# Cat all of a sudden acting like he's scared of me!



## Mapper71 (Sep 16, 2009)

My cat Momo has always been leery of strangers. He will sit out on our porch and is alert at the slightest noise. If he hears voices of kids coming up the street from 2 blocks away he will run into the house and hide. If there's ever a knock at the door he hides. However, he has always been very comfortable and at ease with my husband and myself.

My husband leaves for work around 4AM and Momo usually follows him outside and then almost always he'll be waiting near the front door when I get up and go to let him in (even though we have a cat door around back). Well as of this past Monday Momo has been very leery of me in the mornings. He was at the bedroom door when I got up Monday and was his usual lovey self and followed me into the kitchen. Shortly after I put some food down for him he all of a sudden looked at me with big eyes and ran under the coffee table. I went to see what his issue was and he backed away from me and then ran into our bedroom under our bed. I got him out immediately by simply shaking the catnip container and he came running out and purred and rolled around and rubbed up on me but then after a minute freaked out again and ran under our other bed. I was able to get him out with the brush and brushed him and he rolled around again. All seemed fine after that and I went to work. I came home and he was fine.

Then this same behavior has continued all week. Every morning if he is in the house, he seems okay initially but then looks at me and takes off out the cat door. I immediately follow him out and sit on the step and he comes over and rubs and purrs and is fine. I pick him up and cuddle him and he's fine, but then sometimes a few minutes later he freaks out again and takes off. I thought maybe it was because I was wearing the same robe every morning and that scared him so this morning I didn't wear it. He wasn't around right away but then I heard him come in the cat door as I was sitting on the couch. He comes into the living room and then spots me and freezes and backs up and runs back out the cat door. Before this week he would just walk right up to me and purr away.

I haven't changed any scents or anything and this only occurs in the mornings and he isn't that way with my husband. When I come home in the afternoon he's perfectly fine. The only thing I can think of is about 2 weeks ago he was sitting behind me in the kitchen and I didn't realize it and turned around and stepped on his paw. He then howled and ran under the coffee table but I immediately went over to say I'm sorry and pet him and loved on him and he was fine after that. This odd behavior started a week later.

I hate the fact that he is freaked out by me.


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## BrittyBear (Feb 4, 2014)

Oh i dont know what could be the cause of this  just wanted to say i hope its resolved soon and he goes back to his normal self. Hope somebody else with more knowledge can maybe give you better insight. Only thing i can think of is he remembers the paw incident and is scared of a repeat. Hope you get answers that help more!

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## Chloe92us (Mar 16, 2014)

Change in hair color? Style? New glasses?


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## Heather72754 (Nov 1, 2013)

It's weird, that's for sure. I'd be surprised if he is still upset about you stepping on him - I've never had a cat hold a grudge that long, they usually get over it quickly in my experience. Very puzzling. I don't blame you for being upset about it, I'd hate to have my cat scared of me. The only thing I can suggest is maybe if you just leave him alone when he does this and don't take any notice of it, just keep acting like everything is normal. Who knows why it started, but now the fact that you are upset about it might be prolonging it. My 1 yr. old girl will sometimes flip out like this with my husband, but if he just ignores her and doesn't pursue her she will come right back.


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

A very similar thing happened with MowMow. He was in the bathroom licking Book's food bowl clean while I did my hair. I didn't realize his tail was stretched out behind him... crunch.... I was wearing my clunky Herman Munster work shoes so I have NO doubt it hurt. I've never heard him make the noise he made... He hid under the cedar chest and it took ages to coax him out. His tail seemed OK and not tender... he was calm so I went to work.

Every. Single. Morning. for months he would hide under the cedar chest and watch me while I got ready for work. If it was a weekend and I didn't wear 'those' shoes he was just fine. If he saw those shoes coming near him he was freaking petrified.

It gradually (and I mean slowly) got a little better. He would hide under the desk instead of the cedar trunk (a place I could reach him compared to someplace I couldn't), then he would be ok as long as he was up off the ground (the back of the couch) and then finally he would just be watchful and if the those shoes did anything unexpected he would race to the back of the couch. He's still occasionally watchful, but no longer terrified of me or my shoes.

It was only that way in the mornings, the same time I stepped on him. After work when I came in wearing those shoes it was just fine. (Of course the first thing I usually do when I get home, after putting Books food out to warm, is to kick off those **** shoes).

ETA: I would just be calm and q uiet with him. Try not to get upset or feel upset, your stress will just cause him stress. Don't pursue him, at least with mine if I come after them when they are like that it's like I'm some sort of prey animal.. they get even more desperate to get away from me. Just maybe talk to him in a calming voice and go about your morning.


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## Mapper71 (Sep 16, 2009)

Thank you for your response. I haven't changed a gosh darn thing about my appearance and it's just the same time in the morning every day. Granted it is the same time I stepped on him 2 weeks ago, but even then it wasn't like he ran away from me. Yes he went under the coffee table but I went to pet him and brushed him and offered him some ham and he was fine.

It is just so odd that it seems to be a momentary "yikes" and then I follow and sit with him and he is fine. This morning after I wrote this post he had just come in from outside and found me and followed me around and then to the front door. He went out and sat on the porch when I left, but I realized I forgot something so drove back about 2 minutes later and he was still there and didn't freak out or run and rubbed up against me and went inside when I did.


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## Heather72754 (Nov 1, 2013)

Well since you said his odd behavior didn't start until about a week after you stepped on him, I really don't think it would be connected to that so don't feel too bad about that having happened. Sounds like he didn't do it this morning though, am I reading that right? Maybe whatever it is he is getting over it.


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## Mapper71 (Sep 16, 2009)

Heather72754 said:


> Well since you said his odd behavior didn't start until about a week after you stepped on him, I really don't think it would be connected to that so don't feel too bad about that having happened. Sounds like he didn't do it this morning though, am I reading that right? Maybe whatever it is he is getting over it.


No he did do it this morning. If you read my original post you'll see he came inside and I was sitting on the couch and once he saw me he froze, his eyes got big and he ran back out the cat door he had just come in. It's like seeing me first thing freaks him out and then maybe he comes to the realization of who I am.


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## Heather72754 (Nov 1, 2013)

Right you did say that. Personally I don't see any way around it other than to keep acting like things are normal, give him his favorite yummy treats, lots of pets and attention when he will allow it, and let him work through whatever he is experiencing. We all love cats here, but their behavior can be very mysterious many times. Maybe it is like MowMow said with having stepped on him, but it seemed unlikely since it didn't start until a week later. Maybe others will come on who have also experienced something like this.


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