“Truly caring for your pet means making a difficult choice for their well-being.” That was an astute post on an internet bulletin board forum, and it speaks well to the dilemma of one family: a 22-year-old daughter wants to take with her the family cat she has had since she was a little girl, but her mother thinks the animal should stay in the only home it has ever known.
The cat in question is seven years old, reserved, and only brought indoors. Purchased “on behalf” of the 15-year-old daughter, the cat has been cared for physically and financially by her mother ever since. In time, the cat became close with human members of the family as well as the family Siamese and the dog. The mother is concerned that taking this soft, lap-sitting cat away from all it has ever known to a small apartment in a crowded city an hour and a half out of its normal home would be highly distressing.
Animal behaviorists agree that moving can be especially challenging for shy, aging cats. As rules on introducing shy cats to new environments detail, sudden change of environment can cause stress, withdrawal, and even sickness. Shy cats also favor quiet, serene settings, and take weeks or months to get used to new spaces. Gradual confinement to a quiet, secluded space with sound, safe hiding spots, slow discovery, and hesitant, light contact are all important steps to the adaptation process. But accommodation will never happen with some cats, particularly those whose attachment is strong to other pets.
The emotional part of having to decide is also complicated by the sense of “rightful ownership.” Within families, the manner in which an animal “belongs” to someone is not always as clear-cut. While legally pets are property, courts and families nowadays do try to do what is best for the pet. Who will have been its main carer, who will provide it with the safest home, and to whom it has already become attached are all important things to remember. Where pets attach to other pets, it is not recommended by experts to split them up because loss of a companion can lead to bereavement and behavioral issues. Environmental stress signs in cats are occasionally subtle but diagnostic.
Veterinary behaviorists explain that stressed cats withdraw too much, stop eating, or destroy things. Sometimes they become separation-related disorders emotional distress disorders when separated from a bonded human or animal. In stressed cats, especially cats over the age of seven, development of these disorders is most likely to follow a major life change. Treatment is most frequently environmental management, behavior modification, and in severe cases anti-anxiety medication. Forewarning, where moving is inevitable, is beneficial.
Systematic packing, leaving the cat’s belongings to last and using familiar odors in the new environment can aid in maintaining a sense of security. Keeping it in a carrier with a favorite blanket on moving day, secluding them in a quiet room when they arrive and staying on the routine for feeding and playtime is critical to comforting the cat. But experts cite that for some cats particularly those who are deeply attached to their current environment home is where they should be. In this home, the mother’s opposition is not depriving the cat from the daughter but safeguarding the animal’s psyche. The daughter, on the other hand is closely personally attached and views the cat as being “her” pet. The dilemma is striking a balance between human connection and the welfare of the animal a balance that as many pet owners can attest, may be as delicate and refined as any family dispute.
