so much better on this visit – the vet normally has to use a towel over her because she’s spitting and hissing at her but Meisha actually let her do what she needed to and didn’t hiss once! Hurrah! Haha small victories! But I will certainly consider the spray next time we have to go. Also, have to agree with Cassie – you are such a lovely kitty mama 😉 Can’t believe the ages of your kitties, they are just gorgeous. Never tire of seeing them xxx (PS Sorry for the long comment, I get carried away clearly when it comes to cats lol)
Don’t ever apologize for a long comment 😉 Thankfully my cats never hiss at the vet. My oldest cat poops herself at the vet which makes me feel awful.
I use the plug-ins all over the house when we go away.
Wow with all our moves this could be handy. Ozzie is a pretty laid back cat but the first part of any car ride is stressful for him. Since we move often he has been on several that have been over 10 hours, along with overseas flights, and hotel stays. We have tried different things but I really don’t like sedating him for car rides and it is not allowed when flying so this might be a good alternative. I will take a look and see if it is something that would work for us.
They should make one of those are vent defusers for the car. That would be a great idea too since I’m sure the spray won’t last that long. I don’t like sedating them too and I know our vet doesn’t either.
That is great info! I’ll be sure to share with our cat loving friends.
I hope it helps them 😉