Is your cat fearful? Although fearfulness is common in felines, sometimes, it can gradually develop into anxiety.
Prescription drugs and various herbs are traditionally used to calm anxious cats. However, pet owners are just beginning to realize the potential of cannabidiol (CBD). This compound uses the endocannabinoid system to interact with the receptors present everywhere in the body. Such cannabinoid receptors are even found in the cells responsible for the initiation of anxiety and fear.
While fear is considered a normal emotional response keeping animals safe from harm, it shouldn’t be excessive. Abnormal fear affects the ability of felines to have a normal life.
Read more about the causes, types, and symptoms of feline anxiety and how CBD treats might help.
Causes and types
Felines are no different from humans when it comes to anxiety, as they experience the same types of anxious behavior. It can be classified into a couple of types, depending on its severity and causes. For instance, phobias are described as an intense fear of outside stimuli, such as the sound of vacuum cleaners, fireworks, thunder, washing machine, etc. When a feline acquires a phobia of this kind, any similar event or memory is enough for stimulating an anxious response. Check out some ways of identifying and treating noise phobias in cats.
Almost identical to a phobia, panic refers to a sudden and excessive display of fear. When faced with panic, felines invest maximum effort to escape the situation. Panic attacks are very distressing and memorable to cats, and, unfortunately, they are triggered easily. Some felines suffer from Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), which involves fears of many things. It usually manifests as general nervousness with no special trigger.
Felines with GAD show anxiety symptoms regardless of the situation, which is why they appear miserable and unenthusiastic to owners. Their unhappiness and misery are actually mechanisms of coping with anxious feelings. Although separation anxiety is more common in dogs, felines are no exception. When they are left alone, cats exhibit distress and intense fear.
Such felines have a tendency to become overly clingy. Also, whenever the owner prepares to leave the house, anxious behavior is immediately exhibited. Traumatic experiences and improper socialization also make felines anxious and fearful. There are certain triggers for fear to look out for, such as visitors, children, new locations, new sounds, etc.
Symptoms
Anxiety symptoms can be mild, moderate, or severe. The most frequent ones include vocalization, decreased appetite, hiding, trembling, salivation, and trembling. Fortunately, the majority of CBD cat treats can reduce anxiety symptoms in felines. Just by paying attention to their behavior, pet parents can identify the severity of the symptoms.
Mild signs include making no eye contact, turning their head and body away, holding the tail near their bodies, or having slightly dilated pupils. Moderate symptoms of anxiety include an increase in pupil dilation, ears partially to the side, faster respiratory rate, staring at the stimulus, crouching, and leaving away. Severe symptoms appear in cats attempting to escape or staying in one place, completely dilated pupils, aggression, staring, and holding their ears back.
A short-lived sign of anxiety in felines is them hiding all the time, especially if this behavior continues for several days. Since these animals use meowing to communicate with humans, they’ll also use it as a distress call to tell you that something is wrong. Also, incessant grooming is another symptom that indicates anxious behavior. Although kitties love grooming, they certainly shouldn’t do it all day long until they start losing hair.
Some anxious cats stop using their litter box and start peeing in other places around the house. Also, if your feline hasn’t been too attached to you previously but now cannot stop following you around, there’s a possibility this to be a sign of anxiety. Lethargy is another symptom to consider, as anxious cats tend to lose interest in interacting with humans.
Why use CBD treats?
There are multiple medications and natural remedies for anxiety in felines. Nevertheless, a soaring number of owners have started using cannabidiol for this purpose. This cannabinoid establishes interaction with the endocannabinoid system and works to achieve homeostasis. It means maintaining a healthy balance of all internal conditions irrespective of external factors. Follow this URL, https://www.britannica.com/science/homeostasis, to learn about the concept of homeostasis.
CBD treats have calming effects on felines, which are still being studied. Although research is ongoing, fearful cats are proven to indeed benefit from consuming such treats. Cannabidiol boosts the secretion of serotonin and promotes a positive mood in cats. Instead of feeling lethargic, they’ll soon restore their interest in everyday activities and interactions.
As far as dosing is concerned, pet owners are expected to follow the dosage recommendations on the package. Cats that only become anxious prior to certain events should be administered a treat thirty to sixty minutes before the trigger. For instance, if your pet gets nervous before going to the vet, make sure to give him/her a CBD treat at least 45 minutes beforehand.
Cats with general anxiety, on the other hand, should be given treats on a daily basis until real improvement is noticed. If no results are seen within a week, the dose is probably too low, so make sure to administer a stronger one.
The bottom line
Your beloved cat deserves a calm life exempt from fears. CBD is the best remedy!
