Cat acting strange

[bigbadmarty]

We've got two cats they're brother and sister Molly and Mittens .
For the last couple of days Mittens , a neutered queen , has been very quiet and hiding under beds , sitting in the bath and avoiding people . She has no obvious injuries or loss of appetite and can be handled without distress . The thing is the behaviour is so out of character . I'm wondering if she's had a fright when she's been out - would this account for it ? why would it last so long ? what else could it be ? I know there's a few feline fans on here so please advise if you can.
Many thanks Marty :)

[China Doll]

Eric was a bit weird the other night and I think he'd had a fright outside. He's fine now. Just a couple of extra treats and being left alone seemed to be enough to get him over it and it only lasted the evening.

[ladybirder]

Is she not going out at all marty?

[rosamundjohn]

I would think she has been out and been frightened or attacked. Poor cat. Lots of cuddles and she may feel more confident i a few daqys. otherwise-the vet?

[Eve]

If cats feel unwell they can go hole themself away so keep an eye on her and get her checked out if necessary. Might be she has just had a bit of a scare. If she seems unsettled or distressed you could try Feliway.

Has anything changed in her environment recently? My two have been a bit different (not in a bad way) the last week with my mum up to stay looking after me after an operation as they're not great with other people (both rescue cats, sisters) and not used to anyone else being here save quick visits.

[bigbadmarty]

lb - no she doesn't seem to want to go outside its not like her .
Just wish she could say whats bothering her :(

[tearinghair]

Do you have a pond in your garden? My two always get spooked when the frogs are coming back to spawn and threshing around in the pond (the frogs, not the cats!)

[Kiki-frog]

Yes, she has almost certainly had a bit of a fright outside. Maybe being beaten up by another cat, or a horrible human giving her a kick (which happened to our Basilcat - he won't have anything to do with men now apart from Mr Frog), or even something like roadworks happening in her usual territory. As long as her eyes are still bright and she's looking after herself, she should be OK, but as others have said, keep an eye on her over the next few days just in case she's poorly. (And I know exactly what you mean about her not being able to say what's wrong!)

[bigbadmarty]

Jenna - no the routine is much the same , a few more visitors ( we have two new grand-nieces :) )

[bigbadmarty]

No pond in my yard here in urban Newcastle !
Thanks everyone for your kind answers - will definitely keep an eye on her if no better by weekend shall go to the vet .
Suprised no-one picked up on the name of her brother -wrongly sexed when very little !

[tearinghair]

how urban? If it's anywhere near a park, could it have been a fox? One made its way to us from about a quarter of a mile away, from the local park we think, and scared our two cats rigid - they wouldn't go out for two days for longer than five minutes at a time.

[bigbadmarty]

Hi tearing hair - just noticed your post .
Could have been a fox as we're close to a graveyard ( geographically that is )
She's in the living room now and seems very wary of shadows , hopefully a sign of a return to playfullness . Suppose we'll never know what upset her...

[wolf63]

I read your question the other day marty and am still puzzled - is there such a thing as a cat that acts normally? If so - what is normal cat behaviour? I have one that sleeps until mid afternoon on my laundry basket and another that makes me up, by attacking me, at silly o'clock for his breakfast and then takes up residence on his king sized duvet on his sofa until the next meal time.

:-)