This is the first time I've personally raised a kitten, I've had family cats before but i was to young to do most of the raising of them, so I'm looking for an opinion or advice on my kittens behavior.
Shes currently 14 weeks old, i got her when she was 12 weeks from a local family housing the litter in their garage she had been dewormed when i got her, however she was covered in flea's and had ear mites which i promptly took care of, and after i did she always wanted to be with me. she kept showing affection to me, shed always curl up in my lap and want to be with me and when it was time for bed shed come up and lick my hair and curl up beside my head
, and whenever i got home from work she would always rub all over me and jump on my lap.
I like to take her with me when i know I'm going to be gone for the day, (which is mostly just to my parents house) the first week i took her over on thanksgiving and on Sunday and both times shed be curious and play around but when she was done shed come cuddle up with me. This last Sunday though she completely ignored me, she spent several hours cuddling with both my parents and anytime id pick her up shed just jump right back down, when i take her back to my apartment though she does show me affection (which i think is because I'm the only one around) but its not nearly as much as it used to be and honestly it hurts a bit, she still sleeps with me most nights but she doesn't lick me anymore, she will let other people hold her for a seemly indefinite amount of time but i can only hold her for 30 seconds or so before she "requests" to get down, and she doesn't seem to care as much about me getting home, tonight she was at the door when i got home but didn't show me any affection, she laid down purred and let me pet her but there wasn't any reciprocation she just started playing with my shoes and jacket and ignored me. Another example would be last night she usually follows me around and sits with me and she kinda just ignored me and sat on the other side of the room for a few hours. Is it normal for a cat to show more attention to other people than me?
She has a good home i try to spoil her with toys, she always has food/water and i clean her litter box every other day. I think the root of the problem may be that I'm just not playing with her enough. I try to have 2 30 minute play session with her everyday, once before work and once after i make my dinner after i get home. i give her a bit of cat nip and play with her with a fishing pole toy (which she loves shes always running after it) and set a timer for 30 minutes ( i do try to slow down play near the end) and when it goes off i let it ring for a bit then give her a couple of treats then pet her to let her know I'm done, but it seems like shes never satisfied even if i play with her more often. Unfortunately though this can cause problems because she gets into places and things i don't want her to ( I've cat proofed to the best of my ability but she'll get behind my TV or Computer or other places she knows not to be), and i do my best to teach her not to do these things by picking her up telling her no and moving her, or i have a squirt bottle i use whenever its on hand. Whenever shes docile she doesn't bother them but as soon as shes in "play" mode shes right in them, which i think is just maybe her trying to get my attention( I'm always nearby and always love her when she wants it) but i don't know how to teach her to have specific play times rather than always wanting to play when she isn't sleeping, and this is causing a few problems because sometimes she'll want to play when I'm in bed and keep me up. Last night i had to put her outside my bedroom and close the door to be able to get some sleep for work the next day, or ill have to move her away from things and i think shes associating me picking her up with her doing that and its putting a bit of distance between us.
A note that i didn't know where to put in, i work 4 days a week, i usually leave around 2pm and get back a little after 1 am, before i leave everyday i make sure to take her to the door hold her and give her some love before i leave to let her know ill be back, and when i get back shes usually been all over me except for tonight when she just wanted to play immediately when i got home. I love her but i just don't have energy to be able to play with her as often as she seems to want on the days i work, i do try to give her more play time on my days off but it still doesn't seem to be enough.
Sorry for rambling or if there's a bit to much information but to summarize when i first got her she was alot more loving and over the past two weeks shes seemed to grow more distant from me and I'm not sure if its because I'm not able to play with her enough or possibly she just doesn't care for me as much anymore and id just like to know how i can best meet her needs and mine, if there's some behavior i could reinforce or something i can do to change when she thinks playtime is, or to even garner some of her affection back. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, Thank you!
Shes currently 14 weeks old, i got her when she was 12 weeks from a local family housing the litter in their garage she had been dewormed when i got her, however she was covered in flea's and had ear mites which i promptly took care of, and after i did she always wanted to be with me. she kept showing affection to me, shed always curl up in my lap and want to be with me and when it was time for bed shed come up and lick my hair and curl up beside my head
I like to take her with me when i know I'm going to be gone for the day, (which is mostly just to my parents house) the first week i took her over on thanksgiving and on Sunday and both times shed be curious and play around but when she was done shed come cuddle up with me. This last Sunday though she completely ignored me, she spent several hours cuddling with both my parents and anytime id pick her up shed just jump right back down, when i take her back to my apartment though she does show me affection (which i think is because I'm the only one around) but its not nearly as much as it used to be and honestly it hurts a bit, she still sleeps with me most nights but she doesn't lick me anymore, she will let other people hold her for a seemly indefinite amount of time but i can only hold her for 30 seconds or so before she "requests" to get down, and she doesn't seem to care as much about me getting home, tonight she was at the door when i got home but didn't show me any affection, she laid down purred and let me pet her but there wasn't any reciprocation she just started playing with my shoes and jacket and ignored me. Another example would be last night she usually follows me around and sits with me and she kinda just ignored me and sat on the other side of the room for a few hours. Is it normal for a cat to show more attention to other people than me?
She has a good home i try to spoil her with toys, she always has food/water and i clean her litter box every other day. I think the root of the problem may be that I'm just not playing with her enough. I try to have 2 30 minute play session with her everyday, once before work and once after i make my dinner after i get home. i give her a bit of cat nip and play with her with a fishing pole toy (which she loves shes always running after it) and set a timer for 30 minutes ( i do try to slow down play near the end) and when it goes off i let it ring for a bit then give her a couple of treats then pet her to let her know I'm done, but it seems like shes never satisfied even if i play with her more often. Unfortunately though this can cause problems because she gets into places and things i don't want her to ( I've cat proofed to the best of my ability but she'll get behind my TV or Computer or other places she knows not to be), and i do my best to teach her not to do these things by picking her up telling her no and moving her, or i have a squirt bottle i use whenever its on hand. Whenever shes docile she doesn't bother them but as soon as shes in "play" mode shes right in them, which i think is just maybe her trying to get my attention( I'm always nearby and always love her when she wants it) but i don't know how to teach her to have specific play times rather than always wanting to play when she isn't sleeping, and this is causing a few problems because sometimes she'll want to play when I'm in bed and keep me up. Last night i had to put her outside my bedroom and close the door to be able to get some sleep for work the next day, or ill have to move her away from things and i think shes associating me picking her up with her doing that and its putting a bit of distance between us.
A note that i didn't know where to put in, i work 4 days a week, i usually leave around 2pm and get back a little after 1 am, before i leave everyday i make sure to take her to the door hold her and give her some love before i leave to let her know ill be back, and when i get back shes usually been all over me except for tonight when she just wanted to play immediately when i got home. I love her but i just don't have energy to be able to play with her as often as she seems to want on the days i work, i do try to give her more play time on my days off but it still doesn't seem to be enough.
Sorry for rambling or if there's a bit to much information but to summarize when i first got her she was alot more loving and over the past two weeks shes seemed to grow more distant from me and I'm not sure if its because I'm not able to play with her enough or possibly she just doesn't care for me as much anymore and id just like to know how i can best meet her needs and mine, if there's some behavior i could reinforce or something i can do to change when she thinks playtime is, or to even garner some of her affection back. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, Thank you!
