Pheromones have been used extensively in feline medicine in recent years for the management of many conditions including aggression, inappropriate urination, and various types of stress. The most commonly used pheromone is feline facial pheromone fraction F3, commonly sold as the commercial produce “Feliway”. This pheromone is naturally produced by cats and deposited on surfaces as a territory-marking agent.

Despite the widespread use of such products, there have only been a few published studies demonstrating their efficacy in clinical situations. These have centered of efficacy in reducing urine spraying, reducing fear behavior in clinics, improving appetite in hospitalized cats, ad decreasing stress during travel. The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of Feliway in decreasing stress and easing the handling of cats during physical examination.

This study was designed as a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial. Consultations were performed in two different (but similarly sized, shaped, and designed) rooms by the same veterinarian and with the same assessor. The room was cleaned, mopped, disinfected and aired between cats and a 2-week period was given between treatment groups. Consultations alternated between rooms and cats were randomly assigned. Cats on any medications, with a history of chronic disease, or who were found to have abnormalities on physical exam were excluded from the study. Cats waiting more than 25 minutes were excluded.

15 minutes prior to exam the table was sprayed with 5 sprays of a solution that was either Feliway or placebo. Owners, veterinarians and assessors were blinded as to which solution was used. The assessors used a previously generated objective scales to assign scores to each cat for stress (The “Cat Stress Score”) and a newly generated scale for ease of handling. In addition, owners were asked to rank their cat’s behavior compared to previous exams.

87 cats were enrolled in the study, 29 of which were exposed to Feliway, 33 to placebo, and 25 to no spray (between the crossover period). There was no difference in sexual status between groups, though the Feliway group was younger than control (median 1.5 vs 4.5 years).

Cats in the Feliway group experiences a significantly lower stress score than placebo or control groups (mean of 3.2 or “weakly tense” vs 4.0 “very tense”). The Feliway group also had a significantly larger number of cats with scores <3 on the Cat Stress Score scale. While there were more “easy to handle” scoring cats in the Feliway group, the handling scores were not significantly different.

There were also a significantly larger number of people who ranked their own cats as “easier to handle/more relaxed” in the Feliway group compared to control or placebo.

No difference was found between placebo and control groups in any of these parameters.

This study provides further support for the idea that pheromones can be a valuable tool for the reduction of stress on cats in a clinic setting. There are several advantages to pheromone-based stress reduction including relatively low cost, minimal to no side effects on animals, improved quality of life for cats and ease of handling for veterinarians. While there is still significant room for further research in this area (including studies with larger number of cats) this provides convincing, evidence-based support for the use of Feliway to reduce stress in clinic. (MRK)