![]() Changes in their social environment: A new pet, the birth of a baby, guests in the house, the loss of a family member, and even a new partner can be stressful situations for your cat.That's why they often look for small, warm, solitary places to relax. Cats need a quiet place where they feel protected. Noise, movement, and constant changes in the home make them feel out of control and can trigger a stress response. Changes in their home: have you recently moved into a new house? Do you frequently move furniture around your home? Is your home undergoing remodeling? Cats are very sensitive to everything that happens in their environment.Here are the most common reasons why your cat may feel anxious or stressed: The reasons for this type of behavior are varied and are usually related to unforeseen changes in the cat's immediate environment. If your cat's stress condition becomes chronic, it can have serious consequences for its health. “at-specific music may benefit cats by decreasing the stress levels and increasing the quality of care in veterinary clinical settings.Cats are creatures of habit, generally v ery sensitive to changes in their environment, even those that are imperceptible to us. ” The researchers think this might be because 20 minutes was not long enough of a period to affect this marker. However, the music “had no effect on the physiological stress responses measured by. The results showed that cat-specific music might indeed lower stress levels, as the scientists found associations with lower stress scores.Īs the authors write, “Listening to cat-specific music prior to, and during, physical examination was associated with lower and lower ,” compared with classical music or no music at all. The scientists also drew blood samples from the felines and assessed their ratio of neutrophils to lymphocytes as a physiological marker of stress. To test the felines’ stress levels, the researchers used cat stress scores - which evaluated the body posture of the cats and their behavior - as well as cat handling scores, which referred to how the cats responded to the handler. In the new study, Hampton and colleagues enrolled 20 domestic cats and played them 20 minutes of cat-specific music, classical music, or no music, at random veterinary visits, 2 weeks apart. Also, the frequencies were similar to feline vocal ranges, which are two octaves higher than those of humans.Ĭat-specific music may reduce stress levels ![]() Humans tend to prefer music with a beat that is similar to a person’s resting heart rate and with frequencies that fall within the human vocal range.īut for the current study, cat-specific music consisted of ‘melodic’ lines based on cat vocalizations, such as purring. ![]() According to studies referenced by the authors, cats prefer music made with cat vocalizations they also have their own preferred tempos, as well as preferring normal vocal frequencies. Other research has examined the specific types of music that cats respond to and found that classical music is more likely to induce relaxation than pop music or heavy metal.įurthermore, Hampton and team used previous studies to determine and provide “cat-specific” music, or music that felines tend to prefer. Hampton and colleagues have built on previous work, which had shown that felines are responsive and remain responsive to the sound of music even when they are under general anesthesia, for example. Now, new research - appearing in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery - focuses on the stress-lowering effects of music in cats.īut the new paper does not just inquire about any type of music - instead, building on previous studies, the authors of the new paper assessed the effect of cat-specific musical sounds on the felines’ stress levels.Īmanda Hampton, from the School of Veterinary Medicine at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, is the first author of the paper. Music can also help improve a person’s memory.īut does music benefit the health of animals in the same way as humans? More and more research has focused on this in recent years - particularly on the stress-reducing effects of music in dogs. Reducing pain, anxiety, and lowering stress levels are just some of the ways in which music is good for us.īrain studies have even shown that music can help in the treatment of brain seizures and aid recovery after a stroke. Music benefits humans’ health in a variety of ways. Share on Pinterest New research strives to find the perfect music for de-stressing felines.
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