making boarding less stressfull

Hi again Kerry,

So Stoli and Luxor are going to be boarded in a cats only facility in the coming week for 7 days. Luxor is very lovey and is not afraid of people. He'll come to anyone if you hold out your hand and he'll let you pet him. I think he'll be fine at the facility.

Stoli is another ball game and he's the reason I have a question: Is there anything I can do to make his experience less stressfull? Stoli is an anxious cat around anyone that is not my husband or myself. He is skiddish and the slightest sound sends him running. Unlike, Luxor - he does not let anyone pet him unless he's completely in control of the situation.

He really is a nice cat and I love him to death. I know that a trait of Russian Blues is to not like change and they like to attach themselves to one or two people. I'm hoping that I can make his stay a little more relaxed. It will be his first time away from home. Luxor will be there. They will be sharing a suite together. Is there anything I can do before hand? Is there anything we can be prepared for (that probably will happen)? Anything we can be prepared for or take precautions for on his arrival back home?

Renovia

Hi Renovia,
The trick here is to make the suite smell as much like home as possible. Bring their cat beds, towels they sleep/nap on, toys, and a dirty piece of clothing from your dirty laundry basket (because it will smell like you and your husband). (Don't worry, the boarding facility will understand, lots of folks do this....including myself, until I found a great pet sitter. ) Having these familar scents will help comfort them. The fact that they will be at a cat-only boarding facility will help too, that was a great move! Also, you'll want to bring their regular food, a change in diet can upset their stomach, so keep them on their regular food and regular scheduled feedings too if the boarding facility can accommodate that. Lastly as a last resort you can use natural tranquilizers, you can pick these up from a holistic vet, they can give you a natural root in pill form that natural relaxes cats, yet doesn't cause grogginess. I use it instead of the traditional pharmacutical tranquilizers which can have a lot of side effects, I just prefer to go all natural. But you can talk to your vet about tranquilzers or anti-anxiety medication as a last resort if you think he's really going to freak out. But as long as his scents go with him, he will feel comfortable as if it is his own place.
I hope they have a good stay at the boarding facility,
Kerry

Originally Posted by Renovia

Hi again Kerry,

So Stoli and Luxor are going to be boarded in a cats only facility in the coming week for 7 days. Luxor is very lovey and is not afraid of people. He'll come to anyone if you hold out your hand and he'll let you pet him. I think he'll be fine at the facility.

Stoli is another ball game and he's the reason I have a question: Is there anything I can do to make his experience less stressfull? Stoli is an anxious cat around anyone that is not my husband or myself. He is skiddish and the slightest sound sends him running. Unlike, Luxor - he does not let anyone pet him unless he's completely in control of the situation.

He really is a nice cat and I love him to death. I know that a trait of Russian Blues is to not like change and they like to attach themselves to one or two people. I'm hoping that I can make his stay a little more relaxed. It will be his first time away from home. Luxor will be there. They will be sharing a suite together. Is there anything I can do before hand? Is there anything we can be prepared for (that probably will happen)? Anything we can be prepared for or take precautions for on his arrival back home?

Renovia

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I just got my cat back from 10 days at the boarders yesterday and I have noticed one thing for sure since she returned.

She is always around me now in the apartment. If I leave the room she is not far behind and lays down where she can see me. If I am moving about the apartment doing things she is not far behind. If she is napping and I leave quietly so as not to disturb her she still manages to catch it and follows me and finds a new spot to keep an eye on me. It's almost like she is afraid I am going to leave her again.

I hope this is only temporary as I do not want her constantly worrying about me abandoning her or something like that. She acted similarly when I first adopted her in March but after a month or so she relaxed more around the house and did what she wanted when she wanted.

Hi there,
I like your picture of Greta, she's a pretty kitty! As for her behavior is it completely normal and will wear off within two weeks. My kitty Puna acted like this after his surgery (he had to stay a few nights at the vet after it), only it was so bad because he just had his leg operated on and would fight the pain to walk around and following me everywhere, poor thing. I bought him one of those comfy orthpedic pet bed and he was good after that, laid on it and didn't more, except to visit the food dish and litterbox. But, no worries, all is normal and she will resume normal behavior within two weeks. Take care!
Kerry

Originally Posted by Whiskers151

I just got my cat back from 10 days at the boarders yesterday and I have noticed one thing for sure since she returned.

She is always around me now in the apartment. If I leave the room she is not far behind and lays down where she can see me. If I am moving about the apartment doing things she is not far behind. If she is napping and I leave quietly so as not to disturb her she still manages to catch it and follows me and finds a new spot to keep an eye on me. It's almost like she is afraid I am going to leave her again.

I hope this is only temporary as I do not want her constantly worrying about me abandoning her or something like that. She acted similarly when I first adopted her in March but after a month or so she relaxed more around the house and did what she wanted when she wanted.

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