Calling Cat owners--how do you feel about happy pills for pets? (Sorry, long)

[alkagift]

In the last year or more we've had trouble with Scout, my eight year old rescue kitty--we've had her since she was 4 weeks old. She's always been adaptable and mellow, not a scaredy cat. In the last year, though, we've had some behavior problems, specifically refusing to use her litter box for #2 about once a week--she always uses it for #1.

Our vet, an excellent cat advocate who runs an all cat clinic, has suggested that DS, with all the houseguests he brings, is causing her to feel frustrated and anxious. I'm sure that's probably true. She has recommended a "valium" type drug. The box behavior is a problem--I am a clean fanatic and I'm living with steam cleaners and all kinds of chemicals to make the house as clean as I need it to be with DS all over the place. She also occaisionally "bolts" her food and can't keep it down.

I'm not excited about the sedation (if that's what it is) because I think it would change Scout too much--I am generally opposed to "happy pills" but I really DON'T know what the effects are. I also think it terrorizes her to be "pilled." At the same time, though, I can't keep DS from following her around the house and wanting to pet her. I protect her absolutely, and he's never touched her, but he has crawled toward her squealing and gotten somewhat close--she runs away and hides.

What do you think? Anybody had this problem? Did you go the drug route or did you try something else? I do think that we haven't been as good "parents" to Scout since DS was born, we just don't have the time to play with her like we used to.

Allison
Mommy to Matthew Clayton, 5/19/03

[Marisa6826]

I had a 23 lb. cat named Milo. I got him from the North Shore Animal League, which is a "no kill" shelter. He was apparently rescued from being a death row cat at a "kill" shelter.

At the time I got him (about 4-5 years old), he was a little tempermental. Always a little off, he had a habit of "attacking" your feet. I would sleep with pillows under my blankets so he wouldn't get me. When he got mad, he would pee in the bathtub. At least it was the bathtub!

As he got older, he got progressively nastier, till we were at the point where I would have to wrestle him to the ground every night to shoot a human-grade anti-psychotic medication down his throat. Yes, we got it at CVS, and the label said, "Milo (feline) and our last name".

I asked the vet about sedation, and she said that she didn't think it would work. although there are herbal remedies that do "calm" things down. They would take the anxiety away from the animal, thereby making everybody happy. The nice thing is that it's reversible. You just stop the meds. I know they sell them on www.drsfostersmith.com.

My problem was that Milo was so beyond help, that we eventually had to put him down. I had to go to the hospital twice from infected bites, he got my dog one weekend, and Jonathan the next. Milo actually tore open Jonathan's sock while attacking him. He had blood pulsing out of his instep. It was not pretty. I was afraid that he would start attacking visitors, the cleaning ladies, etc.

I'm sorry that we had to put him down, but I gave him seven years that he wouldn't have had if I didn't bring him home that cold February night.

I hope Scout feels better

-m

[alkagift]

Wow, Marisa, that's awful. You were a trooper, no doubt. Scout isn't that bad, thank goodness, not aggressive just passive-aggressive! I don't have to worry about her attacking us or DS, but I do worry about her mental state.

I hadn't heard about the herbals, I'll check into it and see if there's anything we can mix with her food that might be less traumatic than the nightly pill wrestle. Anyone tried the herbals?

Allison

[starrynight]

My sil's cat is on prozac because he can't handle visitors or her other cats. At least now he will come out and eat once in awhile. He used to hide under the bed all the time and sometimes not eat for days. He still hides as soon as anyone comes over to the house but he isn't starving himself anymore.

[marinkitty]

Allison -

We also used the herbals for one of our kitties that is very high strung and had a falling out with our other cat. One day we came home and world war three had happended (we still don't know why as they lived together 2.5 years before that without incident). From then on the timid cat was a disaster whenever the other cat was around her. I mean, screaming (nothing worse than the sound of a screaming cat) and losing control of her bladder and bowels while racing though the house (running diarreha - not a pretty thing to clean up).

Our vet had us put both cats on the herbal anxiety medicine. We also used flower essences (you can get them at whole foods here) in their water bowl - some rescue remedy and another one that started with M (mimulus??) for the timid cat only. It seems to even things out quite a bit though eventually we ended up sending the timid kitty to live with DH's parents where she can be an only-cat. She is much happier now and so is our remaining (normal) cat. I think having DD would have been too much for our other one, so I'm glad she has a home where she reigns supreme now. (Plus we still get to visit her all the time.)

Good luck with your situation - I know how hard it can be when you don't know how to fix things.

Holly
Mom to Mia (3.17.03)

[lisams]

I'm getting this info from "Think Like A Cat" by Pam Johnson-Bennett (a wonderful book about cats and behavior):

She says that side effects of valuium can be very dangerous in cats, notably risk of liver failure.

"There are now drugs used in feline behavior therapy that are very effective and have few side effects. Buspirone, an anti-anxiety drug prescribed to humans, has in many case, reduced a cat's inclination to spray. Amitriptylin, an anti-depressant (another human drug), is also now used to treat feline inappropriate elimination and certain cases of aggresion."

She goes on to say that you must do behavior modification along with the drug, that no drug will fix the problem alone. She basically says to confine the cat to an area for 3-4 days even if he has been successfully using the box for the first few days. Then you can begin to let him out for short periods under supervision. She says that you need to use a cleaner that specifically says it neutralizes the odor from the accidents, utherwise the cat will pick up on the old smells and keep going outside of the litter box.


I wish you the best of luck, I'm sure it is frustrating having to deal with this.

HTH!
Lisa

[nitaghei]

Allison,

Not a cat owner, but my PWD was on Amitriptyline for a while to treat her severe anxiety (read - lots of attempts to bite and inappropriate elimination). It was a life-saver. There was a significant change in her behaviour, in a good way. She wasn't sleepy, just somewhat calmer; enough so that I could actually get throught to her with the training/ socialization/ counter-conditioning she needed. She's went off the meds after some time, and is a wonderful, sweet, happy dog now.

If you're reluctant to try meds, Bach's Flower Essences Rescue Remedy is a homeopathic alternative that lot of people have had success with. Just add a few drops to her water. We didn't have any luck with Rescue Remedy or the non-drug alternatives I tried before going with the Amitriptyline. I really think that prolonged anxiety sets up a vicious cycle of chemical imbalance, and the meds correct that. It was certainly true for us - and it gave me the opportunity to actually work with her on behavioral modification.

Not sure that Valium is the best choice (but I know nothing about cats), but our vet recommended the Amitriptyline as the first line drug. And it's really inexpensive too (generic). Prozac evidently works for dogs too - don't know about cats.

But there's nothing wrong with using drugs. Severe anxiety is an illness, and should be treated, and sometimes meds are the appropriate way.

GL

Nita
mom to Neel, January 2003
dog mom to a cocker and a PWD

[Vajrastorm]

We have considred amitriptyline for one of our cat's elimination problems post-baby. He's always been on the anxious and weird side of things.

For now, we've put litter boxes in the rooms he's targeted and used Feliway, a phermone scent plug in. Things have been much better!

We'll medicate as a last resort, but because this cat also has a history of odd reactions to meds, I'm reluctant to use meds too quickly.

[ritacheetah]

We had a psycho cat for 5 years with the same problem. We tried everything from amitryptalin to Feliway to flower essences. She was fine in her own room but once she was around our other two cats, things got bad - even though she was related to them! Unfortunately, the room we had kept her in became the baby's nursery.

We ended up finding a great home for her and it was so much easier than I thought it would be! Believe it or not, we put an ad in the paper and a nice retired couple took her. It was really tough, but I knew she'd be happier as an only cat. My remaining cats are much happier as well.

Good luck - I know exactly how you feel!


Live long and prosper,
Tracy
Mom to Victoria, 12/20/03