Extremely Needy Cat But I Still Love Him

[Kittenestcat]

We have had our cat for almost two years now. He was abandoned by his mother before 8 weeks. We’ve had him ever since. Love him to pieces but am curious about some of his behavior. He has a very strong attachment to me it seems, more than anyone in the family. He HAS to sleep with me every night or if not he scratches my carpet and doorway while meowing loudly until he is let in the room. Another thing, whenever I am sitting down, or laying down doesn’t matter every time he sees me, he has to come up and lay on me or get right up in my face and sit on my chest as close to my face as possible and drool all on my face while he purrs and goes to sleep. Another thing I’ve noticed is he cannot STAND for my husband to cuddle me sometimes he gets in between us and will swat his hand with his paw or something if he goes to touch me. It’s not all the time but we’ve seen him do this enough to be curious about it. While all these things may seem cute, they don’t bother me any, with the exception of Being smothered by cat fur and drool every time I want to go to sleep. I was curious if anyone else has had a cat with similar behavior. I feel like I give him plenty of attention but he follows me everywhere in every room and whines and meows at doors if I go to leave or even go to bathroom. I thought about getting him a friend to play with, but he doesn’t seem to like other cat. We have a stray we’ve been feeding and he tries to fight him/her whenever there’s a chance. Oh and one more thing, whenever I come home from work or anywhere he is rolling all over the floor at my feet meowing clawing to get up, so I pick him up and hold him. If I do not do this he get very frustrated and runs through the house at full speed knocking things off dressers and just disrupting anything he can. Just wanted to see if anyone else has dealt with a car similar to mine.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I just wanted to acknowledge your post, so it will be bumped higher up on the list and give other members a chance to see it and respond.

The only thing that comes to my mind is the fact that he was taken away from his mother too soon and that has left him with some insecurities. You became his mother back then, and he still treats/sees you that way.

I would instill play times with him - especially when you get home from work and see if that stops his running like a crazy cat through the house. Get your husband more involved in his caretaking, if he is not already. You might also want to establish a sleep area for him (maybe a cat bed with some of your unwashed clothing in it?) on your bed that you could try placing him in when he becomes particularly bothersome. None of these ideas are overnight solutions, so if you try any of them be patient before you decide to give up!

Hoping other members come along soon with some first hand advice!!

 

[Libby.]

He was weaned too early and has bonded/imprinted on you. He will probably calm down when he gets a little older. You might want to try to start discouraging some of the negative behavior by redirecting him to do something positive.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
One thing you might do, is when he gets super possessive is to hiss at him. He doesn't know the difference between what is acceptable behavior and unacceptable behavior. You need to be just like his momma and teach him, and the hiss is an effective way of communicating to him in a way that will make sense to him.

Every time, as many times as it takes.

Assuming your boy has been neutered can you trap the stray and have it neutered?

Don't pick him up every time, and for a little while cat proof your house so he can zoom off the extra energy without physical damage, to things or himself.

Speaking of energy, play with him enough to wear him out, and take him for walks.

Do you have cat trees? Both upright and horizontal scratchers?

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[Maria Bayote]

Awws, such a sweet boy. Looks like he really has bonded to you deeply. All his life the closest mother figure he could see is you. I used to have a foster like that, but is now thriving in her forever home.

You have got very good advice above. Keep it up and soon it may pay off.

 

[musical_chick121]

When we adopted our kitten from the shelter she was a lot like this. She had to go everywhere we went and constantly clung to us...then she started peeing on my fiance's feet every night for a while. Our only solution was to adopt a companion for her. She mellowed out a lot after that.

 

[zed xyzed]

Awww it is so sweet how much he loves you. My mom's cat was like that and as he got older and more confident he became less clingy. Enjoy the loving you are getting now while you can lol

 

[Talien]

Some Cats only like certain other Cats, and do not get along with others at all. It may be that another Cat could help him burn off excess energy and to stop being so clingy with you, but the problem would be finding the right Cat which may not be an easy task.

If you decide to try it a younger Cat or even a Kitten would probably be best, and now is a good time for that since it's still Kitten season. If you have a shelter or rescue near you that does foster to adopt you may want to consider it.

 

[maggie101]

My cat was taken by a stranger 5 weeks old then came back on my porch a year later. She was a stray. Indoors only now. Very attached to me. 5 yrs old now. When I on my couch she sleeps above me and snores in my ear. Then gives a weird meow, puts her head on my shoulder,rubs all over my face, crawls down, puts her paws on my neck, then crawls back down and kneads her paws. She loves to be brushed. If your cat likes that, have your husband brush her, feed, play with her

 

[maggie101]

I have 3 adult cats. If I play a video on my tablet with kittens meowing, my cats come over and start purring and look under my tablet for the kittens.

 

[di and bob]

He is very bonded to you. Most cats pick one person in the family to be the closest with, he picked you. All of those behaviors are because he loves you so much, so are hard to break. He will most likely calm down as he gets older and more confident, I agree your husband could brush him and play with him to get his attention off you for a while. Two is really just arriving into adulthood.

 

[DreamerRose]

My Lily is like that, and I love every minute of it. She was an abandoned mom with five kittens, and she still has insecurities. Mingo helps to some extent, but she will howl pitifully if left alone in a room. Another kitty may help take the edge off your boy, but you don't want to discourage his love and affection for you.

 

[Johnriii]

sounds like a sweet kitty! someone above suggested hissing at your cat, and when I want my cats to recognize bad behavior, I do this as well; it actually works, even though it seems quite silly. I've picked up one by the scruff, hind feet still on the floor, and hissed at her right in the face. you should have seen the look of "what the HELL?" on her face. she also chitters like a bird when i do this. funny thing is after i do it, I usually get a "cat apology" within minutes.

 

[catlover73]

My Starbuck was very clingy when she was a baby. She was abandoned out a car window by some ass at 4 weeks old. A friend's family rescued her and I adopted her at 6 weeks old. She could not handle being alone at all. I did have other cats she bonded with. Tegato kept her company when were not home. She did wake me up every 2 hours grooming my face when she was a baby. I did not get much sleep for the first month we had her. She used to groom my face dry as a baby. She did out grow waking us up and learned to sleep in the bed next to us without waking us up. She can be clingy sometimes as an adult but it is a lot less than when she was a baby. She will spend hours cuddling with me when I am lying on the couch watching tv. I definitely think having my adult cats around Starbuck when she was a baby helped her learn to feel more secure and confident in her new home. Tegato really took on the mommy cat role even though he was an adult male. He taught her manners/boundaries and that she was safe in her new forever home.

 

[Lbridges2534]

Yeah realistically it’s possible this won’t stop when he grows older either. My adorable but relentless 10 year old Ringo still behaves this way. He follows me everywhere sometimes meowing very loudly for attention (he has the loudest meow ever too), has to sleep next to me nightly, and when I’m sitting he has to be right there in my face -but won’t initiate it himself most times- as he wants me to pick him up and physically place him on my lap. Sometimes he won’t stop meowing loudly and angrily until I do so pretty much until he gets so tired and he doesn’t care anymore and just naps wherever. I work 9-10 hour days so I know he misses me but have another 8 year old cat as well to keep him company and this doesn’t detour him one bit. He still is a Velcro cat. I admit I reinforced it over the years and maybe even got some of it started by spoiling him rotten and now it’s a behavior that is pretty much stuck. It has gotten better of course since when he was a younger cat but he simply desires my affection a good deal and that is just his personality. Pretty sure he was taken Too early from his mother too and just got used to me being mommy.

So best advice would be to stop this as soon as possible. And don’t just assume it’ll stop. I do believe most cats also become a lot more clingier as they get older so I imagine Ringo will be that way too.

 

[Tik cat's mum]

I would definitely get your hubby involved in feeding and playing or giving favourite treats. Yes I have one the same I go to sleep every night with a wet shoulder. Mine used to run up the bed and block my hubby from getting near me. Now they are pals and we can be next to each other.

 

[Lranders29]

I'm wondering about this too. My boy has clearly bonded a lot with me. I love it but it's becoming an issue.
When I'm cooking or cleaning or getting ready, he wants to be with me. Last night I was cooking at the stove and he jumped up my arm and could have gotten burned or fallen into food! I hate being mean but I've tried saying no, clapping my hands loudly, ignoring...
At night he gets on my face and kneads and licks and licks and licks. I've tried moving him to the end of the bed, tried saying no, and the only thing that works has been locking him out. Now when he's locked out he will mew at the door. He's not this way with my husband! I'd be ok with him sleeping with me if he didn't knead and scratch and lick me awake!