socializing galen

[doctorprilicla]

I recently adopted a Siamese mix, Galen, as a companion to my cat Dukhat. Now, Galen gets along extremely well with cats. He and Dukhat are great friends, and they play and chase each other around the house all the time, and follow each other and sleep together. However, Galen is not a fan of humans. He examines us and stares us down, but runs away whenever we get near him or try and pet him. Any tips on how we can get him used to people? Or should we just let him come around on his own?

 

[pat traufield]

What have you tried so far?

I like to use food and play to socialize cats. When using food it helps if they are hungry. Find several treats/food that Galen really likes - feed canned food on a popsicle stick and things like thin sliced deli meat by hand.

Get some toys that are interactive and give you some physical distance from the cat "Da Bird" is our favorite. Any toy that is on a string attached to a stick.

Avoid lots of direct eye contact - when you look at Galen make sure to blink slowly and glance around.

Have you tried catnip?

 

[motoko9]

It's great news that your newcomer gets along with your first cat! So many people have trouble with that, but it seems you have the opposite problem.

You've already been given some good ideas - I just wanted to write to give you some encouragement. Some cats never warm up to people, but I've also seen cats change quite a bit over time. It doesn't sound as if you've had Galen for too long, and another month or two might make a world of difference, especially since it sounds as if he is in a loving home now!

 

[doctorprilicla]

I read somewhere about the slow blinking thing which I did, because he does this thing where he'll stare right at me for a really long time without moving. It's highly disconcerting, and I'm always the one who looks away. He gets close to me when I'm in the kitchen and looks at me like he wants something, but won't allow himself to be pet. The only reason I haven't tried the bird toy is because my roommate keeps budgies (parakeets) and I don't want him getting the wrong idea! He gets along famously with Dukhat, though, you'd think they were friends for years the way they behave together, always playing and wrestling and grooming. I know Galen likes catnip because he plays with one of the catnip toys, and gets excited when he sees Dukhat eating it. He still runs away when we approach, even if we aren't looking at him. I've tried the canned food approach, he ignores the wet food totally (and then later Dukhat eats it).

 

[pat traufield]

I agree about avoiding feather toys in you case - you can find interactive toys with a wide variety of attachments - get something you can really move and keep distance between you and the kitty. Something on a long stick/string.

I would definetly try to break the "stare" from Galen - not a good signal. Keep some small toys in your pockets and try tossing a toy when he is staring. I am hoping the toys movement will get him to look at that instead.

You mention that he runs away when you approach. Figure out what the "safe" distance is. Let's say he runs away when you are 10 feet away. Stay 11 feet away and toss a nice treat or a catnip toy. You leave before he does - keep it real short and sweet.