Anxiety disorders in cats cause significant and often unrecognized chronic suffering that responds well to combined behavioral and medical treatment.
Cat anxiety represents a widespread, chronic, and poorly recognized welfare problem. The behavioral manifestations of cat anxiety are often subtle and easily attributed to personality rather than recognized as distress signals requiring intervention. A cat that hides constantly, has lost fur patches from overgrooming, or eliminates outside the litter box is communicating significant psychological suffering, not misbehaving. The connection between anxiety and physical disease through FIC means that treating cat anxiety can prevent recurrent painful medical conditions. Veterinary visit anxiety is nearly universal in cats and causes significant acute stress during an already stressful healthcare interaction, leading to avoidance of care that compounds health welfare problems. Gabapentin administered before veterinary visits dramatically reduces anxiety in most cats, allowing better examination and reducing the chronic negative conditioning of repeated stressful veterinary experiences.