r/AskaVetBehaviorist

My 13 year old female cat has always been somewhat spicy. About 10 years ago she got in a major brawl with one of my cats at the time and she attacked my face. The vet we saw at the time told us she was a lost cause and to put her down. There was no way I was going to do that. We learned to work around her spiciness and she had never attacked me or my husband again after that but there have been some small fights with cats over the years. I always thought maybe she had some sort of anxiety or other issue but after seeing multiple vets who found nothing wrong with her there's nothing I could do but live with it and try to make her comfortable. No one would prescribe her gabapentin or some other mood stabilizer. I just kept being told to use Feliway which did nothing.

In March, she was diagnosed with early stage renal disease and have had to only change her to prescription food. She's eating Hills K/D dry only. She will not eat any type of wet food. They didnt give me her test result levels so unfortunately I can't provide that information. In the last month she hasn't been eating as much as I would like, had lost 1 pound. The vet gave us Mirataz. About 2 weeks ago she got violent and attacked my husband when he was moving another cat off a dresser. I thought it was the Mirataz because it was the only change in her and our environment and I read some cases cats will become aggressive. The vet agreed and told me to see how she does without it. Her food intake hasn't been as bad as it was before taking Mirataz but it's still not great.

Today she has now come after me and tore up my leg pretty badly. I had picked up our other cat to clean a scratch she had on our head and that's when she lunged after me. It's obvious it has some connection with picking up the other cat but now I am not so sure the Mirataz is the reason why. I am going to make an appointment for her to be seen. I can't live like this and don't want to put her down because of her behavior or declaw her so she can't attack because I find that so inhumane.

How can I beg my vet for something to help with her mood? No one wants to take it seriously I feel despite her seeing multiple vets. I am sure she is feeling worse because of the renal disease. Is there anything I can do to make everyone safe and live somewhat harmoniously? What should I be asking my vet that I haven't already? Are nail caps still a thing and are those safe?

Thank you for any help or insights.

To preface: I trust the experts when they say dogs don’t feel guilt. But Im very curious on the specifics.

I get that they appear uncomfortable because of their owners reaction, not the action itself. But how does this apply to dogs that have never been punished if they have no negative associations?

Is a dog’s desire to please really so strong that even a hint of annoyance is enough to upset them?
Or is it more about how they instinctively know that anger usually means danger which triggers fear?

And what about dogs that appear nervous before their owner even finds out about what they did? Is it purely because their owner has had a negative reaction to them doing it in the past?

And what separates their emotions from guilt in this scenario, if feeling upset about something that you did is what guilt is? Is it because they’re thinking about how it affects them instead of how it affects you?

I have 2 sibling doodles, 7 y/o male and 8 y/o female. The female will stop randomly during our walks and want to go back home. She usually stops, almost freezes, looks around and sniffs then won’t budge unless I ask her if she wants to go home at which point she will excitedly turn around and try to make her way back. She will do her business though. Her poor younger brother wants to continue walking but sadly we usually cut the walks short.

Does she smell/hear something that scares her?
Is she just lazy and doesn’t like to walk?
Is it that her brother often tries to outdo her and walks in front of her?

I’m baffled at this behavior and I can’t seem to find the cause.

We have moved a lot for work and she’s always done this, so it’s not associated with a specific place.

Thank you for any information anyone can share with me!