Do you prefer shy or more outgoing cats?

Oliver's outgoing and extroverted while Rocky is shy and introverted, but I adore them both.

Outgoing.

See, Jinx is my first cat, and before I got him, I never wanted a cat and even now I don't really consider myself a cat person. *Every* other cat I have been around has been really shy and they don't really care about people... if you didn't already know a cat lived in the house, you would never guess it because you never see them around.

So when we got Jinx, his personality reminded me more of a dog's than anything... he greets you at the door, follows you around the house, sleeps in your lap, doesn't mind strangers. So yeah, that's the kind of personality I prefer, but he's the only cat I've ever met who has it!

I have one of each

Kitty is very shy and scaredycatish. I'm her human, and no one else can hold her. She was very cuddly until Holly came along...

Holly is usually unafraid of people and things. She likes to be petted much more than Kitty. If it moves or pets her, she likes it.

I have one of each. I feel like they are both extreme versions of each end of the spectrum.

Mattie is reserved and likes to be left alone. She's socialized and used to people but just wants to sleep all day. She'll let you pet her if you do it a certain way, it pretty much has to be on her terms. She's not a lap kitty by any means though, and that makes me sad. I do love her the way she is though. She curls up on the bed and I love to try to snuggle her. She doesn't want to put up with too many things, and I respect that.

Chloe is super playful and energetic and mischievous. She is the opposite of Mattie in every way. I love that about her, but she's also a little destructive. She has damaged more than her fair share of things. She hates being held usually but loves to be around people.

I have a houseful of friendly cats. Friendly but can do their own thing too.
Mary is devoted to me but is still sweet to other people. When she meets someone new she thinks the best of them first.
Lucia loves everyone. In a room full of people she will give everyone some leg weaves and friendly meows. Which is amazing for a kitty that has been mistreated and let down by human beings.
Seldon is a busybody and follows me around to observe everything I do. He talks and talks and talks and talks.
Cleo is always up for some scritches, rubs and kisses. He is always happy with an upright tail.
Saffron is observant but into things with her bold kitten personality.
Sachi is a love bug.
I would say the two kittens are still developing and because they were outside and on their way to becoming feral still have some mild reservations about people.

I prefer outgoing cats...they can be such characters and it's so much fun to watch their antics. The outgoing cat in our household is my daughter's tiger-striped tabby "Tiger"--who is super friendly and so much on the go that he won't be held for more than a moment or so--too many people to see & things to do! He seems to be a favorite among the other cats residing here, as well--with his happy-go-lucky/let's be friends attitude, I guess they don't feel as threatened, even though he's new around here.

Originally Posted by sarahp

We have 2 litters of kittens at the moment - one is very well socialised and super friendly and outgoing, and the other was from a semi-feral mum, and we have been socialising them.

Initially I loved the more outgoing litter - they would come and sit in your lap, purr so loudly and they are so fun to play with!

But now I prefer the more shy kittens. The outgoing litter are getting into everything and love to cause mischief. I have to completely kitten proof everything so they don't destroy things.

The other litter is quiet, and "polite". They don't destroy things, I don't have to worry about them bolting out the door every time I open it, they still love to play, and are slowly turning into little lovebugs.

Of my girls, Stumpy is a handful and always in trouble, and my shy Lily is a lovely sweet girl who never does anything naughty (she likes to chew the double sided tape that protects the furniture, but that's minor!).

So for me - I think I prefer the sweet, quiet, shy cats. Receiving their love is more rewarding, and they cause less trouble!

Click to expand...

I certainly have one of each. Persi loves everybody and when company comes over, Persi has to be the center of attraction. He wants to help out with everything, the cooking, etc., (but he doesn't do the dishes). Alley on the other hand, stays in her room and nobody ever sees her. In fact, during the day I hardly ever see her until it is bedtime, where you can find her waiting for the people to come to bed. I don't think the word shy fits her though, it is more like afraid. Or perhaps timid. But I have basically the two extremes and I definately like the more outgoing the best.

I like a bit of middle ground: one who's shy, but when feeling comfortable, will get in people's faces and say hello, and be a part of the family life. I have three girls: Buffy, the most outgoing, talkative, mischievious little moose we've ever had. She's just great, her only faults are her constant attempts to sneak outside and her tendency to create an opera with my dog, with nonstop squealing and mrowling, with some thumping from my dog getting overexcited and hopping up and down. It creates a racket and a foul mood, lol

Molly is my middle ground cat: she's very shy and timid, is always running from everyone. She's extremely bonded to me, though, and I thought the way she behaved towards me was the same way she behaved towards everyone else, so you can imagine my surprise and denial when I was told that nobody could ever get close to her. I was told that while Molly was cuddled in my lap, purring and snoozing. Molly's just very clingy and "touchy feely" (that is, she likes to touch you with her paws and body, and when you're stroking her, she clenches and flexes her paws as if the pleasure is too great, lol). She's very happy and innocent, though I think she tends to worry when food is concerned. The only time she gets violent is when food is around, and I don't mean in cat fights. I mean, when I'm trying to sleep and she's trying to pry open my eye lids with her claws, eventually reverting to injecting poison into my cheeks. And while I'm preparing the food, she's screaming and hollering, and starts leaping and squealing some more as I walk towards her with her food. Just for kicks (because I've found she's a pretty intelligent cat), I decided to see if I could teach her to always grab for the bowl, and if she touches it, the bowl will be lowered to the floor. I believe it took two meals to teach it, but it wasn't a hard "trick" to teach, really. But she gobbles (*cough*inhales*cough*) her food and goes hunting for more. She heads straight for Willow, knowing the usual feeding spots, and I have to stand watch and protect Willow, who'll let Molly dive in without a care in the world. Tonight, I have Buffy eat on the kitchen table, and when Molly was done, she hopped up there (most times, that's where Willow eats) and she immediately dove in. Normally, she doesn't pester with Buffy, who's the ALPHA GIRL in the house, and Buffy immediately started licking Molly's head, the signal that she's trying to dominate and is about to kick ass in a few seconds. So I put my hand on Molly's chest, to guide her away, and she immediately started growling. It's a rare occurance to hear Molly growl (so rare, I think I've only heard it twice in her life, lol), and I'm not sure if the growl was directed at me or at Buffy. But either way, she had to leave Buffy alone while she went hunting for Willow.

Willow is the shyest, timidest cat we've ever had, and we joke that she's a wee bit senile (she's only 7). She's so fearful and skittish, and if she's bobbing her head at something on the floor, if you touch the thing and move it, even a fraction of a centimetre, Willow will shoot straight up into the air. It's very sad. But even though she's such a scardy-cat, she's extremely territorial. Until we got Buffy when Willow was 2, Willow wouldn't tolerate strangers in the house. She'd stalk them (frequently cornering repairmen in various rooms) and slice at them if they dared touch her (I think she wanted them to touch her; she looked so sweet and nonthreatening as she sat and stared at them). Then we got Buffy and she calmed down. Well, she calmed down towards strangers: she just redirected the aggression at my dog. It was shocking, really; before Buffy came, Willow would rather just hunker down and try to be invisible if Jake so much as walked into the room. She was scared of him. But Buffy was her baby, of a sort, so when she thought Jake was a threat to Buffy, she'd kick ass all over Jake's pretty nose (there were a few nasty fights in the beginning). Heck, I remember one time when both Buffy and Willow were on a bookcase and Jake wandered into the room and started hopping around and squealing, trying to get at them. Willow stood up, stood over Buffy (sort of as a shield) and made like she was going to jump down and kamikaze all over Jake. Jake noticeably calmed down and I forced him and myself to hoof it out of there. After a while, Willow calmed down (probably when she finally assured herself that Buffy had grown enough to take care of herself) and now she doesn't care when strangers walk into the house. She doesn't care when Jake is hovering behind Buffy while she walks throughout the house, though if somebody steps on Buffy's tail (or does something to make Buffy shriek), Willow comes racing from out of nowhere, same as the days of long before, huffing and puffing and ready to murder the offender. If it was Jake who did it, he'll drop his head and wander away, but Willow will be hot on his tail, roughly 4 or 5 feet behind him, tail down and stiff and eyes never leaving his rump, just making sure he isn't trying to double back and have at Buffy again.

Quill is definitely a blend of shy and outgoing. He'll always be around but he won't be on top of you. He's just as happy playing by himself and playing with someone. He loves attention though, but you have to give it too him, or he has to make up his mind to give it to you and you can't force it on him or he'll get defensive.He lets you pet his belly and pretty much everywhere else, but not for too long. When he does give you attention he's very gentle and gives love bites. He HATES being alone. He'll just cry at the door until someone calms him down; we think he has an anxiety issue but so far it's getting better. He's very intelligent, not in a show off way, but it's more observant and quiet. When you show him something he'll learn in a few tries. He loves to watch you do things, loves to watch the world go by. He doesn't get into things or destroys furniture. He doesn't eat human food at all, not even meat. He's just an all round sweet, slightly aloof guy.

I love cats that are outgoing and WANT to be in your face & around you at all times. My first kitty Patches (RB) did her own thing, only came around when she wanted pettings or a warm lap to sit in. She didnt even acknowledge when new people came in the house.

My guys now are like dogs. They all go running up to people when they come in the house.
Kricket will say hello and come around from time to time looking for a petting or a butt scratch. She then goes and does her own thing but is usually sprawled out on the floor for everybody to see.
Worm is my nosy boy. He has to greet everybody and take it to the extreme. If you sit down your in trouble....he will not leave you alone for a good 1-2 hrs (if you stay that long). He will jump from lap to lap to lap to make sure everybody has petted him. He gets in everybodys face and into any belongs they have to see who they are and where they came from.
Possum is like Worm but lets people be after 30 minutes and he feels that they are no harm. He likes to cause trouble and make scenes. He feels that it is the perfect time to show off all his awesome little tricks he can do.
Sloth is the baby and is just starting to explore. When he was confined to his carrier he would come racing to the front of the cage when he heard people come around but hopefully he'll be like the rest, outgoing and loving.