Knowing When To Get Help

Posted on: 30 November 2015

As a cat owner, you know that there are many things cats do that are just a mystery to the people around them. To many people, everything that cats do are weird. However, there are behaviors that cats engage in that are weird to humans but are just harmless, and then there are those behaviors that are both weird and worrisome. Get to know more about some of the worrisome behaviors you may see in your cat that you should not ignore so you can get them to the veterinarian's office as soon as possible if you notice them.

Repeated Head Pressing

As you may know, cats like to rub their heads and faces on people and various objects. This is a normal behavior and is often a sign that they are marking their territory with their scent or showing affection. This type of rubbing or nuzzling is considered to be typical feline behavior and is nothing to panic about.

However, head pressing as it is called is slightly different. When a cat is head pressing, they are hitting or pressing their head against a solid object (often a wall) repeatedly and without ceasing the behavior. Head pressing can be a sign of serious health issues including abnormalities in the brain or nervous system, infectious diseases affecting the nervous system, or possibly even cancer or tumors.

Take your cat to the vet right away if you notice this type of head pressing behavior in your cat. They will require immediate testing and treatment.

Urinating Outside of the Litter Box

If your cat begins to urinate outside of their litter box, you may assume they are marking their territory or acting out because they are angry or unhappy with you for some reason. This may be the case if the litter box issues only occur once or twice.

However, if the behavior is chronic or becomes more frequent and worse over time, you may be looking at a different scenario altogether. A relatively common health problem in cats is urinary tract infections. UTIs in cats can cause them to experience pain when urinating, a lack of bladder control, and of course, problems making it to their litter box when they need to go.

If your cat begins to have such issues with their litter box, a trip to the vet can help you find out if your cat has a UTI. Once your cat is diagnosed, a round of antibiotics should help your cat's infection get cleared up and resolve their box issues in the process.

Now that you know more about a few weird cat behaviors that require swift veterinary attention, you can be sure that you are taking the best possible care of your cat now and in the future. Remember if they show signs of these issues to head to a veterinary hospital like Providence Veterinary Hospital Inc or your own veterinarian's office as soon as you possibly can.