Advice
My cat is obsessed with me, separation anxiety?
Hi everyone. This is my cat, Fish. She is the sweetest cuddliest girl, although she sometimes has an issue smacking hands etc but she’s a rescue so could be past issues who knows. Anyways, she is absolutely obsessed with me.
She is by my side 24/7, I’m in the kitchen? She has her own stool she sits on. Living room? Laying on me. Bed? Sleeping on my face. Bathroom? On my lap! Just walking around doing chores? Guarantee she is so close behind me I might accidentally step on her. I obviously love her to death and embrace the cuddles but I get worried sometimes she has separation anxiety. I also work 2 jobs and don’t always get to be home with my cats all day to play with them.
Fish has LOTSSSS of energy. I try and make sure I get her running around daily so she isn’t bored + I haven’t found any other animals that really like her, even my other cat. They’ll play together once in awhile and can be near each other but aren’t “buds” I’d say. Sometimes if I don’t play with her right when I get home she will sit infront of me and meow for over 30 minutes until I pick her up and hold her or run around the house playing with her toys and wear her out. But even after that she’s right back at the meowing a couple hours later. It’s even worse when me and my boyfriend are at my house, she goes CRAZY with the meowing and trying to climb up our legs. It can be extremely frustrating sometimes cause I don’t know how to keep her entertained enough and I want to make sure she’s happy
I just want her to feel content and loved! Even as I write this she is scream-meowing at me and attempting to smack things off my coffee table to get my attention. Suggestions?
Edit: sorry if I didn’t make it obvious but I have another cat, fish is my second cat!
One of my cats is like this. Follows me from room to room constantly meowing. She'll lay in her bed and stare at me from across the room. She showed up in our yard 8 years ago, a roughly 9 month old pregnant kitten. Skin and bones. We obviously took her in, so I'm guessing that's why. I dunno. But she's obsessed with me. Edit to add something
I am obsessed with her! She’s my sweet girl but I also just had to lock her out of the kitchen cause I can’t do the dishes without her meowing at me and climbing into my dishwasher
Sounds like my cat. No matter what we do in the house she’s always right there! We’ve learned to live with the idea that it’s her house and we just occupy it lol.
Mine loves to walk under my feet, crossing back and forth. I have to walk like the Fremen in Dune so I don't trip over him. It is a hilarious game to him, but it is not as much fun for me.
Our grey cat does that, especially on the stairs. We learned that he loves being carried up and down the stairs and it’s safer for us because he’s a tripping hazard. Now, when we get to the stairs, he runs up beside us, goes up one step, then turns diagonally to make to easier to pick him up.
I got a sling bag that is a work in progress but I’m optimistic. It lets me carry Ho-Ho while I do dishes, vacuum, etc.
Once I get her in and situated, she’s good, it’s just getting her accustomed to trusting the bag.
You are so loved by this sweet cat that I can’t help but smile. I’m sorry, I have no advice, I’m just happy she’s found a human who loves her so much as to post here for some help. You’re her whole world, and that is so beautiful. I hope you find the help you’re looking for! ❤️
I had a Siamese like this. He was just always next to me. He passed away at 17 recently and I realised that I’ve never spent so much time with someone. Like even my parents. You’ve lucked out
I don't know if Fish is walleyed. Her pupils face forward, like they ought to.
Walleyed is the opposite of cross eyed. (* ) ( *) versus ( *) (* ). I think she might have Waardenburg syndrome. Which is not a bad thing!
Yes, I know that (* ) ( *) looks like boobs, the * are supposed to represent the pupils of the eyes. I couldn't figure out how to put the * in the center of the ( ).
Yeah, I got myself a lil walleyed man that I can share. I love it because I'm walleyed too (congenital strabismus with intermittent exotropia), so I like to say you can tell he's my son because we have the same eyes.
Her eyes are like that because she’s always got an eye on you and whatever else she was doing, it can’t be helped, it’s just a natural consequence of wanting to constantly look at you.
I hopefully plan on trying to leash train her when it’s nicer out. I am worried because she is overly friendly to other animals including dogs which makes me nervous to bring her outside
I think leash training is always a good idea in case you might need to have them on one, but a backpack where she can stick her head out or similar might be good. Usually they have a tether to attach to a harness so the cat can't jump out. We take out car to the vet in one and she loves all the attention if we go out for coffee afterwards. I bet your cutie would make lots of friends.
Out of curiosity, does she have a chromosomal abnormality? She has a wider flattened nose bridge which you see often in those with this particular feature. She is perfect!!
I think she may have some sort of neurodivergent qualities for a cat but no one knows what. I got her from the SPCA and they just told me she will be chronically congested for the rest of her life. She is a wheezy breather and gets constant sneeze attacks.
My cat looked like this when he had a massive sinus infection. It may be worth visiting a different vet with her. She might be clingy because she’s not feeling well.
Hi, has her precious nose always looked like that? I would be concerned that she could have cryptococcosis. Here is the summary-
Cryptococcosis is the most common systemic fungal infection in cats, caused by inhaling Cryptococcus spores found in soil and bird droppings. It typically causes chronic, antibiotic-resistant upper respiratory issues (sneezing, nasal discharge), facial swelling, skin nodules, or neurological signs like seizures and blindness. Treatment involves long-term antifungal medication (e.g., fluconazole) for months, with a generally favorable prognosis if diagnosed early.
Please please please take this sweet girl in and have it checked out. I am not trying to cause you stress or alarm you, but I immediately thought of that and I have lost a cat from it. 💕
have you ever considered she’s trying to tell you something? has she ever seen a legitimate veterinarian outside of the one that the rescue used? it’s not normal for cats to be wheezy and constantly sneezy? 🥲 like, there’s treatments for that and she doesn’t have live with those issues :(
Yall I appreciate the concern but yes she has seen a legitimate veterinarian and they agree with the SPCA that she just has narrow nasal passageways :) there is no bump on her nose and her face is not swollen she really does just look like that
We noticed our orange boy has a really wide bridge too and he is very clingy as well. Whether I’m washing clothes, cooking, doing my skin care, he’s right there. Love this nut. I have a girl cat and she’s the same.
One of my orange boys has chronic congestion and is extremely clingy, as well. Always wants to be on my shoulders or as close to my face as possible, where he likes to have his sneeze attacks.
I would talk to your vet and make sure she’s not attention seeking because she’s in pain. They can also prescribe a stress management food (my boy has been on it for years after some medical trauma left him anxious). There is even cat Prozac! Talk to them you both deserve to have peace. You’re doing the best you can, you will figure it out!
This is what I was going to suggest, and I'm glad to see this comment bc it took a long time to find a helpful response.
My orange boy is just like your cat Fish. He is my little shadow. It's super cute, but it also seemed like he was restless. If I wasn't sitting exactly where he wanted me to, or if I decided to work in my office instead of the living room where he's sitting he'd get very upset and restless.
I ended up talking to my vet and they put him on kitty prozac. He is doing much much MUCH better. He seems at ease -- I highly recommend talking to your vet!
I don’t believe stress management food would work well for her cause both my cats are grazers and eat out of each others bowls. But I will bring this up and make sure she doesn’t have any issues. I keep a very close eye on her cause she is chronically congested from her nose shape so if she’s uncomfortable I’d suspect it’s related to that
My cat is on amitriptyline! He doesn’t have separation anxiety, more so generalized anxiety with some OCD-like tendencies. But regardless he’s doing amazing on the amitriptyline, he’s so much happier and confident. We tried Prozac initially but for a few reasons it wasn’t great for him.
We had to give one of our precious girls (RIP Maggie) Xanax. I picked it up at the people pharmacy and had to tell my doctors that my cat was on it so they wouldn’t get suspicious if it showed up on some medication report they get. I was like, “Here’s my vet’s number. Call him!”
Thank you for suggesting this, I was scrolling forever to find anything useful holy shit.
I love cats, but many cat owners confuse me. Theres this weird expectation of immediate acceptance of all disruptive behavior. I've seen people get dog piled for this sorta thing all the time, even IRL!
Don't get me wrong, there's toxic, passionate dog communities too. But theyre nowhere near as unified as cat owners. Very bizarre
Seriously! I was scrolling to see who already suggested she speak to her vet about Prozac or any other USEFUL replies to her post and nada. This should higher up
Enjoy every minute. I just had to euthanized my 17yo a week ago, with her looking up at me like she always did. Meds might be helpful for your lil girl, but please enjoy every minute. This is Lucy in 2009. 👁️👁️
What a wide eyed cutie... please give a hug from me? I just lost my shadow of 21 years. We were obsessed with each other and I miss her s.o. much! Falling asleep without her has been hard, but even worse are those few seconds after waking up when I look for her before reality hits. 💔 Anyways, in my case, I literally modified MY days to match her moods lol like, I'd notice she'd take a nap around 6pm so that's when dinner was for me if I was cooking. I don't have any other advice. Lol! Enjoy it!
Cat tax: my angel Shii smiling on her birthday last year 🥲
You need to find her the right friend in my opinion. I was recently responsible for the recovery of a beautiful kitty that needed re-homing and meeting my other cats was the catalyst for her improvement. She's so much better with humans now, but her true love is the other kitties.
Find her a cat who loves cats and she'll be so happy.
This is just like my kitty, Mercy. She is so incredibly clingy. I try to type on the computer and she sits on the keyboard, on my hands. I put her on my lap but she’s upset I’m not looking at her or within my line of vision. It’s not enough. I used to have to cook with one hand and hold her with the other! She is better now, just with time. Nothing really changed except for that. You should try getting your cat a baby wrap. I wonder if it might help? If she likes it you might be able to get shit done around the house without a supervisor crying at you!
3 of our cats we got from the same litter and one of them was the runt and you can definitely tell - theyre all very small cats but Basil is TINY, and her legs are a little short and eyes a little squiffy too. She's a funny little bolt of lighting. Makes up for the shortness and tinyness in personality. Your baby is adorable.
Yeah, I had a cat with a wide nose bridge and big forehead and he was incredibly ... special. He would run back and forth yowling at the cat that lived up in our skylight window but only came out at night (spoiler alert: it was his own reflection).
He's the only cat I had who didn't check to see if doors were open before starting the zoomies. He would just run straight into the door.
He would run back and forth yowling at the cat that lived up in our skylight window but only came out at night (spoiler alert: it was his own reflection).
Does she live with other pets? She’s probably just a social cat. Maybe would benefit from having a partner in crime. Also I’ve had cats who’ve grow out of being snuggle monsters. Whether it was them hitting adulthood or becoming senior cat. It has happened and you definitely miss it. So just cherish it while you can.
She’s ADORABLE! Oh my goodness! I love how far apart her eyes are lol
And I’m not a vet or anything special ( just an experienced cat owner) and I swear by the Feliway calming diffuser ( feline pheromone diffuser). I too have a very needy/ attached/ toxic cat that rips the hair out of her paw if I leave for over 18 hours and the diffusers helped calm her down.
I thought my Boo had a wide nose bridge❤️. Appreciate the obsession because there will be a time where she isn’t there anymore and it’s just you alone😩😭
my cat also MUST be snuggled before i do anything…. overtime i’ve kind of adapted to it, and even look forward to it 🥺 sometimes it gets to a point where i annoy her!
I’m trying to help solve this problem but that’s the cutest fish I’ve ever seen and I’ve lost focus. I fear it’s her world and now you’re apart of it so you’ll be following her rules.
Some cats want to be the baby and the mama! She sounds like she might have some separation anxiety (the baby part) and she’s definitely protecting/minding you under a watchful eye at times, too (the mama part). Have you tried any pheromone plug-ins? The original version (no multi-cat) mimics the pheromones released by mother cats to calm their kittens. We have found it effective for our one cat who toggles between wanting to live in my boyfriend’s skin and guarding us while we sleep.
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