Expert: Jessica - 2/1/2010

Question
Hello!  I have two cats.  One is a neutered male who is 10 1/2 and the other is a spayed female who is 3.  My male cat has serious heart problems, specifically hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a heart murmur and arrhythmea.  He went to the cardiologist almost two weeks ago to get a check up on his heart.  Unfortunately, the stress of the visit caused him to go into heart failure later that night.  He spent the night and part of the next day at the emergency vet.  He is now at home and is on several medications to prevent the build up of fluid in his lungs and is doing okay.  

Prior to these vet visits, my cats were best buds.  But when I brought my male cat back from the vet, it seems like my female did not remember who he was.  Obviously I kept him separate from her for the first few days as he wasn't feeling well and was still recovering.  When I attempted to reintroduce them, my female would hiss at him and then run away.  They seemed to be doing better last week, but now I observe my female parking herself somewhere where she can keep an eye on my male, and if he gets up and moves she will often chase him with her tail all fluffed up.  It is clearly not a friendly chase.  My male cat is now nervous of her and afraid to move about the apartment freely.  I don't know what to do!  My male cat can't get stressed out or it could cause his condition to deteriorate.  When I brought up this concern to the cardiologist, she didn't seem to have any suggestions for me.  

Do I continue to allow my cats to hang around together when I am not around and hope that they will work it out eventually?  Or should I keep them separate except for when I am around?  Do you have any suggestions for how I can calm my female cat down?  My male cat is so easygoing - that if my female would stop acting the way she is, he would be fine with her. Any advice you have would be most appreciated!

Answer
Hi Shell.  You should definitely separate the cats when you aren't there to supervise them.  Be sure that the two keep their distance until your female calms down.

Mostly, time is what it's going to take to help your female get over the memory of the strange scents that your male brought home from the hospital.  Now that she's so stressed out, she might also benefit from some calming treatments such as a pheromone diffuser or flower essences.

Feliway is a synthetic facial pheromone which helps to promote a sense of calm.  I use the plug-in diffusers at all times in my home, but they're especially important during times of stress.  You can learn more about how it works at www.feliway.com.  The products are available through many websites and at pet stores.

A flower essence can also be calming in many cases.  I like Spirit Essences, formulated to be safe for cats by a holistic veterinarian and an animal behaviorist.  See www.spiritessences.com to browse and order.  The Stress Stopper formula might be helpful in your situation, but feel free to send an inquiry asking which formula would be ideal in your case.  Dr. Hofve has always gotten back to me quickly and been very helpful.

If your female can't seem to get past this after a couple of weeks, you might want to talk to your vet about a medication.  Some cats can benefit from a couple days' worth of a mild sedative to help them get over a stressful event.

Good luck!

Jessica