Caring for the Surviving Cat After a Companion Dies: Grief Care
๐จ Check first
After a longtime companion cat dies, the cat left behind may wander the house calling loudly to search for them, suddenly become clingy and refuse to leave your side, or, on the other hand, stop eating and sleep all the time. Like people, cats can be confused by a deep sense of loss and a changed environment: this is a grief reaction in cats. If your cat eats nothing at all for a full 24 hours or more, see a veterinary clinic to prevent hepatic lipidosis.
๐ The answer in 3 seconds
- Even when two cats did not seem especially close, the familiar presence and daily rhythm that were always there suddenly disappear, and the cat also senses that the people in the home are grieving and that the mood has changed, which causes strong anxiety.
- The best medicine for supporting the surviving cat's heart is to keep daily routines (mealtimes, playtime, and sleeping spots) as unchanged as possible, just as they were.
- Also, instead of washing or throwing away all the blankets and beds that carry the deceased cat's scent right away, leaving them in place for a while until the surviving cat settles down helps them accept the reality step by step.
๐ Flowchart
- Step 1Leave deceased companion cats' beds, blankets, and scratching posts unwashed and in place for 1 to 2 months so surviving cats can seek scent comfort.
- Step 2This is a hard time for you too, but in front of the surviving cat, try to call their name in your usual gentle tone, serve meals at the same times every day, and keep up brushing and playtime, even for just 5 minutes, to show through your actions that their life is not under threat and everything is okay.
- Step 3When their appetite drops, hand-feed warm wet food with a stronger aroma than usual or special treats, and when they follow you around crying out of loneliness, do not push them away; give plenty of physical affection (pheromone products can also help).
โญ Step-by-step fix
Step 1 ยท What you can do at home right now
Leave deceased companion cats' beds, blankets, and scratching posts unwashed and in place for 1 to 2 months so surviving cats can seek scent comfort.
Step 2
This is a hard time for you too, but in front of the surviving cat, try to call their name in your usual gentle tone, serve meals at the same times every day, and keep up brushing and playtime, even for just 5 minutes, to show through your actions that their life is not under threat and everything is okay.
Step 3
When their appetite drops, hand-feed warm wet food with a stronger aroma than usual or special treats, and when they follow you around crying out of loneliness, do not push them away; give plenty of physical affection (pheromone products can also help).
โ Never do this
- Hurrying to bring home a new kitten within a few weeks, thinking "the surviving cat seems lonely," while the surviving cat's mind and health are still unsettled (the stress of losing a companion is doubled by the stress of a strange intruder entering their territory, and health often declines rapidly).
- Disinfecting or throwing out every cat item in the house and completely rearranging the room on the day of the death, as a way of sorting through belongings.
๐ Make notes for the vet
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