I'm a cat lover, and I recently had to say goodbye to my little tuxedo cat, Monkey. Within a week or two his buddy, Kirby, started hiding in the basement, refusing to eat, changing his vocalization patterns. He previously had a tiny little meow like a kitten, and now he was literally yodeling LOUDLY at all hours of the day and night.
I did some research and found that all the traits he was exhibiting were symptomatic of loss and the advice was:
Give him more affection and attention
Don't punish his bad behavior
Reward him with more affection when he's behaving appropriately
Give him time. I spent a lot of time petting and speaking softly to him over the next few days and I'm happy to say that he's slowly returning to normal. He's spending more time in his usual places and eating much more. The yodeling still hasn't quite stopped, but I'm confident it will over time.
I don't know if I can honestly say it's "grief" they experience, but they do sense a change in their situation and express their emotions much the same way humans do. I thought I'd share this and wondered if anyone else has experienced this sort of behavior.
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9 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.Cats and dogs along with lots of other animals have emotions. Every day I watch sea gulls fly in the air currents the only reason to do this is for fun.
dalefvictor
Level 8
Oct 16, 2021
2
I thought that it was to get from A to B where B is either food, shelter or nest. How do you determine some other reason? Labels on the wings, mind reading, grins on their beaks, telepathy or mind reading?
Sorry for your loss. I haven't noticed that intensity of grief in a pet, but I have noticed some. I have a current threesome that are constantly in a cuddle puddle. I suspect they would be upset if one were to disappear.
itsmedammit
Level 8
Oct 16, 2021
1
Love "cuddle puddle".
Me too!!
Kiri wouldn't play for a year after we lost our Wisspurr, & she was always the one to play for hours every day.....hyper kitty.
Lilac-JadeCanada
Level 9
Oct 16, 2021
1
Based upon observations of a lifetime of living with them, I believe cats do experience grief. I'm so sorry you lost an important member of your family.
Deb57
Level 8
Oct 16, 2021
0
Thank you. It's inevitable... they're only on loan
Animals need to see evidence of their partners or friends passing away or they don't know where they've gone and feel abandoned.
OldGoat43
Level 9
Oct 16, 2021
4
Interesting point. What do you do? Leave the the cadaver where it can be smellt & touched? And for how long?
@FrayedBear . Let them see that the other one has passed away and they will understand. Wild animals do this and so to domesticated farm animals. It only takes a few minutes for them to see and come to terms with the death. Humans are more complicated.
@OldGoat43 Aren't they ever. I could never understand my SIS who still had my brother's ashes in the urn on the mantlepiece ten years after he was killed.
And she talked to them - or was that nagged? I neither know nor care. They have all ostracised me.
I don't doubt that grief over pets can be the same, in some cases, as that over humans.
TomMcGiverin
Level 8
Oct 16, 2021
3
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