Could Molly Have Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome?

[Laurie1956]

The other day I was in the kitchen cooking when I accidentally stepped on my cat Buddy's foot or tail. We all know the blood-curdling banshee shriek cats make when this happens. Buddy and his "sister" Molly turned tail and ran down my cellar steps as fast as they could. About an hour later Buddy came on up, but Molly didn't. Because they are normally joined at the hip (they adore each other) I went down and looked for her. There are only so many places to hide in my cellar, and no way to get outside. Three hours I looked and called. Nothing. I was getting extremely worried as Molly has asthma and I truly didn't know if she was okay.

Finally after another hour or so (I was sitting on the cellar steps and vowed to sit there all night if necessary) Molly poked her head out from somewhere. I was relieved beyond measure, but Molly definitely wasn't herself. She was wide-eyed, creeping, apparently terrified. I figured that she had gotten scared by Buddy's shriek, but her fear would be short-lived. I've seen this happen with other cats many times.

Well here we are 3-4 days later and Molly's still afraid. She still wants to hide, and I've let her do it, even leaving my bedroom closet door open for her, where she has gone for hours. Gradually I am "taking away" her hiding spots to let her come to the realization that there is no place in my apartment where she could be hurt. She's eating well, and she isn't sick. However, every little noise and she turns tail. She has a hyperactive startle reflex, and she's very "strange" to Buddy. These two usually sleep together, chase each other and play-wrestle, and give each other baths. Buddy's fine, but he doesn't seem to understand what's going on with his sister. Yesterday Molly had an almost normal day, then last night Buddy chased her under a chair (in play) and she's right back to her frightened self. Mind you, Molly is my "alpha" cat, bold and brash, while Buddy is the more timid one.

I feel so bad for my little girl. I'm not walking on eggs, but I am keeping noises and activities to a quiet level. I know Buddy didn't hurt Molly -- she does touch noses with him once in awhile -- but this is going on and on and I am just at a loss. I don't know what's going through her head or how to help her. By the way Molly was a 5-wk-old feral kitten when I got her but soon took over the house and in general loves people and attention. Any help or feedback from anyone, very much needed and appreciated. Thank you.

[CyberKitten]

5 weeks is really young to leave her mama but being a feral - if her mama died, that explains that. Cats do have loooong memories (many studies "show" this) and while I am not sure it would be called PTSD in pets, they can suffer from similar issues. Usually it takes more than one incident and where she is so young, it is hard to imagine her brother getting stepped on and his shriek being the cause. But stranger things have happened.

I would just give her lots of TLC and even help her adjust to noises. She will begin to think that noises are bad if she never hears them and she needs to know they are a normal part of living - I am not fond of shrieks and loud noises either but they are part of my daily routine (children crying, someone dropping something, 2 very loud Siamese who do not need their tails walked on toe be heard in the next country - you get the picture). So she needs to know that noise will be a part of her life and not to be afraid f them. Perhaps you can gradually introduce them to her?

I would also bring her to the vet for as check up because it may be just a coincidence that she is acting this way after "the shriek" but it would be advisable to know for certain!

Good luck!

[Maya]

Sounds like she's still spooked but doesn't really know what she's scared of or has a vague idea it has something to do with Buddy. At least if it was a specific thing then she could avoid it. Lots of attention and cuddles, talking super nice and trying to get her to play should help her stay distracted from that fearful feeling. She also might need to get used to the idea that Buddy is not a threat in anyway, perhaps if she's not too timid right now you could put them together? I bet they will eventually get snugly again, of course I wouldn't push her. I've also heard many people on the board mentioning a spray, I think it might be a hormone that is supposed to help calm cats but I don't know what it is called, I believe some vet clinics carry it. Another spray I was thinking of purchasing is called Rescue Remedy, I've seen it in drug stores usually near the homoeopathic remedies or near the sleep aids, some people spray it in their carrier for vet trips. Homoeopathics are also very safe and I've had some luck taking Arnica myself for trauma. It's so individual though so one remedy might help for one cat/person and another might not. If you do consider trying a homoeopathic remedy -Heel products are good quality or a pharmacist might know of some others, better yet a vet that uses them. Actually Dr Pitcairn's books should have more information on the subject of homoepathics for cat's and dogs.

I think she'll come around eventually though. It may be taking longer because she was hiding afraid for so long and you weren't able to reassure her right away. Also i'm not sure of this but if she did have a rough start it wouldn't surprise me if she had some previous fear that is effecting her now. I'm no cat psychologist but I think we share some similarities in the way we respond to trauma. I agree with CyberKitten that a vet visit could be in order just in case the behaviour is a coincidence, sometimes a stress can even set something off. Good luck.

[Laurie1956]

Thank you - she is doing better today, and she "forgot" to be afraid of Buddy this morning as she got up to her old tricks for a moment and pounced on him! But being such a Cat Person, I know she is still spooked for some reason.

Also I suspect I found out where she was hiding the whole time I was looking for her -- above the insulation in the cellar ceiling. There's a little spot she's small enough to fit in and she's light enough so the insulation held her up. She apparently crawled up some shelves to get there. I watched her do it the other day but she was just being curious, not a fraidy cat. (So if your kitty's missing look UP!)

Anyway, the other thing I completely forgot to mention was that when Buddy did come back upstairs 1-1 1/2 hours after the "incident" he had the "big tail" -- you know, fur standing on end. So now I wonder if some little animal did get into the cellar and scare them both.

Anyway, she was a foster baby my vet called me about, she was found under the foundation of an abandoned house by some boys and they brought her to the vet. She was half pinned by a rock and crying like the dickens (good thing). These boys wanted to keep her but their mom said no. They loved her, you should have seen them cradling the little imp. I think she may have been born under there and being trapped, her mother couldn't get her out of there? That must be an AWFUL memory. Oh, the mysteries of animals.

[CyberKitten]

Awww, poor little thing! Interesting story - my guess is you may never know with certainty unless someone tells you how she came to be there. Petrhaps someone dropped her there too and that would have been traumatic in and of itself. IF her "brother";s shriek that roared caused her to be upset, I suspect it may have reminded her of something in her past. But she is young yet and has lots of time to overcome these things. She is still a kitten after all - and maybe she was just hiding which as you know, kittens and cats love to do, even when they are not afraid. (Just rattle the food or treats, lol)

Glad it's all working out and Buddy is doing OK too!

[Laurie1956]

Thanks...

She makes good progress and then seems to keep "regressing" -- I don't know whether it's from a loud noise or Buddy startles her -- she is back in the cellar now and when I bring her upstairs she is wide-eyed with this fearful look and tries to get into the closet again. I don't want the cats in the closet, they tear up my clothes climbing around and get hair on everything! But I've let her do this. I feel so bad -- she is such a happy-go-lucky little thing. And Buddy I feel sorry for -- his sister isn't herself, and he's actually getting kind of aggressive -- you know that way cats will chase another cat out of the yard? Buddy's fed up, I think, and he's been chasing her in exactly that manner. Which doesn't help of course. I just don't know, I've NEVER seen such a LONG period of fear like this AFTER a cat has been "tamed" for two years, and I do think I will call our vet -- hope he's in on Monday which is a national holiday -- but certainly if she stops eating etc. (she's eating very well) I won't wait.

[chico2]

I have 3 cats and if one of them shrieks for any reason,all three get puffed up and scatter to their normal hidingplaces,after a while they'll creep out,close to the wall,with a really worried look
Then they'll sniff each other making sure everything is ok
Cats are really thinskinned little creatures,it does not take much to get them to think world-war 3 is coming