# Afraid of heights?



## amy22 (Jul 5, 2013)

My cat Freja is a rescue from the humane society; she's been with me for a little under a week. Last night she slept on my bed for the first time. I left her comfortably this am only to return 6 hours later with her still there. She kept walking up to the edge and peering over before walking back to the middle. I try not to pick her up as much as possible so she can feel in control, but I had to rescue her as she wasn't getting any water. I put a box by the bed to help her step up and down which she has used now both going up and down.

I always thought cats liked high places and I've never seen a cat "afraid of heights." Has anyone else seen this kind of behavior in a cat? She is cross-eyed (a feature I only just noticed today) so I don't know if that affects her depth perception. I'm afraid to leave her alone for fear she'll get stranded while I'm at work.


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

She may be afraid of high places, or it might be something else. Maybe afraid of something or someone jumping out from under the bed (past bad experience?). I have pet stairs in two locations because two of my cats are so old, but even the younger cats use them. Zipper and Missy don't jump at all so the steps are essential if we want them to join us on the bed. You can get some for about $35 from Amazon, but I have found that they need reinforcement after a couple years. I have to put a screw and nut on them to keep them from collapsing. Probably from my 22 pound Jack using them! Other than that they are a good deal.


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