My Regent is a 3-year-old Maine coon. We rescued him on the side of the road last summer, and he's been living with us since September. He has always spent the night with us upstairs, usually dozing at the foot of our bed or patrolling to check things out and then come right back. He is usually very affectionate. We have a standing meeting at 10:00 every night when I go to the bathroom and he expects a belly rub on the bathroom floor.
For the past three or four days, he has suddenly started acting strange. It started with him wanting to stay in our bedroom, even alone in the dark, during evenings while we ate dinner, just staring at the wall as if he's looking for lights or something. We do not play red laser with him because he does tend to get worked up over lights. But in this case, there were no strange or moving lights, nothing out of the ordinary. He just sat there staring at nothing for like an hour at a time. We would carry him downstairs and he'd run right back up there.
That went on for a day or two and he seemed to snap out of it.
Now his attention seems to have shifted to the downstairs. He doesn't want to go upstairs with us. When we carry him up there for bed time, he sits in the corner staring out into the hall, and as soon as he thinks we've forgotten him, he goes downstairs. He never destroys anything or makes a mess, but he's not doing it to sleep alone, either. When we come down to look for him, he's usually sitting in my husband's chair, wide awake, watching the front hall/front door.
He is staying on alert all the time. He only sleeps when my husband sits on the couch with him, which isn't enough for his sleep needs. He is tired, lethargic, actively avoids/runs away when I offer belly rubs, and generally seems unhappy. I offer to play with him, and he will humor me for five or ten minutes but will stop for the slightest excuse.
He is otherwise healthy: drinking lots of water, using the litter box, going up and down stairs with no trouble. Nothing in his diet has changed. I went through the house last night making sure every detail was set up like normal. He is acting as if he expects someone to break into the front door at any moment.
Help!!
For the past three or four days, he has suddenly started acting strange. It started with him wanting to stay in our bedroom, even alone in the dark, during evenings while we ate dinner, just staring at the wall as if he's looking for lights or something. We do not play red laser with him because he does tend to get worked up over lights. But in this case, there were no strange or moving lights, nothing out of the ordinary. He just sat there staring at nothing for like an hour at a time. We would carry him downstairs and he'd run right back up there.
That went on for a day or two and he seemed to snap out of it.
Now his attention seems to have shifted to the downstairs. He doesn't want to go upstairs with us. When we carry him up there for bed time, he sits in the corner staring out into the hall, and as soon as he thinks we've forgotten him, he goes downstairs. He never destroys anything or makes a mess, but he's not doing it to sleep alone, either. When we come down to look for him, he's usually sitting in my husband's chair, wide awake, watching the front hall/front door.
He is staying on alert all the time. He only sleeps when my husband sits on the couch with him, which isn't enough for his sleep needs. He is tired, lethargic, actively avoids/runs away when I offer belly rubs, and generally seems unhappy. I offer to play with him, and he will humor me for five or ten minutes but will stop for the slightest excuse.
He is otherwise healthy: drinking lots of water, using the litter box, going up and down stairs with no trouble. Nothing in his diet has changed. I went through the house last night making sure every detail was set up like normal. He is acting as if he expects someone to break into the front door at any moment.
Help!!
