Dear Dr. John,

My cat seems to freak out almost every time I leave the house. She is a little over two years old. Whenever I leave for a long day at work, she urinates or defecates in the house and tries to pull paper out of the garbage. She also has shredded the arms of my sofa. I have bought her all kinds of toys and try to keep her busy. Can cats have separation anxiety? What can I do to change her destructive behaviors? I have thought about getting another cat to keep her company but don’t know if that will help or not. P.C.

Dear P.C.,

In short, yes, cats can have separation anxiety, and it is a complex and sometimes difficult problem to understand and handle. Females are more affected than males. The clinical manifestations include howling and incessant crying, inappropriate voiding in the home as you have experienced, tearing things up in the home, hair pulling in which the cat ends up with varying degrees of hair loss, chewing on various household items, and even vomiting or diarrhea.

There are many possible causes such as early separation from the mother, an environment that stresses the cat, genetics, and more. I would speak with your veterinarian about your experiences and see what they might recommend. Alternatively, you can seek the advice of a veterinary behaviorist. In the interim, I would suggest you consider making her feel less alone when you are not at home. This might mean leaving the television or radio on. You might see if you can get home more often or have a pet sitter come in. You have already given her lots of play options, but different kinds might be better. There are OTC options such as various pheromones and dietary supplements that reduce her anxiety.

Medication may be called for but it is important to try behavior modification before one resorts to pharmaceuticals. Offering her companionship may work but it might make things worse. The only way to know would be to try. Good luck.

Dr. John de Jong is President of the World Veterinary Association. He owns and operates the Boston Mobile Veterinary Clinic and can be reached at 781-899-9994.