moody kitten

[happy hammer]

we have a 4 month old kitten. we've had her since she was 8 weeks old. she came from a home where the kid had adhd and kept pulling her tail. there was a dominant kitten that ate all her food. when we got he home she was timid and is still shy of new people which we put down to the family she was brought up in. since she has been with us she has been really loving and full of fun and always wanting to play. lately she has gone back to how she was and wants to be on her own all the time .
1 she does not go out
2 we have no children
3she is on her own for 8 hrs a day not weekends
4she has all the toys in the world including a scratch post for upto 3 cats.
5. we changed the front room carpet and this is when it started . is the coinciedence.


why is she not happy with us. thanks for any help

[garner]

This is it with cats they just do not like change, she will come round in time when she thinks she has made you suffer for the carpet lol.When she is left on her own, why not have a portable radio on for her, it might be a kind of company.Good luck with your new kitty and I am sure she will come round in time.g.

[happy hammer]

thanks for that. we like the idea about the radio. god hope she is not punishing us for the carpet we are having the kitchen ripped out soon. lol.

[~max~]

It is probably the new carpet! She'd have left her "smell" on the old one, and can't recognise it. Give her some time to get used to it, and rub herself on the new carpet to leave her mark! lol

I moved flat with my then 8 month old cat, and the first few days she just spent exploring and sniffing absolutely EVERYTHING! She didn't even sleep in my bed as usual, but on top of the boiler! lol

[happy hammer]

the carpet has been down for a week. but you are making us feel better thanks.

[zzxxee]

get another kitten a younger one and it might be the alpha male and come out of itsself

[~max~]

It is actually a very good idea to get a second kitten so they can keep each other company, if you can afford it. I would love to, but can't afford it at the moment. I'll definitely consider it when I earn more money though.

[happy hammer]

would like to get another one but can't afford it. also with the way she is with being shy and timid we are a bit worried that she will get bullied again even by a smaller cat, she really is timid she jumps at anything even if there is nothing there.

thanks for all your help

[~max~]

She will be fine again again in no time, I'm sure! Give her loads of praise and cuddles if she will have them, talk to her a lot (it does work! lol) and play with her (they LOVE laser pointers, corks on a string and, bizzarely...washing up sponges! lol. Don't worry, they are all little blighters with their own personalities, but they're well worth it. xxx

[zzxxee]

do you no any one with cats maybe you could leave your cat in the day at their house so the kitten has company while your at work saying that some advice off your local vet would be good

[happy hammer]

thank-you to you all it was very reasuring hope you have great times with your kittens. we will post in a few weeks and let you know the outcome.................

[Kleiber]

My new kitten, Mischa, is also very timid (due to being very cruelly treated when she was about 4 weeks old), but she's come into a house with four other cats & two dogs, so understandable. We've had her for about 5 weeks now and she's gradually coming round - she's made friends with my young female cat and two of the older ones tolerate her, so she's getting there! She's not over keen on my 19 yr old son, though, as it was a man who ill-treated her, but she's starting to trust him a bit more every day. It'll take time for your little one to accept the changes you're making at home (bear in mind that she's still very young and is trying to gain some sense of security in her surroundings), remember that she's come into your family from what sounds like a not very good home and she needs familiar things and a routine now. Give her a while and I'm sure she'll be OK, but shut her in a room that she's familiar with, with lots of toys, when you have the kitchen done (so she's not frightened)!

[stonekicker]

also try and introduce her slowly to the outside. had a similar problem with my foundling as she had been neglected and beaten. i used to take her for a cuddle in the kitchen, then play by the back door, gradually cuddles on the doorstep and so on. eventually she did come and sit with me in the garden and now six years on, you don't see her for dust if she gets out at dusk or dawn!!! it will just take longer for her to settle in than most kitties, but if you persevere she will develop into a loving pet. just beware - mine turns psycho now and then when she's startled or you approach her in the wrong way, but we have just accepted her for the scarred individual she is - still lovely underneath it all, though!

[Kleiber]

Mine's the same, stonekicker, even at the young age she is. If I pick her up in the wrong way, she snarls & spits, but then she snuggles up & purrs. I guess that's the way she'll always be, like yours. Are we mad, taking on these animals, or just a soft touch? Some folk take on disturbed or disabled children and give them happy lives so maybe we're the animal equivalent, eh? K x

[momac]

Talk to her all the time,she's probably just a little dependant cat,if she follows you around the house as you are doing the housework continually talk to her. Bless!