Pam Webster: Calming Techniques for Cat Behavior and Stress Management| EP52

[00:00:00] Make sure to do an extremely slow introduction. You can't just shove them all together and hope for the best, because no, it would be stress on everybody, including you. So just to make it easier, have them have their own little setup, just litter box, food, water, just everything in their own space, and then slowly, slowly get everybody together.

[00:00:30] Welcome to the Pet Care Report Podcast by Pet Summits. Here's your natural cat healthcare host, Dr. Megan Barrett.

[00:00:38] Hey everyone, thanks for checking out the show today. We have an awesome topic. We're going to be talking about cats and behavior, calming techniques for stress management. So allow me to introduce our guest. We have today joining us Pam Webster, who is a holistic cat therapist and behaviorist with years of experience specializing in calming cats.

[00:00:58] Through her unique combination of cat behavior training and holistic therapies, Pam helps cats and their owners overcome behavioral challenges. As the founder of The Crocheting Cat Behaviorist, she offers tailored calming solutions, including her popular cat calming blankets, which have become a staple for both her clients and the cats she works with at shelters. Pam's expertise also extends to leash training, socialization, and resolving issues like aggression and inappropriate bathroom habits. Her holistic approach focuses on

[00:01:28] on the overall well-being of cats, ensuring they live happy, stress-free lives. So thanks again, Pam, for joining us, and we're so happy to have you today.

[00:01:36] Well, thank you for having me.

[00:01:37] Absolutely. So there's obviously lots to talk about here. Cats are sometimes very prone to having behavior issues, and I think anyone who's had a cat may have dealt with something like this in their time.

[00:01:50] So let's start talking about some of the signs that maybe are less obvious that cats are stressed, and how can some of the holistic therapies that you utilize help to alleviate that?

[00:02:00] Right. Well, some of the signs are just something like, even just going outside the litter box can be something that's stressing them out, and they're just like, okay, I don't know what else to do.

[00:02:12] So just even being aggressive towards another cat, or even say they're spraying, and they're just seeing like another cat outside, and it's just freaking them out.

[00:02:25] So they're just trying to do something because they're so super stressed, and so just a lot of times I just say, okay, well, let's put some calming music on. Let's get some calming herbs into you. Let's use some color therapy. And yeah, just combining them, and we're going to be photobombed now.

[00:02:46] Perfect. I love that. Cats always have to make an appearance.

[00:02:49] Oh, yes.

[00:02:51] Yeah, definitely. I think there's so many more signs of stress. It's like the classic ones would be hiding under the bed or fighting with maybe another cat in the household. But obviously, there's things that you might write off as like, oh, the cat's just mad at me, or they're like being spiteful, or that's just how they are. That's their personality.

[00:03:14] Also, the things like over grooming and, you know, the hair coat changes can be another big one, too. So yeah, I think as cat owners, the first step is just tuning into your cat and, you know, trying to see the world through their eyes, making sure that we start identifying some of those triggers that might be causing stress.

[00:03:33] So I think a lot of people, you know, they may see their cat doing weird behaviors, and the first thing they do is go into the vet. And, you know, as a veterinarian myself, I've seen many times where, you know, they come in and they're asked for a solution.

[00:03:49] And I think in the traditional world of vet med, a lot of times the solution might be trying medications.

[00:03:58] But I'm sure you have a lot to say about, you know, things that could be done maybe on the path to that road or on the path to that destination.

[00:04:06] And we may have more success with medication therapy in conjunction with a behavior modification plan.

[00:04:13] What are your thoughts on that?

[00:04:14] Well, I'm always telling them first, make sure nothing is physically wrong with them.

[00:04:21] Then we'll go from there.

[00:04:22] If there's nothing wrong.

[00:04:23] Okay, let's try seeing if they're super stressed.

[00:04:25] What's what's the situation like?

[00:04:27] What's been going around?

[00:04:29] Yeah, have you just moved?

[00:04:31] What's going on?

[00:04:32] And we just narrow it down, narrow it down.

[00:04:35] Okay, they are stressed.

[00:04:37] They get so stressed so easy.

[00:04:41] And yeah, you just got to make sure you're nice and calm too, because they can soak up our emotions and just feed off of them and just kind of work together.

[00:04:50] Yeah, it's so important to look at that big picture of the whole household and the lifestyle.

[00:04:56] And then, you know, past traumas and things as much as we might know about that cat's history, because, you know, that's another challenge of going to see your vet is unfortunately, they may not have enough time to talk about all those things with you.

[00:05:09] And so that's where people like you come in, who are behavior experts.

[00:05:13] And so if you're having a cat with some of these issues, it may be good to talk to Pam or someone with a similar role, you know, that you can find locally, who can help to spend the time and talk about the whole scope of the issue that's going on.

[00:05:30] I think we see a lot more success, you know, starting medication and then having some behavior modification to go along with it so that, you know, maybe they don't have to stay on that medication forever.

[00:05:44] So, yeah, what about, tell us more about these things, like maybe cases that you've seen where the household energy or other pets can be affecting a particular cat's behavior.

[00:05:55] Right.

[00:05:56] Okay. So recently I had a client that just is just so desperate and she's like, okay, what's going on?

[00:06:03] Because the cat was just full on attacking her and said, okay, what's all going on here and here?

[00:06:10] And she just was just so afraid of the cat.

[00:06:13] She didn't know what else to do.

[00:06:14] And I said, okay, first off, try giving her some more playtime because that sounds like that's what's needed majorly there.

[00:06:22] Also do the calming music.

[00:06:24] And then she said, okay, I have tried to harness train her, but we had a scary situation of the neighbors.

[00:06:31] Don't let their dogs be on the leash.

[00:06:33] They just let them run loose.

[00:06:34] And they just, she grabbed the cat and ran said, okay, why don't you meet me at the pet smart?

[00:06:42] And we'll just slowly, slowly work with her on the harnessing there.

[00:06:46] And we'll just keep an eye out for dogs and make sure we keep a distance.

[00:06:50] And she said, and I've talked to her recently.

[00:06:53] She said, oh my gosh, we are in sync now.

[00:06:56] And she's just so much more calm now.

[00:06:58] Thank you.

[00:06:58] Thank you.

[00:06:59] And I said, that's what I'm here for.

[00:07:00] You're so welcome.

[00:07:01] That's amazing.

[00:07:02] Yeah.

[00:07:03] Tell us more about what you've done in terms of with the leash training and some of the ways that that can be a helpful thing to do for a cat that might be having some stress issues.

[00:07:13] Well, sometimes they just need to be more, you know, something, maybe they're bored and see if they look like they want to be outside.

[00:07:25] Give it a try.

[00:07:26] I mean, not all cats will accept it, but it's worth a try.

[00:07:30] And a lot of the, cause I work with the cats and kittens up for adoption and I harness train them.

[00:07:36] It's so much easier when they're kittens, but it's so, there's plenty of the adults that are just like,

[00:07:43] I don't want anything to do with that.

[00:07:44] Get it away from me.

[00:07:45] All right.

[00:07:45] We'll just have playtime.

[00:07:47] Do you have any tips for anyone who might be starting on a harness training plan?

[00:07:52] Yes.

[00:07:53] Once you decide on which kind of harness you wanted to use and is acceptable to the cat,

[00:07:59] I just get them used to the smell, the sight and the sound of it.

[00:08:04] Make sure you also, as I call it, use bribery, like a favorite treat, favorite toy.

[00:08:11] And, you know, just if it's like kind of harness where it slips over the head, put it on and off, offer the treat.

[00:08:17] And once it's fully on and the leash is on, or you can do it without, have them get down on the floor,

[00:08:24] wherever you're working and give them a treat.

[00:08:28] Walk a ways a little bit, make them walk to get that treat and keep going, keep going, keep going.

[00:08:34] Yeah.

[00:08:35] These are great tips.

[00:08:36] It does seem to be all about like desensitizing and the bribery, making sure they're distracted

[00:08:42] and just not expecting them to go from zero to a hundred of like, you put it on and it's magically going to work.

[00:08:48] That's not how cats work.

[00:08:51] Some will.

[00:08:51] I mean, some of the kittens I've worked with even just this week, they're just like, okay, let's walk.

[00:08:55] Okay.

[00:08:56] Yeah.

[00:08:57] Yeah.

[00:08:57] I think it can be really fun for them.

[00:08:58] And I do see too, that sometimes a lot of those, these issues of having stress could be related to pent-up energy,

[00:09:06] having anxiety due to that and some exercise and exploring could be a great remedy for that.

[00:09:11] Do you see some cats where it just, you know, they try it and it seems like it's unsuccessful and it's just not going to work for them?

[00:09:19] Yeah.

[00:09:19] There were some that were just, they were scared so bad when we went out into the store and it's just like, okay, it's not worth the scare.

[00:09:30] We'll just, we'll just work with you one-on-one in here, have play time.

[00:09:34] It's okay.

[00:09:35] We don't need to stress you out.

[00:09:37] Yeah.

[00:09:38] That's great.

[00:09:38] It's good to recognize that for each cat.

[00:09:41] Yeah.

[00:09:41] Okay.

[00:09:42] Well, this is all really interesting, but what I want to talk to you about is your particular cat crocheting.

[00:09:49] And your website and all that, because I know that's the really unique stuff to you.

[00:09:54] So can you tell us more kind of going back to your intro and the background?

[00:09:58] How did you get to the point that you're at, especially with the crocheting?

[00:10:02] Right.

[00:10:03] Okay.

[00:10:03] Well, I guess you could say it started with my cats.

[00:10:06] They absolutely love anything and everything I crochet.

[00:10:09] They have to be part of it.

[00:10:11] And so a lot of times they think, oh, you're making another blanket just for me.

[00:10:16] No, but I did make them for them too.

[00:10:20] And, and I can make them where they look like a specific cat and just all sorts of things.

[00:10:28] And it's just like, okay, let's just broaden this.

[00:10:31] And, you know, now there's like different Pokemon ones I've done.

[00:10:34] There's Emily, the strange ones.

[00:10:38] Yeah.

[00:10:39] Yeah.

[00:10:39] I saw your website.

[00:10:40] There's like a million different cute, adorable blankets.

[00:10:44] Do you think that it's like the cats, like the yarn and the texture of it?

[00:10:48] Probably.

[00:10:49] And then also the colors too.

[00:10:51] And it just, I like this one.

[00:10:54] Okay.

[00:10:55] Yeah.

[00:10:56] I know my cats, it's bizarre.

[00:10:58] They seem to gravitate toward fabrics that resemble them.

[00:11:03] So my brown tabby, he has this brown fluffy blanket that he's like obsessed with.

[00:11:08] He's always on there.

[00:11:10] And then my white cat, she likes to be on the white down comforter and she just stretches

[00:11:14] out and like totally camouflages herself in there.

[00:11:17] So it's interesting, you know, to think about like what their experience of interacting with

[00:11:23] textures and those kinds of physical things, especially with all their fur.

[00:11:27] Yeah.

[00:11:28] That's very cool.

[00:11:29] So are you bringing the blankets that you make into the rescue that you work with?

[00:11:34] I do.

[00:11:34] And each kitty that gets adopted, it can take a blanket home with them and just have it in

[00:11:41] their own little Zen dens and just be nice and relaxed and just have it smell like them.

[00:11:46] So yeah, that's so awesome.

[00:11:48] Do you have tips for people introducing a new cat into the household, whether they have

[00:11:54] other pets or not?

[00:11:55] Yes.

[00:11:56] Make sure to do an extremely slow introduction.

[00:11:59] You can't just shove them all together and hope for the best because no, it'd be stress

[00:12:04] on everybody, including you.

[00:12:07] So just to make it easier, have them have their own little setup, just litter box, food, water,

[00:12:12] just everything in their own little space.

[00:12:15] And then slowly, slowly get everybody together.

[00:12:18] And most importantly, do I like to do a combined scent swap where it's just simple of use a clean

[00:12:26] pair of socks and rub their whiskers and their body and rub it all over everybody.

[00:12:31] And then make sure that combined smell is on everybody.

[00:12:35] And then rub those socks, the walls that are in just their private little rooms and then

[00:12:43] general areas where everybody would meet just from the floor to 12 inches off the floor.

[00:12:47] And just everybody can get used to that combined smell.

[00:12:52] And I like to do that for every day, say maybe a week at least, maybe two.

[00:12:58] And then just, you know, do the whole slow seeing each other, slowly eat together, just everything.

[00:13:06] Yeah, it can be a challenge.

[00:13:08] But I think it's so important to do it properly because, yeah, just throwing them all into one

[00:13:13] room to kind of such long-term effects that, you know, it's like this dynamic gets established

[00:13:18] where one is the scaredy cat and one is the dominant and then it just plays out long-term.

[00:13:23] What are some other techniques that you've used for like multi-cat household stress issues?

[00:13:29] Calming herbs, definitely.

[00:13:31] And I've been working on making some little like plushies that have some calming herbs inside

[00:13:37] of them.

[00:13:38] And I actually was at our state's Petapalooza a couple weeks ago and I sold a bunch of them

[00:13:45] and they're just like, wait, what?

[00:13:47] These have calming herbs in them and they smell so good that people wanted them too.

[00:13:51] Yeah.

[00:13:52] A little bit for your pillow.

[00:13:54] One of them actually sent me a picture of their cat cuddling the dragon.

[00:13:57] I said, oh, that's so cool.

[00:13:59] They're just not fully up yet.

[00:14:01] But what are some of the herbs that you prefer for cats?

[00:14:04] I really like using like the lavender, chamomile, you know, as long as they're organic, passion

[00:14:11] flower.

[00:14:12] And people are surprised when I say even catnip.

[00:14:15] And I said, yeah, it can be a relaxant for them, not just to make them hyper and valerian

[00:14:20] root too.

[00:14:20] Awesome.

[00:14:21] What are some good ways to administer them besides, like you said, in a toy or stuffed animal?

[00:14:26] Okay.

[00:14:26] I like to also combine it with color therapy and I let people know, okay, those calming

[00:14:31] colors are purples and blues.

[00:14:32] You can just use a blanket, even a towel or even, you know, a piece of your clothing and

[00:14:38] just put it on a pinch of each herb on a different corner.

[00:14:42] And then that way they can self-select what they want and need at that time.

[00:14:46] And then they can just start getting nice and relaxed.

[00:14:49] Is it usually okay if they might nibble on or eat some of the herbs?

[00:14:53] As long as they're organic.

[00:14:54] Yeah.

[00:14:54] Okay, great.

[00:14:55] Yeah, that's really good advice.

[00:14:57] I love the color therapy too.

[00:14:59] What are some colors you might suggest avoiding?

[00:15:02] Well, I mean, if you're trying to do calming stuff, you don't want to be doing like, say,

[00:15:09] maybe red or yellow.

[00:15:10] That might get them a little bit more excited.

[00:15:13] But yeah, just as long as you're doing like the purples and blues, those are the most calming

[00:15:19] and just you're good.

[00:15:20] Yeah, I've had some interesting experiences with having different color colors out and

[00:15:27] kind of doing a self-selecting process for that.

[00:15:30] I feel like the cat, it's like they always go for the same colors.

[00:15:33] It's very weird.

[00:15:34] So you can get those like multi-packs on Amazon and I'll just put them out and they just go

[00:15:39] and pick the one that they want.

[00:15:40] And that's what they get until they, until they lose it.

[00:15:43] Yeah.

[00:15:44] Yeah.

[00:15:44] Well, this is great.

[00:15:46] So tell us more about the crocheting and the blankets.

[00:15:49] Okay.

[00:15:51] Well, basically the way I make them, I purposely have them have holes so that in case you need

[00:15:57] to use some kind of an injection for your cat, you can put the blanket on them to help calm

[00:16:01] them and then use one of the holes to put the injection in.

[00:16:05] You can, we use them as like sometimes with a certain young man here for a kitty burrito

[00:16:11] to clip his nails because he just is not one that will let me do them by himself.

[00:16:17] So yeah.

[00:16:18] Yeah.

[00:16:18] That's awesome.

[00:16:19] Yeah.

[00:16:19] And maybe like for a cat that needs fluid therapy, like sub-cu fluids at home.

[00:16:24] And I could imagine like a thin old cat who has kidney issues getting the fluids with like

[00:16:30] this soft, fluffy.

[00:16:31] Warm while they're getting that in.

[00:16:33] Yeah.

[00:16:33] Yeah, definitely.

[00:16:35] Yeah.

[00:16:35] That sounds really nice.

[00:16:36] And I think, I'm sure it's nice energetically too, to have a handmade blanket rather than

[00:16:41] something that's like all this polyester and, you know, artificial fabrics that.

[00:16:46] Something that can be just theirs.

[00:16:48] Yeah.

[00:16:49] Yeah.

[00:16:49] What kind of materials do you like to use?

[00:16:51] Pretty much just any kind of yarn.

[00:16:54] So just as long as it's not really stiff feeling, I prefer the super soft stuff and

[00:17:01] don't want the stuff that flakes everywhere when you're using it and, or when you wash it.

[00:17:07] Yeah.

[00:17:07] No, you don't need the fuzz everywhere and they don't want them eating it.

[00:17:10] Is crocheting hard to do?

[00:17:12] Like, can people learn to crochet and make their own blankets pretty easily?

[00:17:15] Oh yeah, they could.

[00:17:17] Yeah.

[00:17:17] I've never, I've never done any crocheting.

[00:17:19] It's not that bad.

[00:17:20] How long do you, would you say it takes to crochet like a cat size blanket?

[00:17:24] For me, a day.

[00:17:28] Maybe for a beginner.

[00:17:30] So for a beginner, I, yeah, I don't know.

[00:17:32] It varies.

[00:17:33] Yeah.

[00:17:33] Maybe, maybe a little longer than a day.

[00:17:36] Yeah.

[00:17:36] Maybe a week.

[00:17:37] Maybe, maybe.

[00:17:38] I don't know.

[00:17:39] When I was in vet school, one of my classmates would always be crocheting during class.

[00:17:43] Yeah.

[00:17:44] I take mine everywhere.

[00:17:46] Yeah.

[00:17:46] Yeah.

[00:17:46] It's a nice way to kind of keep your hands occupied and stay focused while you're doing.

[00:17:51] Yeah.

[00:17:51] Sit there in front of the TV.

[00:17:53] I'm going to just do this.

[00:17:54] I'm not going to just go.

[00:17:57] How many cats do you have?

[00:17:58] Three.

[00:17:59] Are they different ages?

[00:18:00] Yes.

[00:18:01] The one you saw, he is four.

[00:18:04] And that's Ray Ray.

[00:18:05] I have a little black girl who is three.

[00:18:09] And then we have a Maine Coon where we're guessing his age.

[00:18:12] We don't really know, but we think he's 15.

[00:18:14] We've had him for 10 years.

[00:18:15] So, but he's our old man.

[00:18:19] Oh, where are you located at?

[00:18:21] I'm in Utah.

[00:18:22] Okay.

[00:18:23] And what's the cat rescue that you work with?

[00:18:25] Called Kitty Crusade.

[00:18:26] Can you tell us a little more about them?

[00:18:28] Sure.

[00:18:28] I found out about him just because of the whole, I was doing my internship for school

[00:18:33] and Pets Martins crossed the street from me.

[00:18:36] And I figured that would be the perfect way to do it.

[00:18:38] Just get it right there.

[00:18:41] And they happened to be the rescue that came while I was doing my working towards internship.

[00:18:46] And I've just been working with them ever since I graduated.

[00:18:49] And I said, I can still help you guys.

[00:18:51] So just been working with them ever since.

[00:18:54] And actually, Juju is from that rescue.

[00:18:57] Oh, yeah.

[00:18:58] That's awesome.

[00:18:59] Yeah.

[00:18:59] I think it's so important for rescues to have a behaviorist on their team so that people

[00:19:05] have that resource to help with the adoption process.

[00:19:08] And supposedly I'm the only one in Utah too.

[00:19:11] Really?

[00:19:11] I haven't found any others, so I don't know.

[00:19:13] Okay.

[00:19:13] Well, anyone in Utah, that's great to know that.

[00:19:16] Are you located in Salt Lake or elsewhere?

[00:19:18] Well, I'm in Murray, so it's pretty close to Salt Lake.

[00:19:21] Okay.

[00:19:22] Well, yeah.

[00:19:22] If anyone's listening from that area, you know, sounds like Pam might be a great local

[00:19:25] resource for you guys.

[00:19:27] So if you have a cat with behavioral issues, what would you say is like the number one tip

[00:19:33] you might recommend a pet owner to go away with today and implement?

[00:19:36] Well, just keep in mind, they are not doing it to be mean or out of spite.

[00:19:44] Something is wrong.

[00:19:45] They're trying to tell you something is up.

[00:19:48] So just make sure you narrow things down and we can figure it out.

[00:19:54] That's great advice.

[00:19:55] Thank you.

[00:19:55] So where can our audience learn more about what you do and where they can get a hold of

[00:20:00] you and get some of your blankies?

[00:20:02] Well, obviously my website and it's just the crochetingcatbehaviors.com.

[00:20:06] I'm also on Instagram and Facebook and just I do all sorts of posts there, mostly about

[00:20:13] the kitties I work with.

[00:20:15] But yeah, there's still the crochet stuff there too.

[00:20:18] Okay.

[00:20:18] Awesome.

[00:20:19] Well, thanks for your time today, Pam.

[00:20:21] Yeah.

[00:20:21] And yeah, definitely go check out her website.

[00:20:24] It has such an amazing array of all these different blankets and you're definitely going to want

[00:20:28] to get one for your cat.

[00:20:29] They're so cute.

[00:20:30] Oh, and you could definitely customize your own stuff too.

[00:20:32] Those are just ideas.

[00:20:34] Okay.

[00:20:34] Awesome.

[00:20:35] That's great to know.

[00:20:36] Well, everyone listening, be sure to follow, subscribe and leave reviews if you found the

[00:20:40] interview interesting.

[00:20:41] This helps us to reach more pet owners who might benefit from this information for their

[00:20:45] cats.

[00:20:45] So thanks again, Pam, for your time and have a great rest of your day.

[00:20:48] Okay.

[00:20:49] Thank you.