The increasing pressure of the modern world makes depression more and more frequent, and not only among humans, but also among our domestic animals. The stress of the big city, the changes in the rhythms of life, the rush … All this also influences the animals and, yes, they too can suffer from depression.
Cats in particular are very sensitive and intuitive animals, who will immediately perceive the stress levels in their family members, which can also influence their health. Surely you have noticed that your mood sometimes influences that of your cat, and that if you are sad, he becomes sad with you.
It is true that sometimes it can be difficult to detect the symptoms of depression, since by its nature the cat sleeps many hours a day (an average of 16 hours a day) and we can confuse depression with a somewhat deeper sleep than usual. However, the increased hours of sleep are compounded by apathy, decreased appetite and changes in character.
Depression, which is usually always associated with a case of stress, can be due to several causes, but almost all have the same origin: a change in the animal’s routines. Pets, like us, are animals of habit and the slightest alteration in their habits of life they suffer almost as an aggression, so do not be surprised that they do not want to know anything about you during their depressive stage.
First of all, you must bear in mind that, as in people, it is a mental health problem, so we should not take it lightly, but pay it the attention it deserves and act accordingly. It will be the veterinarian who should tell us the steps and the treatment to follow to recover your cat.
You should not be overly alarmed, but keep in mind that your feline will need a lot of patience and love from you to regain his joy, his desire to play and his energy. Meanwhile, we tell you some of the possible causes:
