My cat is now afraid of my husband. - Pet forum for dogs cats and humans

Albertine · #1 June 26th, 2010, 10:07 AM

We have a nine year old calico cat named Albertine that we adopted over two years ago. She has always been skittish and scared but in the past few months has really relaxed with us and felt more confident in the house. The other night my husband got up to get some water and Albertine was up and about and got under foot. My husband didn't see her and tripped over her kicking her along the way by mistake. Albertine is now very afraid of him. She won't come out to eat her food if he is in the house. She has let him pet her if she is already sitting down on the couch, but then if he stands up or if she sees him again, she runs away. He's very sad to see her so afraid of him. I am leaving for a week and worried about both of them. What should he do to regain her trust?

sugarcatmom · #2 June 26th, 2010, 10:45 AM

Awww, it is heartbreaking when that happens. I've accidentally kicked or stepped on my kitty a ton of times - he's a highly camouflaged tabby that blends perfectly with my persian carpets. I'm starting to think he puts himself in my path on purpose for the doting sympathy he gets afterwards.

It may take a little longer for Albertine to come around given her skittish nature, but I'm certain that eventually she will. Does she have any treats that she really loves? Canned salmon? Temptations? Pieces of fresh meat? Have your husband lie on the ground and offer her some treats, while talking softly to her. Try doing that several times a day.

Also, play therapy can be really helpful. If you have a fishing rod or wand toy, or even just some string with a crumpled ball of paper on the end, get hubby to gently play with her (no sudden movements).

And lots of patience!

Love4himies · #3 June 26th, 2010, 02:47 PM

SCM has given you great advice. Sitting or lying on the floor as SCM mentioned is very important as she will not see him in the same position as when she was kicked.

I always feel so bad when I do that to my kitties too, especially when it is my Rose. It takes her a long time to come around again.

Good luck and keep us updated.

And in keeping with tradition, WE DEMAND PICS OF HER

, whoops I mean, we would love to see some pics of your Albertine

please.

catlover2 · #4 June 26th, 2010, 11:22 PM

Cats can be leery for a long time and hold a grudge.
I had a girl who got stepped on while my husband was going down the stairs. He almost tripped over her, yelled and swore at her, and after that every time he came in a room she would run out. And my hubby would say "stupid cat, what did I do?" She would have nothing to do with him at all.....for 13 yrs.! I finally persuaded hubby that he should be really nice to her and sweet talk her and pay her a lot of attention, and within about 2 weeks she was coming around to him, wasn't running away when he entered a room and shortly became his lap cat.

The thing is with cats when they get stepped on and yelled at they think you meant to hurt them. So my suggestion is to sweet talk to her, and yes your hubby must apologize to her for booting her along the floor and tell her he didn't mean to hurt and scare her. It sounds crazy, but it works. Having him pet her, give her treats and paying her extra attention, and not moving quickly will also help. Give us an updte.

Albertine · #5 June 30th, 2010, 06:59 AM

Thanks for your advice everyone. Albertine has finally stopped running away from my husband. She just needed some time and some love. They've been bonding for days. The only lingering symptom is that she now likes to be fed in a different room. I think she was running to her food bowl during the incident. I'd attach a photo but don't see how to do this?

BenMax · #6 June 30th, 2010, 07:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Albertine

Thanks for your advice everyone. Albertine has finally stopped running away from my husband. She just needed some time and some love. They've been bonding for days. The only lingering symptom is that she now likes to be fed in a different room. I think she was running to her food bowl during the incident. I'd attach a photo but don't see how to do this?

Glad it is working out. Baby steps.

You know - I took in a silver shaded persian almost 1 year ago. The great people here at Pets helped me help the cat as I was unable to touch him or approach him at all. Through all their coaching, Riza is now my baby. It took almost 6 months to have him completely comfortable - but it was well worth the wait.

Best of luck to you.

Oh and I cannot help you with the photo part....sorry but I am terrible at this.

serenamlambe · #7 June 30th, 2010, 08:32 AM

To add a photo you can click "Go Advanced" at the bottom, next to the button that you would normally use to post.

Then, when you get to the new page, scroll down and click the button "Manage Attachments." A smaller window will pop up.

You can then use one of the "Browse" buttons in that small window to access the picture file on your computer. After that, click the "Upload" button.

After it has loaded, you can click "Submit Reply" on your post.

Hope that helps! Can't wait to see a picture!