Makes complete sense to me. It took three years for Chumley to be mostly comfortable with hands.
And I think you're right about a past history of abuse. Our petting of ferals begins with leaving the hand on the food dish while they eat, then "accidentally" brushing their cheek with hand removal, then cheek and head petting.
For most, after that, pets elsewhere are ok if they don't see the hand coming at them. So it makes sense that for an abused kitty, not seeing the hand is scary.
Though her sensitivity may simply be lack of human contact. Some ferals will never come to enjoy a full body pet, and especially get over stimulated at the base of the tail. Best to just accept her signals, and the rest will come (or not) with time. :heart2:
As we tell Pawley over and over, he"s safe now. We love him and want nothing from him other than his safety, comfort, and happiness. :rub:
There are often not immediate "rewards" when you work with ferals, abused, or otherwise damaged cats. But when they come to trust, and when they do enjoy some pets; when that "trust" bond is formed, whether it's weeks, months, or years, there's nothing like it. :heart2:
And I think you're right about a past history of abuse. Our petting of ferals begins with leaving the hand on the food dish while they eat, then "accidentally" brushing their cheek with hand removal, then cheek and head petting.
For most, after that, pets elsewhere are ok if they don't see the hand coming at them. So it makes sense that for an abused kitty, not seeing the hand is scary.
Though her sensitivity may simply be lack of human contact. Some ferals will never come to enjoy a full body pet, and especially get over stimulated at the base of the tail. Best to just accept her signals, and the rest will come (or not) with time. :heart2:
As we tell Pawley over and over, he"s safe now. We love him and want nothing from him other than his safety, comfort, and happiness. :rub:
There are often not immediate "rewards" when you work with ferals, abused, or otherwise damaged cats. But when they come to trust, and when they do enjoy some pets; when that "trust" bond is formed, whether it's weeks, months, or years, there's nothing like it. :heart2:
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