Will cats get depressed or frightened after another one dies?

tooters

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My household has had 5 cats for the past 6 or so years. The cats we have are the mother of the litter, and 3 of her kittens. A week ago, one of the 3 kittens (now 6 or so years old) siblings passed. Will the rest of the cats be frightened or depressed about the loss of their brother? Or will they just notice something is different?
 

krazy kat2

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They can go from '' hmmm, a cat is missing, I think I'll have a nap," to full on panic and greif. It just depends on the cat. Hissy had the best advice, and it sems to work. If one cat passes away or is otherwise gone, sit the others down and tell them she is gone, and will not be coming back. It worked very well when my 18 year old alpha male had to be be pts because he was sssooo sick. It stopped the searching and yowling. I am very sorry for your loss.
 
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tooters

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Thank you. With the death of their sibling, we also decided to keep them inside from now on. (cat died too close to home.. hew as in our backyard when we discovered him
) The last male we have left has seemed more depressed than the rest of them, i wonder if they could have had some sort of a brotherly bond?
 

karebearcasey

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they absolutely can get depressed. my cat and dog were best buddies, and when the dog went missing (he was most likely a snack for a coyote or fox or something) a year ago, damian was soooo depressed. he needed extra cuddles and wondered the house non-stop. it took him quite a while to get over it.
 

callista

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Baby's been looking for my hamster Newton ever since he died yesterday. I don't know if it's grief; but she knows something's different and she doesn't like it. And that's just a hamster--a small part of her life; just a little creature she liked to sit and watch (from a distance--naturally I didn't put his cage within reach of cats).

Yes. Cats can definitely grieve--some more than others. But they do understand your tone of voice and a few of your words; so explaining and expressing your sympathy does help.
 

mowwuck

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Originally Posted by Tooters

Thank you. With the death of their sibling, we also decided to keep them inside from now on. (cat died too close to home.. hew as in our backyard when we discovered him
) The last male we have left has seemed more depressed than the rest of them, i wonder if they could have had some sort of a brotherly bond?
It can affect some cats more than others,like humans-the severity of depression
and their mourning for their mate varies from individual to individual.
It might be just general mourning,as opposed to actual depression,if it carries on and never shifts,it's depression.
They might not be eating,wanting to do much,keep searching for their missing friend,sleeping a lot more than usual,they might just need to get used to the new routine and they will be fine.

Samianther had a sister [Blackie] for 14 years,until she was PTS for cancer,she- unbelievably,fitted into the new routine without her sister-and friend quickly.
It is not something that can predicted,just give them a lot more rubs and kisses until they feel ready.


Hello Callista,
This is KingdomOfRats-good to see another WPer/AFFer here.
 

callista

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Hi!
I think we are more likely to be cat-lovers than most... we are so like cats ourselves!
 

white cat lover

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I lost Sandy Paws 8 months ago. Cow hasn't been the same since. I was force feeding him for awhile....he just lost it. Sandy kept the other kitties from beating him up. I'd say it took Cow 6 months to get back to marginally normal....eating good again, etc. None of the other 6 cared at all.
 

ryn

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When Timotei died the other cats definately knew something was wrong. The last day before I took him to be PTS they all kept grooming him and watching over him. I think they sensed he was really poorly.

They didn't look for him afterwards, but the strange thing is his brother Tilli has been adopting Timotei's habits since then. It's almost like they had this division of labour and Tilli thinks he has to fill in.
 

mskitty666

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The loss of a pet can not only affect buddies but enemies as well. When Karina died last year, the other five cats all reacted to the loss, even her two dire enemies. Dusty exhibited stress behaviors like licking walls and pacing. The others were also more jittery and a bit confused. Eventually they started to adjust to her absence by sitting places that used to be hers, stopping the stress behaviors and becoming more relaxed an peaceful. Make sure to give lots of extra love and attention. If your cat starts acting out or acting weird, recognize it as a sign that they are grieving and adjusting and be patient with them.
 

kittkatt

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As the others have stated, some cats will be more affected by the loss of another cat and grieve more intensely. Others may notice the other cat missing, but not be affected as much. I think it depends upon the individual cat, and also how close of a relationship they've had w/ the one who has passed on. I've had cats who were affected deeply, and others who weren't...


I'm sorry to hear you lost your furbaby.


~KK~
 

sashacat421

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I am so sorry for your loss! and yes, they certainly can. When our kitten Freddie died of FeLV at 7 months, Sasha, older by 12 years was devastated. Sasha is up with Freddie now, but let me tell you that when Eric and I finally felt good enough to go see a movie - when we came back 3 hrs later, Sasha was sitting by Freddie's fishing pole, banging his head against the wall.
To this day, the thought of that never ceases to make me cry.

I rescued my abandoned little Saba about a year later, when Sasha was ready. He instantly loved her and was a very good big brother to her, as well.
She now misses him from time to time and sits as he did, next to my head in bed.
 

glitch

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I think mines on the verge of death from missing his beloved friend. They get lonely and they mourn. My vet told me to put him on anti anxiety med to help but right now I was told to try a feliway diffuser first! I hope he gets better and doesn't take it so bad, I think mine wants to go with him!
 

sashacat421

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Originally Posted by glitch

I think mines on the verge of death from missing his beloved friend. They get lonely and they mourn. My vet told me to put him on anti anxiety med to help but right now I was told to try a feliway diffuser first! I hope he gets better and doesn't take it so bad, I think mine wants to go with him!
Oh my, that is so sad - I am so sorry. Yes, Feliway might help and then just talk to him. Have a "conversation" and lots and lots of love. I would like to hear about this, please update us and ((((HUGS))))
 

glitch

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Sashacat421: I think I have 3 threads right now although one of them is closed.
The one in the Health Forum Is called "my baby boy has fip, how do I comfort him" and then I put another one up when he passed (7 days 12 hours and47 minutes ago) and that one is called "My Baby Boy Lost His Fight To FIP"
The third one is in the behaviour thread and its called "I think booboo lost it"
Feel free to read! But as of right now my Booboo isn't eating again. He ate yesterday (barely) and hasn't ate since. I might go looking for another one tomarrow, as he has never been by himself since the day he was born! I worry though. So if you wanna read through them and tell me any extra advice it would be appreciated!

Glitch's Earth Mommy
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urbantigers

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Jaffa became very depressed when he lost his brother a couple of years ago. He wandered around crying and became very clingy, not wanting to be in a different room from me. It took about 3 months (and a change of scene) for him to get back to normal. In his case I think part of it was that he was then an only cat so missed the companionship of another cat (any cat) as much as he missed his actual brother who he wasn't that close to. It does affect them all differently.
 
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