About a year and a half ago a friend of mine got caught with a cat in a no pet apartment. They needed to get rid of it that night and my apartment was pet friendly, so I took it in for what was supposed to be 3 months. My friend was going to move out of the country so they couldn't take it back, and three months turned into a year and a half.
Now they’ve decided to stay, but in the meantime got a pitbull. The dog is good natured, but way too energetic for the cat, so they can’t take it back.
The cat is beautiful, but terrified of anything that isn’t me. It took her a month of hiding around my apartment for her to open up. She was a relationship pet of a friend of a friend of a friend who broke up, and she was at a poor shelter before that, so she’s changed hands at least 4 times. All animals I’ve tried to introduce her to she’s been frightened to death of. The smell of other animals on me is okay, but all dogs and cats make her run. She hid in the bathroom in her own house from a 2 month old kitten, and was ready to fight my parents cats in their own house when I took her home for the holidays.
I can’t tell whether I want to keep her or get rid of her, and feel terrible about it.
She misses me if I’m gone for holidays. The days after I get back are the only ones she’ll lye in bed with me. I get that not all animals show affection in the same ways, but I don’t want aloof affection. I don’t want “I’m gonna rub against your leg and leave” affection. I want a cat that’s gonna sit with me while I’m working and sleep next to me. I want her to act how she does when she misses me all the time.
She used to sleep next to my feet. She used to lay down on the desk while I was working too. Any time she does something like that she stops in a few weeks. She sat on my bed for a few weeks and then decided she liked the living room more. She liked being in the closet for a few weeks and she would actually lay next to me if I sat down in the closet with her.
When she got lost I hiked the woods for 5 hours to find her. I built her a cat stand. I bought a replacement door and cut a cat hole for her so she didn’t have to stay in my bed room all day.
I can’t get a second cat because she wouldn’t like them. I can’t get rid of her because I’m the only person she trusts(?) I can’t give her to my family or friends because they don’t want a cat like her either.
I don’t want to be married to this expensive thing for the next 15 years. I can’t justify the money I spend on her to myself. For what food and litter cost I could have a cat that actually loves me. I could have a couple of lizards who don’t love me, but will at least sit on me cause I'm warm. I could have that money in cash, and the only reason I don’t is because I feel indebted to this animal I offered to house temporarily.
Do cats eventually sit on laps, or do they never? Can they be trained to?
Are there ways to insure she gets a good home? Can I teach her to trust others so I can rehome her?
I’m exhausted. I feel as though the only reason I keep her is because I feel obligated to. I think I would be better off without her but I want to make sure she is okay or better wherever she would end up. I don’t want to just drop her off at a shelter.
What should I do?
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from Pets https://www.reddit.com/r/Pets/comments/eafhvk/advice_on_cat/
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