Questions about Rescue Remedy

[Annemarie/Tigger(GA)]

Hi everyone, my original post is below. i first posted on the PZI board but it was suggested to post here too. does anyone have any good experiences with Bachs rescue remedy?


ORIGINAL POST FROM PZI BOARD:

Hi everyone, it's been a couple of weeks and I've been holding steady on the 1.2 units to see if Frazzle needs some time adjust. I think things are looking better, he had a dental last Tuesday. No teeth removed just a cleaning. Should I hold at 1.2 units a few more weeks?

Frazzle is being bullied by one of our cats, and this has caused him to retreat under the bed for most of the day the day before he went in for the dental they had 2 big fights. Now every time frazzle sees the bully cat he hisses a little and runs away from him. He was doing so good and I feel like we have gone backward in the progress we had made. If you all remember, I've only had frazzle for 10 weeks and he was hiding under the bed for the first 3 weeks!

Does anyone have any suggestions to help them get along? Since last week they haven't had any fights, just some minor hissing. But I feel horrible that he doesn't feel comfortable to come out from them bed anymore. I'm not sure what to do and have been thinking I might have to find him another home.

Thanks guys!

Annemarie

 

[Christine & KR]

Annemarie,

I tried Rescue Remedy with my cat when she was about 14 (she's now 19). I was trying to find a way to calm her down for trips to the vet. From what I could tell, it didn't work at all for Kitty Rabbit. I tried putting drops on her paw for her to lick off but she just ignored the drops. I tried mixing it in her food but she'd turn up her nose and walk away. I finally gave up using it. I don't know why, but it was no help for me.

At one time I had two cats. KR was about 8 when I brought a 1-year-old into the house. The number one piece of advice I can give you: give Frazzle a "safe" room (I'd tell you to separate the bully, but it looks like Frazzle now needs the safe room for his emotional well-being). This is a room that's off-limits to the other cats (but all the humans in the house should visit frequently!). You'll want to SLOWLY re-introduce Frazzle into the feline portion of the household. My mistake with KR and Susannah was rushing the process: I kept them separate for about a week when it should've been at least a month. I should have let them sniff each other under the doors for all that time, but I felt guilty leaving one cat alone when I was with the other. For the record, my two did eventually learn to get along, but it was much more painful than it needed to be. Susannah later found a new home; KR has been quite happy to be an only-cat since then.

If your place is too small to allow a "safe" room, you may have to try this with a large closet or some area of the house you can block off from the rest of the cats. It's not a fun process, but it sure beats watching one cat being bullied by one of the others.

One other idea: try Feliway. I haven't used it, but it may work better to help you reintroduce the two cats to one another.

Good luck,

Christine

 

[Maggies Mom Debby]

I use both Rescue Remedy and Feliaway.

The Feliaway plug-ins are to reduce the fighting between my two civies. Erik is 12 lbs and bites Emme who is 8 lbs. I think is has helped - much less biting, though there are still some hissing going on. It does get expensive, though, but may be what you need to integrate Frazzle into the cat family.

I use the Rescue Remedy for vet visits and when we have people, like contractors, in the house. I think it does help make them less anxious. I usually rub a little on their ears.