# cat hunkers down when you try and pet him



## csmith154 (Sep 21, 2009)

My cat has recently started hunkering down towards the ground when you go to pet him. He doesn't run away or try and get away at all, he just lowers himself to the ground until you stop petting him. This even happens when he comes up and rubs against my leg... I'm not sure if I should be concerned or not.


----------



## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

Welcome to Cat Forum. Cats sometimes do this, usually it is the cat trying to evade being petted. This can be due to a number of reasons...if the person is 'heavy-handed' and the cat doesn't enjoy their touch, if the cat is sensitive and is trying to sink away from too firm of a touch and sometimes the cat isn't feeling very well (_like when we have ache-y skin during a flu or cold_). I've also noticed if I try to pet a cat who is intent on watching something *else* the cat may sink away from my hand so it can devote all of its' attention upon whatever it is looking at. 
But if the cat is behaving normally; initiating contact and appearing generally happy ... then I doubt the cat isn't feeling well. Is this cat accustomed to being handled or is the cat 'new' to being handled and petted? It could just mean the kitty needs more time to get accustomed to socialized handling. If the kitty has sensitive skin, perhaps he just needs a lighter touch and/or restrict yourself to petting only the head, cheeks, neck and maybe shoulders. Use a light touch and gently scrubble or massage to see if the cat enjoys that type of attention and prefers it over petting along their spine.
heidi =^..^=


----------



## csmith154 (Sep 21, 2009)

Thanks for the reply. The cat is only 9 months old so we're seeing plenty of personality changes. I think you may be right on the 'looking at something else' part... I think he's spending more time on the look out for our other cat, and his litter mate. They're both fixed, but I think they're starting to play a bit with dominance. I know it's not that he's not feeling well..he still runs, plays, and eats just like normal. It's been a few days since I've seen them laying together though... I do have a concern it may have something to do with that. Our other cat has recently started spending time in the closet next to the litter box... he comes out when we come see him, and he plays and acts very normal and happy otherwise. At first (and still partially so) I thought he was just scared of the other one and was hiding... but he'll come out and be around the other one without showing any issues at all, it just won't last long. 

Oh and btw- I've been careful to make sure they are eating and using the litter box without any oddities or issues...again...all else seems good.


----------



## csmith154 (Sep 21, 2009)

Aaaand the litter box thing ended up being little tiny flies. We just switched from a flushable litter to just a scoopable. We were using an old 'fresh step' plastic contrainer for the dirty litter... I think its attracting flies. He's been fly hunting!


----------



## LilRed (Jul 16, 2008)

One of my cats does this sometimes. Just depends on her mood. When she first wakes up or first time you enter the room she's in, she does it. But give her a few minutes to get her bearings and think about it and she'll let us pet her like normal most of the time. She will also do it if she is occupied with something else and doesn't want the distraction, like Heidi mentioned. She's just a little up tight, like some people. But seems that the older she gets the more comfortable she gets with the world and the less she does it. She is quite the snuggler when she's in the mood!


----------



## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

csmith154 said:


> We were using an old 'fresh step' plastic contrainer for the dirty litter... I think its attracting flies. He's been fly hunting!


Ah-ha! I'm glad you solved the mystery! :lol: 
I use a small-ish rubbermaid container with a lid, lined with a plastic bag for my litter waste. I keep it in the garage and tie/toss the bag in the trash on garbage night. By the end of the week, it is smelling pretty *high* and I don't spend much time in the garage with that lid off the waste-can! I've seen bugs in the litter-waste, too...especially when I didn't get the lid closed all the way down.


----------



## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

The twins do that hunker-down thing sometimes when they walk by where I'm sitting and I reach down to pet them. It's as if my hand instantly becomes a limbo-stick.  

Sometimes, they're just not that into me.


----------



## csmith154 (Sep 21, 2009)

Thanks for all the replies! 
Everything seems to be going well... sad thing is as I was reading this I noticed the guys back in the closet again... it's odd because there's no bugs that I can see, but if you watch them yous see their heads move around etc. I have NEVER had this issue in the litter box before... I don't get it... maybe this new litter we got is conducive to flies laying eggs or something (Tidy Cat Clay). We may try a new litter. We originally went to this one because it is cost effective and dust free while clumping. One of my cats would get really watery eyes and I determined most of it was due to the ridiculously excessive dust our previous litter put out.


----------

