So I had cats growing up and I thought I was pretty well versed in cat matters. But I haven't had cats for quite a few years. About a month ago we adopted a cat. He came from a lady we met and he was very sweet and affectionate at first. He was purring and kneading with his paws, playing, sleeping next to us curled up on the sofa. Obviously he was very well socialized and loved. He is about 11 months old pretty large orange tabby. He is fixed. From the start he has been eating well and using his litter box. I have no reason to complain. But after about 2-3 weeks he started losing interest at interacting with us. He is always gentle and polite but he is visibly annoyed when we approach. He still purrs sometimes but mostly just puts up with our advances. So different than what he was a couple weeks ago when he literally stood on his hind legs to push his head into our hands to pet him. Now he usually takes a few minutes of petting then moves over to another spot. He follows us around and wants to be near but almost never jumps up on the furniture to come close. He used to sleep next to us on the sofa when we watch TV and sleep on my daughters bed. He would jump up on the bed when we read with my daughter at night time. Now he lays around on the floor always near but does not want to be bothered. There are a lot of details though:
1)Unfortunately he came to us infested with fleas. I only noticed a week after we got him. I got his vet records and I see that he was regularly vaccinated. I made the mistake of giving him a bath and that was not going well. After that he was still more outgoing though so I am not sure that is the issue. We are getting this under control now and I think we are on the road of beating it. I vacuum every other day and treat the home every week.
2) My little one is 5 years old and quite loud and high energy. The cat likes to play with her for a while but definitely does not like picked up etc. so I am now very careful that she leaves him alone when he is done. I think things are getting better with her.
3) I think my kitty has food allergy issues. I did not find anything in the paperwork but his right eye keeps producing tears. His eye itself is normal not red or swollen or tender. I also noticed that his paws seem to be itchy and he chews them quite a bit. I feed him dry food in the morning and wet food at night. He prefers dry food but eats the wet food too. I switched his dry food to grain free and he is not crazy about the new food.
OK so my question I guess is what to do. IT seems that our relationship with kitty is deteriorating and I am sad about it. I am not sure how to turn things around. He is a sweet cat and greets us with a little purr-meow each time he sees us. He still puts his head up to be petted between his ears nd likes ear and cheek scratches. He also lets his chin scratched sometimes. But he purrs less and less and started hiding under beds again. (He only did that in the first 2-3 days) So it seems there is something stressing him and that is taking a toll on his affection toward us. I can totally accept if a cat is more withdrawn but that is not how he was in the beginning and I feel that it is our mistake / fault that he is becoming less and less social. I think part of the issue is that we are all home and in his face all the time. But I am not sure how to change that. Especially with my little one. All insight and help is appreciated.
1)Unfortunately he came to us infested with fleas. I only noticed a week after we got him. I got his vet records and I see that he was regularly vaccinated. I made the mistake of giving him a bath and that was not going well. After that he was still more outgoing though so I am not sure that is the issue. We are getting this under control now and I think we are on the road of beating it. I vacuum every other day and treat the home every week.
2) My little one is 5 years old and quite loud and high energy. The cat likes to play with her for a while but definitely does not like picked up etc. so I am now very careful that she leaves him alone when he is done. I think things are getting better with her.
3) I think my kitty has food allergy issues. I did not find anything in the paperwork but his right eye keeps producing tears. His eye itself is normal not red or swollen or tender. I also noticed that his paws seem to be itchy and he chews them quite a bit. I feed him dry food in the morning and wet food at night. He prefers dry food but eats the wet food too. I switched his dry food to grain free and he is not crazy about the new food.
OK so my question I guess is what to do. IT seems that our relationship with kitty is deteriorating and I am sad about it. I am not sure how to turn things around. He is a sweet cat and greets us with a little purr-meow each time he sees us. He still puts his head up to be petted between his ears nd likes ear and cheek scratches. He also lets his chin scratched sometimes. But he purrs less and less and started hiding under beds again. (He only did that in the first 2-3 days) So it seems there is something stressing him and that is taking a toll on his affection toward us. I can totally accept if a cat is more withdrawn but that is not how he was in the beginning and I feel that it is our mistake / fault that he is becoming less and less social. I think part of the issue is that we are all home and in his face all the time. But I am not sure how to change that. Especially with my little one. All insight and help is appreciated.
