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Earthquake

post #1 of 16
8/23/11 at 11:56am
Thread Starter 
Any one been through an earthquake--what was your cat's reaction? Aftermath?
I was in Washington, DC when it happened, 12 miles away from home. So I don't know how Ritz reacted. Or how she is. Or what I might expect. Thanks.
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post #2 of 16
8/23/11 at 12:00pm
Probably no worse than a thunderstorm to a cat who's scared of thunderstorms.

We're talking minor earthquake here, right? The 5.9 mag one that hit the East coast? Yeah, you're probably just going to come home to a cat who's freaked out like the way my cat Tiny freaks out when there's a storm.
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post #3 of 16
8/23/11 at 12:01pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks.
And Ritz is afraid of thunderstorms.
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post #4 of 16
8/23/11 at 12:03pm
Heh, well, pack some tuna treats and get her out from under the bed, then! Or she might have gotten over it by the time you get home, which is pretty likely.
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post #5 of 16
8/23/11 at 12:06pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks again.
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post #6 of 16
8/23/11 at 12:07pm
Mine probably wouldn't be fazed since I live next to the railroad tracks.. they'd probably think its the train going by! though, the shake was different.

I wasn't home during the quake, and won't be home for another 2-3 hours to check on them
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post #7 of 16
8/23/11 at 5:56pm
I was at work. We had a major shake in NJ. . Cats are acting odd, but not too crazy.
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post #8 of 16
8/23/11 at 6:26pm
I felt it here. in Hamilton Ontario canada some lite shaking of the bed
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post #9 of 16
8/24/11 at 12:00am
Okay - from California here - so, yes - earthquakes are a (almost) normal event.

We seem to have harder, jolting kind if you're located in rocky locations.

Here, in the desert, on sand - we experience more of a rolling type of quake.

Our buildings are built for earthquakes - hence a lot of stucco around here. Bricks and blocks don't do well because there's nothing holding them together. Stucco is held together with wire.

We also have our tall cabinets wired to the walls, and locks on things like kitchen cabinets to keep stuff from rolling out.

The cats react differently depending on the size of the experience.

A 5.0 isn't so small when it happens in a location where buildings aren't built to withstand a good shaking.

I hope everyone in the East are okay - and especially the animals.

There's a lot of information as to how you can prepare your home, etc., for another earthquake.

The thing is with an earthquake by the time you realize what's happening, the event is over with little time to run outside or seek protection.
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post #10 of 16
8/24/11 at 12:25am
Have a question for everyone with experience with Hurricanes. My cats have experienced a tropical storm but nothing worse. We are going to be in an area next month that we could experience a good tropical storm again or remnants of a Hurricane. My cats were nervous then, I don't know how they would be in a stronger storm. Any suggestions?
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post #11 of 16
8/24/11 at 5:44am
Thread Starter 
Earthquake: Ritz was wanting to eat so I fed her; which she promptly threw up. She had not eaten any of the wet food I left out (ten hours). She was a little freaked, but not too bad. Course I saw her four hours after it happened, so I don't know what she did immediately afterwards.
Hurricane/Tropical Storm: as some one said about Earthquakes, if she is scared of thunderstorms, she's likely to be scared of Hurricanes. Ritz doesn't like the sound of heavy rain on the roof.
Washington, DC ("I-95 corridor") could be experience the effects of Irene this weekend. As for advice and what I'm preparing to do: make sure Ritz has safe places to hid (under the bed); watch my own attitude (not upset); just be there. Ritz does NOT like to be petted when she is scared--so I will try to remember not to pet her or even reach for her.
Oh, and make sure you have enough wet/dry food on hand that requires no preparation, like an electric can opener. Ditto, clean water source, in case the water plant loses electricity.
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post #12 of 16
8/24/11 at 6:02am
Aya and I were through several in Okinawa. The only one I remember being home for happened in the morning and I wass till in bed. Aya was coming over to see me and just froze in the doorway to the bedroom with this inscrutable look on her face and the rumbling started. She didn't move until after it stopped some 30 seconds later and then went back to doing mormal catty things.
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post #13 of 16
8/24/11 at 12:18pm
Sneaky- could have cared less

HollyHeart- Cared even less than Sneaky

Jasper- He's now hiding under the bed. He was hiding in his "safe spot" in the den, until someone turned on the "evil" ceiling fan by mistake and he ran.

That cat. Here's my question. We have to go away on Sat. We're taking furniture from my mom's house and bringing it back here (8 hrs away). And we're supposed to have a "visit" from Irene, but now the models look like she's going to stay off shore enough so it's not going to be as bad as I was first thinking (an Isabel type situation).

Jasper did NOT do well when we left him alone for 8 days (neighbor's 17 year old came over and looked in on him and the girls). This is only a night. At one point we were thinking about leaving the 17 and 14 year olds alone by themselves. But now we're not sure. I have to see just how bad this storm's going to be.

Poor Jasper's going to freak no matter what. And a storm isn't going to help. I guess I'll leave our bedroom door open (one of his "safe" spots) even though he sprayed the bed the last time we left. Any other ideas (short of giving him medication which I am seriously thinking about doing if we have to leave him alone again for an extended period of time)

Cheryl
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post #14 of 16
8/24/11 at 12:20pm
Thread Starter 
Where do you live?
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post #15 of 16
8/24/11 at 12:49pm
Near Va Beach.

So we're maybe 2 or so hours from where this storm may hit the Outer Banks.

They're calling for it to be similar to Earl, but a little stronger. Earl did NOTHING here last year, so I'm figuring some wind and rain.

That I can handle. Don't want to deal with another storm like Isabel. 3 days in a hot house with no A/C, no power and 2 very bored children (well- they're a whole lot older now )

cheryl
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post #16 of 16
8/24/11 at 12:58pm
Thread Starter 
Your local meterologists should have a good handle on it. Hint: listen to all your local stations because some may subscribe to different weather services than other (e.g., Accuweather versus The Weather Channel people).

Frankly, I'd hold off on moving. When I have to make a decision, I ask myself what the worst that could happen, and could I live with it. I might regret not moving the furniture this weekend; I would definitely regret it if anything happened to my cats.
PS: have you tried Feliway?
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