Cats On Shoulders!

[chasetheblue]

One of my cats has started a new habit of wanting to ride around everywhere on my shoulder. Which in itself is fine, and sometimes she comes up to me and stands up on her back legs and asks to be picked up...

...and sometimes out of nowhere I get a cat leaping onto my back and grabbing on for dear life!!!!

Is there any way I can encourage her to ask nicely instead of just jumping gung ho onto me? The latter is painful!!! lol. 

 

[pan bula]

My girl climbs up people's pants, and sometimes my back.

It stopped hurting, when I started just letting the girl climb up XD

I think, that if you let your cat climb up - so he won't be afraid to fall, cause you'll stand calm - it won't hurt. 

I don't know if there is a good way to make the cat stop jumping on you. It's fun for him, and I think it's a kind of nice talent

 

[chasetheblue]

haha, yeah she doesn't try to climb up. She'll stand up on her back legs and stretch her arms up like little kids do and meow to be picked up, or she'll make a flying leap from somewhere when I'm least expecting it lol. This morning she jumped all the way across the kitchen, from the table, onto my shoulder. It's mostly the unexpected times I'd like to stop, for both our sakes lol, I dropped her this morning because I wasn't expecting it (didn't even know she was IN the kitchen with me LOL) and she wasn't hurt but I'd hate for her to get hurt because she caught me unaware (and also claws in the neck hurt hah.) 

Thank you though  

When they were smaller they both used to shimmy up my legs and hang onto my pants for a ride hahaha.

 

[andrya]

One of mine does this too. He doesn't stretch up my legs to get picked up though, he'll stretch up whatever l'm close to, like the kitchen cupboards or a wall. He's a lanky cat so l find it really cute when he stretches up one splayed paw and pips at me, l can't help but pick him up.

When he jumps on his own it's never from the floor when l'm upright (l guess l'm too tall). He'll jump from the kitchen counter, bathroom counter, stair ledge etc, so l always see it coming. Or he'll jump from the floor when l'm bent over to do something. Of course l can't move because that would just be rude, so l have to stay stooped for a suitable amount of time before encouraging him to get down 

Bretten doesn't dig in with his claws any more although he did when he was young, so the good news is that it gets better 

 Practice makes perfect.

 

[aldisra]

Our female loves "mommy back rides"

 

[amariemalone]

When my cat was a kitten, she had climbed onto my shoulders and on top of my head when I had her in the car while I was driving on day. She had gotten out of her kitty carrier somehow. She was so scared and scared me too!

 

[bluebird gal]

 
One of mine does this too. He doesn't stretch up my legs to get picked up though, he'll stretch up whatever l'm close to, like the kitchen cupboards or a wall. He's a lanky cat so l find it really cute when he stretches up one splayed paw and pips at me, l can't help but pick him up.

When he jumps on his own it's never from the floor when l'm upright (l guess l'm too tall). He'll jump from the kitchen counter, bathroom counter, stair ledge etc, so l always see it coming. Or he'll jump from the floor when l'm bent over to do something. Of course l can't move because that would just be rude, so l have to stay stooped for a suitable amount of time before encouraging him to get down 

Bretten doesn't dig in with his claws any more although he did when he was young, so the good news is that it gets better 

 Practice makes perfect.

This describes the type of shoulder-cat my boy Si is to a tee! 

 

[chasetheblue]

maybe I just need to wait it out until practice makes perfect then!! hahaha. I don't really mind her riding around up there

 

[plan]

My kitten does this. He likes to get up on my shoulder and rub against me, then usually he takes a nap there. The only issue is that sometimes he doesn't get the hint when it's time to come down. He's new though, and I'm sure he will understand with enough practice.

 

[a kitty mom]

You might try putting the kitty down, then immediately picking her up the way you want to pick her up.  Also, be sure to treat her extra special when she does the cute asking thing!  That should encourage her to do it more often.