Thunderstorm phobia in cats is not very common as cats seem to cope with thunderstorms well. This does not mean that they do not fear it. But there is a difference between ‘fear’ and ‘phobia.’ While fear is a mild state of uneasiness with a particular situation, phobia is extreme and brings about an unreasonable and exaggerated show of fear. Phobia comes in when animals or humans are afraid to the extent that they might avoid open spaces and even harm themselves. Normally, cats would go hide under the bed or in cupboards which is out of fear. It also reduces the chances of getting hurt to a greater extent. Cats also have a thin coat which makes them less vulnerable to thunderstorms. Although it is closer to never that a cat has thunderstorm phobia, unusual experiences such as receiving an electric shock during a storm, may induce in them such a phobia.
Signs of Thunderstorm Phobia in Cats
If the cat is only fearful and is mildly affected by the thunderstorm, the symptoms would be limited to large pupils and a general desire not to socialize and stay hidden somewhere. However, when it comes to extreme phobia, along with the above symptoms, the cats coat hair is raised and their tail becomes bushy. Other than that, their body exhibits nervousness and they hiss and spit a lot. Their defense response also becomes more active than usual.
How to Overcome the Fear of Thunderstorms in Cats
Although leaving the cat alone is the best solution, there are many ways in which the cat’s fear can be eliminated or at least assuaged to a greater extent. One of these is to guide the cat to the basement or a room which is sound- and light-proof. When the cat will get the normal environment, it will automatically go back to its normal behavior in a while.
Counter conditioning:
One of the other ways that you can use is to divert the cat’s attention during a storm. You can play with your cat or try to train your cat using your cat’s favourite food! Good food does just as well with cats as it does with humans. This way your cat will associate thunderstorms with good things instead of fear. While training, don’t be too demanding of your cat or it will get tired and irritated which will make the food less appealing. Counterconditioning is the best way in which your cat can be trained to be less fearful of thunderstorms.
Desensitization:
This is not always successful and very onerous but worth a try. You can expose your cat to the recordings of thunderstorms coupled with counterconditioning (discussed above). This will train the cat to cope with actual thunderstorms.
Medication:
You can also use certain medicines to soothe your cat’s nerves but this must only be after the advice of your veterinarian.
Whenever you find your cat under the bed, nervously grooming itself, during a thunderstorm, it means that the cat is fearful. However, this in no way can be labelled as phobia. Help must be sought in either way to make it easy on your cat.
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