Why does my cat avoid my niece?

[vbcguy]

I have a behavioral question about my cat.
Situation:
- Male cat aprox 3 yrs old (SPCA, former stray) He is Indoor only
- I work from home and have a lot of 1 on 1 time with my buddy
- My niece lives with me (we are only a few years apart age wise)
- She loves animals and is in charge of feeding him every morning
- We both play with him

For some reason, unless she plays with him, he avoids her like the plague. He is very leery about going into her room and tries to avoid physical contact with her.

On the flip side...he will let me do anything to him. Sleeps with me, follows me around the house, etc...

I feel bad because it is bothering my niece that he is never affectionate with her. I am wondering what the cause might be and if there is something that she can do to "get on his good side"?

I am wondering if this behavior is from a bad experience with a female human or perhaps was initially raised by a male?

Any thoughts?
Thanks for reading.

 

[yayi]

Your niece should not feel bad. Tell her that there are ladies in this site whose cats prefer their husbands and treat them the same way your cat treats your niece.

 

[mystik spiral]

When you first adopted your cat were you the only human he was around? My cat had me to herself for quite a while after I adopted her, and now I live in a house with several other people. She is very shy & skittish by nature, and she will run away from everyone but me. She recognizes them, but she will not approach them.

It also may be due to the fact that you do have so much 1 on 1 time with him. I know a lot of cats are very outgoing toward people, but there are a lot of cats who aren't. I'm not sure my girl will EVER be as affectionate toward another person as she is towards me.

Tell your niece not to take it personally.

 

[vbcguy]

Thanks for the responses.

Yes, him and I did have quite a bit of alone time...so there is a very strong bond. Luckily he is not skittish, just very disinterested in her.

I will continue to let her give him treats, etc...in the hopes of one day he shows her some affection. ;-)

Cheers.

 

[jaspers mummy]

As has been said not her fault he has just chosen you as his mum

she could try feeding him some treats my bazzie goes nuts for tuna get her to give him a bit whenever your not in the house see if that helps idear her to him there very food driven lol well at least mine are lol

 

[darlili]

Your cat may just prefer you...but your niece can certainly continue feeding the cat, providing treats, and maybe just sitting quietly, reading aloud, and letting the cat check her out. Some cats just hate it if you follow them, or approach them - they like to make the first step.


Also, it could be possible that your niece is wearing a perfume, or shower gel, or something that kitty just doesn't like. Maybe there's some aroma in her room (candles or whatever) he doesn't care for. When I get my hair done, I never let my stylist use hair spray as my girl apparently cannot stand the smell and will avoid me if I wear it.

 

[vbcguy]

Good points! I will check out the scent thing...that is really interesting.

On the food or treat side of things...even if she feeds him or gives him treats, he immediately heads over to me, kneads a bit and either curls up or goes on his way.

I love that he is so attached to me, but I just feel bad sometimes. When I am out, she is downstairs and he stays upstairs until I come home.

Oh, well...as long as he is happy. Perhaps a vacation will force them to "love" each other while I am gone. lol...

 

[orangeishcat]

Peanut formed a strong bond with me during his illness, and thus can act very aloof with DH unless food is involved.

He's always all over me, though- in my lap, rubbing around my legs, or just sleeping somewhere nearby- bouncing up as soon as I get up to see where I'm going and what I'm up to. It's just how some cats are, I guess!

Conversely, my mother's cat hates me. I can't walk past the little brat without her hissing and taking a swipe at me.

 

[natalie_ca]

Cats have their own personalities just like people do. We don't like everyone we meet, and neither do cats. We can learn to tolerate someone, but that doesn't mean we like them or hold affection for them. The same goes for cats.

Your kitty chose you as his special person. He simply tolerates your niece.