You may be surprised to know that animals, particularly cats can be bored just like humans can. The good thing is that you can check out the signs below so that you can work on preventing boredom in kittens or even adult cats.
1. Irregular appetite and sleep
- Cat owners already know that cats spend a lot of their time sleeping, sometimes even 16 hours a day, but further than that may be a sign of boredom. Also, you need to check the appetite of your cat. In the same way that the way we eat can be a sign of how we deal with stress, cats may do the same. There are many people who either lose their appetite or turn to stress eating when overwhelmed with their situation. You need to understand that boredom can be stressful for a cat. If their eating patterns change, where they eat less or more than usual, it may be a sign of boredom.
2. They are not using the litter box
- Cats naturally gravitate toward the litter box when they need to answer the call of nature. But if you find yourself seeing their poop or pee all over your house, it is a sign that there is something wrong. If this has been going on for a few days, you will need to bring your cat to the vet. You should make sure that it is not a medical issue or a sign that your cat is ill. If sickness has been ruled out, then you can conclude that it may be because of boredom.
3. Scratching or damaging furniture
- Sometimes we think that it is normal behavior for cats to keep scratching your furniture, etc. But you need to know that when cats or kittens become destructive, it may be a sign of their boredom. If you've spent a good amount of time away from home, it may be that your cat needs human interaction. They lash out by doing more than the usual scratching of the sofa. They even target the curtains and destroy them, or perhaps they go to the shelf and proceed to knock off everything on the shelf. This is not a normal cat behavior. You might need to look for other ways they can be entertained or perhaps just make sure that you spend ample time with them so that they will not feel neglected.
4. They have behavioral issues
- Your cat may also be bored if you noticed that they started having behavioral issues, like aggression and even anxiety. While there is nothing wrong with the occasional fight with other pets in your house, when your cat starts acting like a bully and attacking or abusing other animals, then it might already be a problem. Another behavioral issue could be anxiety. What you can do is bring them to the veterinarian to rule out any illness or disease. When that is done, you can try to look for activities so that can stop being bored and showing aggression.
