Is your cat affectionate?

[Aidensmom]

I know it is the stereotype for cats to be standoffish, but my cat apparantly is a rebel, because she is not happy unless she is in my lap. My son and I went to the flea market today and someone was giving away a kitten, and my son was fawning all over her. The owner said that she would be the most affectionate cat you ever saw. My thought was just two cats in a fight over my lap.

Just wondering, if the sterotype is pretty true, or if a lot of people have standoffish cats.

 

[catsrule]

Simba is very affectionate. He just looks at me and purrs so loud, and wants belly rubs. Cali isn't as affectionate, I think because she was a stray. She still has her moments though when she is.

 

[ashjohnson80]

The only cat that I was ever around much was DH's cat before we got married, (because of my allergies he had to give him away when we got married). But he was really affectionate. He really liked me, was always trying to get in my lap and stuff. I really wish I could have kept him.

My friend's cat doesn't come around much, but she is 16 years old and only has 3 legs, so she might just have trouble getting around.

 

[FreshTressa]

Nah...my cat is pathetic in his ploys for attention.

 

[poohandwendy]

Ah, where to start:

1) Figaro (aka "Figgie" or "Fingernut") is very, very needy and affectionate. Must be near me at all times and would prefer 24/7 lovin. Actually paws at my face to get me to wake up to 'pet him to sleep'. More work than the kids. seriously.

2) Jack is affectionate, will greet me and rub up against me, but not demanding.

3) Shenzi aka 'Mama Bear' is affectionate and wants as much ear scratching as I will put upo with.

4) Freckles loves the old belly rub and will crawl on me when I am at the PC desk. But, she gets the hint if I tell her 'down'. She is very affectionate.

5) Fluffy will only be affectionate when she is in the mood. Other than that, she is sort of skittish. But, when she is in the mood...she will not leave me alone.

6) Zoe is demanding when she wants love, she will actually bite my arm to get petted. (not hard, but still) Semi affectionate in a dominatrix sort of way, LOL.

7) Nike (or latest stray addition, lol) is affectionate whenever I will give it, but not demanding.

Interestingly, the boys (3 of them) like being petted, but are not super into the belly rub. All of the girls love their bellies rubbed. Go figure.

Now, the above is how they all are with me, but they are totally different with other members of the house. Most of them are still sort of scared of my DH (except zoe and figaro)

So, how is that for an answer, lol? You didn't have a poll option for those of us with the 'eclectic cat crew'.

 

[grlpwrd]

My 2 (Cookie and Lily) are not lap cats. I have only had them for about 2 weeks and so far they only like to sit next to me or rub against me.

I don't think they are naturally stand-offish, though. I read their profile and their previous owner admitted to not socializing them and letting their 2.5yo chase after them - almost terrorizing them.

They are in a much better home here now, though.

 

[poohandwendy]

My 2 (Cookie and Lily) are not lap cats. I have only had them for about 2 weeks and so far they only like to sit next to me or rub against me.

I don't think they are naturally stand-offish, though. I read their profile and their previous owner admitted to not socializing them and letting their 2.5yo chase after them - almost terrorizing them.

They are in a much better home here now, though.

Aw, that's awesome you adopted them! I will say that adopted cats can sometimes take a really, really long time to show their true nature, as far as trusting. Seriously, our Zoe totally avoided my DH for 2 full years before she would approach him. Now, he is her favorite (feeding her from the table helps :rolleyes)...she actually greets him at the door whne he comes home. She was a tough cookie to crack and took a very long time to trsut each member of our family. She literally avoided the normal daily chaos here for almost 2 years, she would just hang out in my DDs room. And she would only really socialize with us when things were really quiet. Now she is always around.

It is a really good sign that they want to be near you this soon. I''l bet in the next few months they really open up to you and you will see much more affection from them.

It's a shame people sometimes allow their young children to overwhelm animals. It just makes a really stressful environment for them and most cats do not do great with stress.

Good luck with them! They are beautiful cats!

 

[TinkNH]

Both of mine are extremly affectionate...if I sit down I have both of them trying to find a spot on me to sit. They also both like to sleep on me. And In the embarassing pet thread I wrote about the hazard of Harleys affection and my hair....

 

[kaw1218]

Well, I have 4 cats and each one is totally different.

Jessie loves my parents.... he will rub against them, sit on their laps. but really wants nothing to do with the rest of us
Zoe loves my DD7 and DH. she won't sit on their laps, but she watches TV with DH and sleeps with DD7
Lorelie- loves,loves,loves my DD10, does not like anyone else-and I am not kidding, she hides, runs and cowers from everyone
Luke is the lover- he IS the most affectionate cat you will ever meet...in fact right now he is trying to move the laptop so he can get closer to me.

 

[PrincessCLM]

Mine is next to me begging me to go to bed and snuggle with him.

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

I've had three cats (just one now) and they were all amazingly different.

Our first one--Precious--was only affectionate with me. DH she avoided and everybody else she basically tried to kill on sight because she had extremely aggressive tendencies.

Our second one (which we still have, Precious' companion)--Rumpleteazer--used to not be as affectionate as she is now. When we had Precious, Rump was the beta cat and Precious had no problem beating the snot out of her for attempting to get attention from either I or DH. But since Precious was put to sleep a few years ago, she's steadily gotten more and more clingy. DH thinks it's because of her age (she'll be 8 in March).

Our third one (which we ended up having to adopt out)--Buttercup--was extremely affectionate. You couldn't sit down without her curling up in your lap or around your neck. She was great with people, hated Rumps and in the end, that's what got her adopted out. I couldn't have two cats fighting with me being pregnant. I didn't want them to start a fight around the baby and get the baby hurt. So Butters got adopted and only Rumple (who RUNS when she sees DS) is left.

TOV

 

[Mizz Dizz]

My cat is very loving.
He loves to curl up and sleep beside me.

 

[Tazicket]

I voted for yes, b/c you didn't have an option for "when she wants to be" Cricket doesn't like being picked up or forced to cuddle when she'd rather be eating, but she'll lay down next to me in the mornings so I can properly adore her.

 

[Sparx]

I have a cat who really WANTS to be affectionate and TRIES to be affectionate, but she really just doesn't like being touched. so she'll sleep on my pillow (or head) and she'll lay next to me, but shes really just not big on the touchie feelie thing.

My other cat would rather chew on my fingers than anything.

 

[GailT]

sh e is when she wants something, ex...a treat, playtime, going out for a treat, she is an indoor cat, she is spoiled, acts like a human, sit up like a person, eats her dry foodwhen she picks it up with her paw...Oh I love my cat, I wish I could post a pic, I have tried but Icant seem to do it

 

[MushyMushy]

No -- except when she's hungry.

For the most part, she likes to be on her own and away from everybody, but when she wants food, she'll be the loveiest cat in the whole world. When she was a kitten, she liked lying on my chest with her face nuzzled in my neck and she'll still do that once in a while when she's hungry.

 

[FroggyinArk]

yes,
no
sometimes,
always
not as much
yes



shadow,
bootsie
rickie
spitfire
twitch
chaos.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I currently have 4 cats and only one is really a "lap cat", but all are affectionate in their own way.

Tigger likes attention by me and likes me to carry him around. He loves my 6yo, who can carry him, but is leery of my DH (who has never done anything to him) and is scared of strange adults, but fine with kids. He will hide for a week when we have guests and some frequent visitors don't even know we have him.

Belle, Tigger's sister, is very affectionate and the lap cat. Very sweet, but doesn't like to be carried.

Apollo is very affectionate, rubs up against a person and will go where we keep the cat toys and ask to play. He is the favorite of my children since he is so personable.

Venus, Apollo's sister and the kitty in my signature, is affectionate, but in a princessy way. She struts around deciding when she should be petted. She is my kitty for sure. She likes everyone, but my family thinks she is snooty I think. She is extremely playful and instead of asking to play, she will find things to play with, which means getting into all kinds of trouble (one time I started a thread about her).

The two younger cats are the only two who will really come when called.

Bottom line--they are all affectionate, but in very different ways.

PAW, you are what my DH's worried about me having! I've already said that I'm not getting more cats when my next child goes to college (like I got Apollo and Venus when my DD went to college last year), but joked that I was getting 2 kittens in 5 years when the next one went to college. He said, "no way". My plan was to not get more dogs (we have 2) when our dogs age and die and only have the cats, but if he's going to veto more cats in the future, I guess I'll get dogs. Can't say that I'm not flexible.

 

[makinorlando]

Which one we have five.

One of them very affectionate at night... she likes to sleep with me. She is five. Her sister, has her moments. She likes to be petted when I am sitting on the sofa in the evening. She lays on the back and I pet her.
Two kittens are extremely affectionate especially with DD - they are "her boys", in fact one follows her like a puppy whereever she goes.
One - not at all.... she was when she was a kitten (she is the mom of the two boys) - she never really seems to RELAX - very high strung!

The all seem to like attention when I go into the bathroom - it's like the pied pipper with 2 dogs and 5 cats.

 

[SunFloridaDisney]

Our cat, Aladdin, is affectionate once in a while, only with DH.

Most of the time he's just a BAD cat. (when we adopted him from the shelter, they had given him the name Bennie.) DD named him Aladdin, and our last name starts with D, so his initials are B.A.D. and it fits!