by carley
(london)

Hiya,

I have a very loving affectionate cat called Paws, I have had her for 2 months now because she is a rescue cat, I think she is anywhere between 3-4 years old! She got left in a house whilst the owner's moved away and was found in a bad way! She was with her foster parent for 2 years and was in top condition when I adopted her!

She follows me around the house and generally does not like it when I leave for work.
The reason why I am writing is because I was away at the weekend and my mum was looking after her for me, when I returned she was very loving and affectionate but my other half walked in Sunday evening and I caught her hissing at him, (which was a first) later on I picked her up and she hissed at me, and hissed again when I put her down, I was shocked as I have never seen her hiss at anything or anyone!
The evening went by and she was being very offish with meand was acting a bit nervous, she also slept on my bed the whole night which again was a first!

I am going away for 10 day's in a few weeks' and im worried that this will again make her very upset!
She is a very loving, affentionate,soppy cat and I was shocked by her behaviour with me!

Is this normal, and was she upset with me for leaving her?
Can you advise,
Many thanks,
Carley


Hi, Carley,

She was very upset over your being away and under the circumstances, this is normal behavior. It may seem too obvious, but considering a prior owner just up and left her, she could be traumatized for life by that incident. It was a bad time for her and when you're leaving or gone, she may be very frightened that you're not coming back. Or just reminded what it was like when her first owner left.

You can't let this keep you from ever going away. It would help her, however, if you could get someone to actually live at your place while you're away and give her lots of attention.

Also, when she hisses or acts aggression in any way, ignore her and walk away and don't let your voice or body language show any signs of anger or fear or concern. The less you react, the quicker she will get over it and get back to her normal self.

Thank you for writing,
Dr. Neely