It’s not unusual for a person to get “the blahs” every now and then. We might have a bad day at the office, a disagreement with a family member or perhaps the weather has been too gloomy for too long. We may mope around the house, sleep more than normal, stare at the television or get out a half-gallon of double chocolate fudge ice cream and go at it with a spoon.
Those are some typical things we humans might do when we’re depressed. But what about your pet cat—is it possible that it can occasionally feel down-in-the-dumps? Do cats even have the emotional capacity to get depressed? If so, how do they behave when they’re feeling down?
John Wright, Ph.D., a certified animal behaviorist and psychology professor at Mercer University, says depression in cats is a real phenomenon. “It’s not terribly different from what we see in people,” he says. “A depressed cat may stop eating or go on an eating binge, show less interest in activities such as playing and exploring, or it may just lie around and sleep a lot.”
Other symptoms of depression in cats include:
- Not using the litter box.
- Lackluster effort in personal grooming.
- Restlessness or listlessness.
- A change in behavior from friendly to aggressive.
- Hiding from or distancing itself from the owner.
- Doing attention-getting behaviors such as clawing the furniture or excessive vocalizing.