for puddytat lovers...

http://catshappy.blogspot.com/

Cute! =^..^=

the little black kitten in mid-flight attack reminds me of my cat when she was that age

They are gorgeous!

As cat lovers, does anyone have any advice regarding a bad-tempered cat? (Not the one in the pic, that was my darling Kizzy who died in 2002 aged 18)

Smokey is 5 years old and we offered her a home when her 'parents' divorced. She'd spent several months in a cattery, and some time being passed from pillar to post, so I am prepared to make allowances.

But she can be such a miserable ratbag! One minute she's all over me like a rash, the next she's sinking her (very sharp) teeth into my flesh. She hates being picked up, and spends a lot of her time swishing her tail and glaring!

At other times it is obvious she wants to be affectionate, she will follow me from room to room, and always rushes to meet me when I come home from work.

Is it a case of giving her time, or will she always be disagreeable? All the cats I've owned in the past have been playful and have happily borne the indignities heaped upon them (being rolled up in the newspaper, being picked up and flung on the bed), but if I tried anything like that with Smokey she'd go ballistic.

Very cute kittens!

Mad U B: I don't really know that much about cats, but I would just ignore Smokey if she's being disagreeable. My niece had similar problems with the family cat, which had been adopted from a shelter not so long ago, and it seemed to work. Do you think she might like a companion cat?

MUB my mum's cat was exactly the same (and came from very similar situation) - it turned out to be a hormonal problem (honestly!) - she is now on tablets and very affectionate, sits on knee etc...!

Vet also mentioned another possible cause as thyroid-type condition.

Might be worth getting her checked out.

Hi Mrs H long time no see, hows Andy?

Hmmm wonder if thats the case with my ikkle darling pussy Dally. He is such a tart with others but not with me. And Im the one that bliddy feeds him

Thanks for the advice. We'll certainly ask the vet's opinion, but we're actually dreading the first trip to the vet as the trauma of being put in her basket is going to be awful (for her and for us!)

Nicko, she could well be the one in the 'ninja' cats, that's just like her!

We are thinking of a companion cat, my daughter's friend has one looking for a home, so we might take him on trial.

The sad thing about her is that I think she really wants to be part of a loving family, but maybe her more recent experiences have clouded her judgement!

Hi Nicko - how you doing?  Whereabouts in the world are you now...? He's good thanks - still into tri and other mad stuff!

MUB - good luck, I'm sure with time when she realises you're not going anywhere, she'll come round...

MUB, seems to me there is a load of possibilities.  If you are having real problems and the vet says there's no health issues, you could get a referral to a cat behaviourist.

Meanwhile amatuer thoughts on a few possibilities:

It's quite normal for many cats to lash out when in an excited, stimulated state.  Don't stroke when excited and rolling about!

Could be bad experiences in the past, in which case take the pressure off and let her come to you.  Some cats are more likely to lash out when approached from certain angles.

Some cats are just not cuddly, even if affectionate in other ways.  She may hang out with you, give you slow blinks (cat way of showing friendlyness), want to play with you, but not want to be picked up or come on your lap.  How would you feel if all your friends insisted on picking you up and sitting you on their laps?  Express your friendship in ways you both enjoy...

On the basket problem: you can 'train' her to go into the basket herself.  Leave it out with the door open and a nice soft towel or something inside.  Feed her a treat just outside.  Next day give her treats in the doorway.  Then inside.  Then inside and close the door.  Then inside and close the door and lift the basket before letting her out.  Also if you do need to pick her up always 'ask' before you do, by putting your hand under her belly and applying a little upward pressure to give her warning.  If you can practice this a few times when it's not important, so that if she says 'no' a few times it doesn't matter.  Persistance and calmness works better in my experience than dominance and force.

Thanks for the advice RGF.

High places? The wretched animal climbed on top of the kitchen cabinets and managed to squeeze herself into the space behind the oven. We had no idea where she was, so it's just as well we didn't cook anything, we'd have cooked the cat as well - though I guess she'd have come out when it got too warm. We've now blocked off that particular hiding-place, but she's settled quite a bit anyway and not so inclined to hide.

I live in the wilds of East Sussex now Mrs H close to Beachy head actually [resist Nick resist] not exactly the city of London. In fact it's crap to be honest but not a lot I can do about it really.

Oh well never mind.

Take care and give Andy a good kicking for me

My favourite pussy cat sites:

My Cat Hates You and Kitlers

My fave so far:

http://www.mycathatesyou.com/cats/2008/09/100

My cats always left the certain item featured alone as long as it was in it's correct place.  If I left some in the livingroom or something though...

Another bit on cats that don't like to be picked up...  For the last week I've been looking after a cat who's affectionate but has what can only be described as mixed feelings about being picked up.  I discovered that she likes a compromise position: pick her up, then let her put her front paws on a high surface.  So she's half standing on a surface and half sitting in my arms.  She'll happily stay and be stroked like that for ages.