If you’ve got one of those cats that jumps three feet when they hear a loud noise you might have considered giving them some Valium to calm them down. Valium is a very powerful drug, and is not designed for use in pets. In fact, even with adult humans it is very important to get the dosage right.
When pharmaceutical laboratories are creating these drugs they are not thinking that people are going to give them to their pets, because they are available by prescription only. Because you have some available and your cat seems to be freaking out about something, it may sound like a good idea, and a quick fix. But it can cause more problems than it is likely to solve, and most veterinarians would recommend against it.
There are special medications and products available to help calm your cat down in certain situations. There is even a special vest that you can buy for your cat, called a Thundershirt. This gives your pet a reassuring feeling so that they know that they are cared for even when you’re not around, or during thunderstorms or other stressful times like riding in a car. It’s just one of the many methods that are out there that provide an alternative to giving your cat a strong pharmaceutical drugs like Valium.
Can I Give My Cat Valium? Answer: No.
It’s always a better idea to use an all-natural remedy over a pharmaceutical fix when trying to treat your cat. The basic take away here is that you don’t want to get in the habit of giving your cat drugs that were prescribed to you, or any other member of your family. You might think that because your cat is domesticated it is able to handle more human-based foods and medications, but this just isn’t the case.
Keeping Your Cat Calm
One way to keep your cat calm is to avoid the triggers that set them off. they could just have the sort of personality that makes them prone to being more anxious than others. If that is the case you might want to visit your vet and see if they have any suggestions for you that are custom tailored for your specific cat. This could include a drug that is meant for cats, or it could involve steps to gradually ease your cat to a more relaxed state.
Triggers for Anxiety
Many cats can get spooked by things like thunder and lightning, as well as loud unexpected noises. However, some anxiety triggers are harder to determine. Cats can get anxious if they suspect that conditions will soon be changing, or if the energy level of the house shifted. If you are going through a stressful time in your life, you are putting out that stressed vibe, and that can cause your cat to display signs of being anxious.
Avoiding Bad Advice
The worst thing about Valium is not just that it’s a prescription drug, but that is a very powerful one that works on the brain and its neural processes. Trying to give the proper dose to your cat would be next to impossible since this is just too much drug for them to handle, at any level. That is why you should avoid listening to other owners out there on forums that say it is okay, and even suggest what dose you should give them. They are not qualified to give you that type of advice for your cat. Even if they were qualified, they are only speaking about their own cat, with a specific breed, weight, and medical history.
Having a stressed out cat can be hard, but that doesn’t mean you should go to extreme measures of medicating them on your own from home, and with medication that was not meant for them. Treat them with the respect they deserve as another living being and get them help that is targeted towards their own body make up. If we didn’t have medications that were specially made for cats it would be a different story, but since scientists are hard at work making medications for cat’s bodies it’s your job to make sure they get the best care they can.