Calming Products and Sedatives for Cats: What’s Safe and What Isn’t

“For sale: nervous system, excellent condition, very easily triggered.” Sooner or later, many owners of highly strung cats feel like posting an ad like that! But what can you safely give a cat to calm it down, and when are sedatives really needed?

Let’s be clear from the start: neither sedatives nor calming products are a cure-all for an aggressive or anxious cat. Behavior problems need to be understood and addressed through changes to the cat’s environment and routine, and sometimes behavior therapy. Calming products and medications are there to help a cat cope with stressful situations and to support that work, not replace it.

Important: never give your cat sedatives, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety medications or painkillers made for people, even in small amounts, and never give a calming product without checking with your vet. Many human medications are toxic to cats, and the “natural” herbal remedies sold for people can be dangerous too.

When Might a Cat Need Calming Help?

Here are the main situations in which calming products or medication may be useful:

1. Changes at home. Unlike people, cats don’t enjoy change, and new surroundings are stressful for most cats and kittens. Some calming products, such as pheromone diffusers and supplements, take time to work, so start them a week or two before a planned change, such as the arrival of a new pet or a baby.
2. Moving and travel. A long journey, especially by plane or public transport, is extremely stressful for many cats: the strange smells, unfamiliar surroundings and motion all add up. Read more about traveling with a cat.
3. Fears and phobias. Fireworks, thunderstorms, visitors, noisy children and other triggers can frighten nervous cats.
4. Compulsive and anxiety-related behaviors, such as excessive grooming and pulling out fur, chasing invisible prey, sucking or chewing fabric, constant meowing and aggression toward people or other cats. Many of these can also have medical causes, so your cat needs a full vet check first. Calming products can ease the symptoms, but they don’t remove the cause.
5. Vet visits, grooming and cat shows. Is your cat due for its vaccinations, a grooming appointment or a cat show? Many vets now prescribe a single dose of anti-anxiety medication to give at home a couple of hours before a vet visit, which makes the visit much less stressful and safer for everyone. Always ask your vet first, since some medications can affect test results or the vet’s assessment.
6. Behavior linked to mating. Yowling, restlessness and aggression in cats that aren’t spayed or neutered are best solved by spaying or neutering, not by sedatives.
7. Urine marking. Spraying is usually linked to hormones, territorial anxiety or stress. Neutering, environmental changes and pheromones are the first steps. In stubborn cases, a vet may prescribe medication.

Types of Calming Products for Cats

Calming products for cats fall into two broad groups:

• Non-prescription products, such as pheromone diffusers, sprays and collars, calming supplements and calming diets. These have a gentle effect and are generally safe, but they don’t work for every cat. Several need to be used for a while before you see results.
• Prescription medications from your vet. These work more strongly and, depending on the drug, either quickly (for a single stressful event) or gradually (for long-term anxiety). They must only be used exactly as your vet prescribes.

What does a cat look like when a calming product is working?
General calm is the sign that a calming product is working. Your cat behaves “like its normal self,” and that’s a success! But be prepared for the possibility that even with a calming product, your cat may still be stressed. Cats sometimes become so worked up that few products can calm them. That’s why it’s easier to prevent stress than to calm a cat that’s already panicking.

Signs of a problem. If your cat seems very sleepy, wobbly or uncoordinated, vomits, drools, has diarrhea, seems agitated or shows any other unusual signs after taking a calming product or medication, stop giving it and call your vet right away. Don’t try to treat it yourself or make your cat vomit.

Precautions

Every product has its own warnings, but in general, calming products and medications should be avoided or used with extra caution in cats that:

• are sensitive or allergic to any of the ingredients;
• are pregnant or nursing;
• have liver or kidney disease, heart disease, diabetes or other health problems;
• are very young or elderly;
• are taking other medications.

That’s why it’s so important to check with your vet first.

Non-Prescription Calming Products

• Synthetic pheromones (Feliway). Feliway Classic and Feliway Optimum are available as plug-in diffusers and sprays. They release a synthetic copy of the “facial pheromone” cats leave when they rub their cheeks on things, which signals that an area is safe and familiar. A diffuser covers a room of about 500–700 sq ft (50–70 m²) and lasts about a month. Feliway Friends (Feliway MultiCat) is designed to reduce tension between cats. The sprays are useful for carriers and cars: spray 15 minutes before putting your cat inside. Diffusers cost about $25–35 / £20–30.
• Pheromone collars. Some collars contain synthetic pheromones. Always choose a breakaway (quick-release) collar.
• Calming supplements. Popular options include Zylkene (a milk protein, alpha-casozepine), Anxitane and Solliquin (L-theanine) and Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Supplements Calming Care (a probiotic). They’re usually given daily, and some need a week or more to take effect.
• Calming diets, such as Royal Canin Calm and Hill’s Prescription Diet c/d Multicare Stress, contain ingredients like milk protein and L-tryptophan. Some are only available through your vet.
• Calming wraps. Snug-fitting vests (such as the ThunderShirt for cats) apply gentle pressure that helps some cats feel more secure. Not all cats tolerate them.

Be cautious with “homeopathic” and herbal calming remedies. There’s little scientific evidence that homeopathy works, and herbal products for pets aren’t always well regulated. Some contain herbs that aren’t safe for cats, and valerian can make many cats more excited, not calmer. Never give products containing essential oils, alcohol or human drugs.

Prescription Medications

Prescription medications are the “heavy artillery.” Choosing them based on online reviews or by trial and error is wrong and dangerous! The decision must always be made by your vet, who will consider your cat’s age, health, weight and other medications. Depending on the problem, your vet may prescribe:

• Medications for a single stressful event, such as a vet visit, grooming or travel. Gabapentin is commonly prescribed for this purpose: it’s given at home a couple of hours before the event and helps many cats stay calmer. Trazodone is another option your vet may consider.
• Long-term anti-anxiety medications for cats with chronic anxiety, compulsive behaviors or persistent urine marking. These include fluoxetine and clomipramine. They’re given daily, usually take several weeks to reach their full effect, and should never be stopped suddenly without your vet’s advice.
• Anti-nausea medication for cats that get carsick, such as maropitant.

Your vet may also refer you to a veterinary behaviorist for a full behavior plan.

Never use any of these medications without a prescription for your cat, and never use a dose prescribed for another animal or a person.

Home Remedies

You may come across “recipes” for homemade calming remedies using herbs, oils or human supplements. We strongly recommend not using them. Cats react unpredictably to many herbs: valerian root, for example, often has an exciting rather than a calming effect. Many plants and essential oils, including bergamot, lavender, tea tree and citrus oils, are toxic to cats, whether diffused, sprayed or applied to a collar or fur. And it’s almost impossible to get the right dose with homemade remedies.

Instead, try these safe ways to help your cat relax:

• keep to a regular routine for meals, play and sleep;
• give your cat hiding places and high perches where it feels safe;
• play with your cat every day to burn off nervous energy;
• use a pheromone diffuser in the room where your cat spends the most time;
• play soft music, such as music composed especially for cats.

Read more: how to calm a stressed cat.

Sedatives and Sleeping Pills for Travel: Why Vets Usually Advise Against Them

Many owners think a “sleeping pill” is the best way to get a cat through a long trip by car, train or plane. In fact, veterinary organizations and airlines generally advise against sedating cats for air travel. At altitude, sedatives can affect a cat’s breathing, blood pressure, balance and ability to regulate its body temperature, and a sedated cat can’t brace itself or react normally if something goes wrong. Many airlines won’t accept sedated pets at all, especially in the cargo hold.

For car journeys and other trips, your vet may prescribe a mild anti-anxiety medication that relaxes your cat without putting it to sleep. Never give your cat sleeping pills or sedatives meant for people: they can be fatal.

To make travel easier for your cat:

• get it used to its carrier well in advance: leave the carrier out at home as a cozy bed with treats inside;
• spray the carrier and blanket with a pheromone spray 15 minutes before the trip;
• cover the carrier with a light blanket to block out visual stress;
• don’t feed a large meal right before the trip, but make sure your cat has access to water on long journeys;
• ask your vet well in advance whether a pre-trip anti-anxiety medication is right for your cat, and do a “test run” at home before the trip, so you know how your cat reacts.

So if your cat has started playing on your nerves like a professional, don’t reach for the medicine cabinet. Talk to your vet, try the safe options above and look after both your nerves and your cat’s!