kitten doesn't like to be petted

[cookiedough03]

My kitten is almost 5 months, female.She doesn't like to be held or petted. only thing she cares about is playing and.. eating. if we don't play with her with feather toys, she will meow or will "softly" attack feet as to say "let's play." She won't sit next to me, but will still sit somewhere nearby. Is this normal? will it change as she grows up? I understand it's a cat and I should respect her wishes. Just wondering if there is something I can do to make our relationship better. Thank you.

 

[Doody]

Same here! Got our kitten around 8-10 weeks old. We actually were fostering her, but she stole our hearts when she'd climb up up on our chests and fall asleep. Fast forward to 6-7 month old, and the only way I can get her to sleep on me is by gently picking her up and putting her on my chest while she's already fast asleep. She now prefers to nap under the bed now. She only seems to enjoy petting when she's very sleepy.

My poor husband, he is the one who wanted to keep her, and now she either ducks away when he tries to touch or just runs away. She went through a pretty good biting stage for a couple months, but I think she's easing up on it. I will say, being an "only" -- she is kind of a spaz! I do play with her a lot, but I miss her affectionate nature she initially had and I hope it comes back. Right now, because it is nice out and the windows are open, she spends all her time looking outside.

If I had had my way, we would have gotten an adult cat with an established personality, but I as over-ruled. I am hoping this is just her going through the "teenage stage" that people talk about on this site.

 

[susanm9006]

Your kitten is pretty normal. At her age and actually most of kittenhood play and running around is the center of their life. If a kitten was too quiet I would be concerned. That doesn’t mean they don’t love you or aren’t forming a bond. The best way to get cuddle time in with these wild children is to gently pick them up when they are sleepy or fully a sleep and use this time to pet and cuddle them. They will then start to realize that a human makes a soft warm pillow and seek you out when they need that comfort.

Also, if you have not had her spayed yet you want to get that done as soon as possible so that she doesn’t have mating on her mind.