to be fair theres alot of reasons that can be an issue.
A clingy cat can be devastated if you don't come home for any prolonged period of time, so if you have to go on an occasional business trip or just want to go on a vacation, even if you leave food for them and have someone stop by to make sure litter gets done, that kind of prolonged absence can be extremely distressing.
Also they can be disruptive if they are for whatever reason disallowed from interacting with you even if its for a good reason, for example a video call or work meeting, needing to keep cats out while working on electrical equipment, my pc, cleaning, soldering, drilling mounts into my walls, etc, etc.
I know for mine it got to be so bad they would repeatedly bash on the door nonstop creating a loud rattling throughout the house while yowling at the top of their lungs.
I made it work but I can absolutely see exactly why someone couldn't.
Genuinely, sometimes you're not a good fit for your cat and the best thing you can do is find a good home for them.
People act like rehoming is always selfish, but extreme separation anxiety or nonstop door bashing genuinely destroys the quality of life for both owner and pet. Recognizing when your home setup is causing a cat constant stress and finding them a better environment is actually the most responsible thing you can do.
I appreciate this sentiment. I have been a lifetime cat owner and always had aloof personalities in the house. Cats that appreciated you from a distance type of cat. Fast forward now, I am now the proud owner of velcro cats. It is a night and day difference as far as car ownership goes. Cats that battle over my lap. Cats that beg to be with me with an almost dog like sense of reality. Cats that greet me at the door. I can see how it's not for everyone. I'm living in the moment and recognize it's a opportunity I may not get again.
Yep. I’m British and adopted a cat from a well-known shelter. The reason they have a rehoming team on staff is to connect the right cat with the right owner, rather than have people just walk in and pick out a pretty kitty who won’t fit well in their lives.
Mine are not even remotely clingy but the moment they hear myself or my husband on a zoom meeting, they act like they’ve never gotten attention before.
My cat Bucci MUST participate in all phonecalls and Zoom anything. She looks at me when I'm online too long, and let's me know when it's naptime... FOR ME. To bring the point home, she'll go get her sister who they no longer get along, to tell me it's native FOR US! SMDH
I had a sweet cat who screamed like a banshee whenever I was talking in the kitchen. He especially lost it if he couldn't see the other person in the conversation. Apparently, that room was only meant for feeding and petting him!
I didn't think much about his behavior when I answered the phone in there when I got a call from the HR department of the company I was working for as a contractor. They were calling to do my FTE conversion phone screen, so I was pretty attentive to everything she was saying. I fully tuned out my cat, who wandered into the room and started to lose his damn mind. She finally stopped the call and asked me if there was something wrong and if this was a good time. Thank goodness the call was just a formality because she seemed pretty alarmed by how dismissive I was of his howls. Honestly, he was super spoiled and mouthy, and he sang me the songs of his people multiple times a day.
I occasionally cat-sit a little calico who is an absolute diva. I love her to bits, but her need for attention can absolutely get overwhelming. She'll yell very loudly if you lock her out, and if she wants attention, she wants it now, and all of it. A "clingy" cat doesn't just mean a cat who likes to sit in your lap while you work. It may mean you can't work because it's always cat time.
Yknow what, I never really considered this and I appreciate you for pointing it out, I’m in a position where I’m home all day with my girls, and they do genuinely get stressed if for some out there reason we have to leave them alone, so if someone just got a cat and realised their work schedule wasnt going to work as the cat would be alone too much, I get it,
But if they adopted the cat they would’ve been made aware of these issues first, or if they’ve had the cat a long time but suddenly got a new job without factoring in keeping the cat happy, I’d disagree with them. Curse of the internet I suppose, we’ll never actually know
I have three cats that are all different levels of clingy. One of them is ONLY clingy when I'm tryin to sleep and she's very vocal. It's adorable, but not when I'm trying to get some sleep and there a fluffball next to my ear meowing at me to keep petting.
Samesies 😉😂 one is my shadow who will just jump on me and scream no matter what, one is kind of a middle ground, she likes a certain amount of fuss then that’s enough but wants to be in the same room, the last lives her life to prove she has never loved me, despite being a kitten who cried whenever I wasn’t in sight 🤦🏻♀️ 😂 but I’d never give the first up no matter how annoying it can be when I’m sleeping and a fluffy cannon ball lands on me and wails like an air raid, I’d never give any of them up but she’s the only one relevant to the conversation right now 😂
Yes, as a guardian of one extremely clingy cat, I agree with you 100%. I can see lots of situations in which it really wouldn't be reasonable for a person to be able to make it work with a clingy cat, and rehoming to a better fit is in the best interest of everyone, including and especially the cat. It's tough for me to think of my little velcro guy going from home to home when he was younger, he's such a special boy and we are attached at the hip 24/7. He is my soulcat. But I'm also grateful the people who had him before me all recognized that their homes weren't the best fit for him, because that's how he eventually found his way to me. I'm chronically ill and don't leave the house much these days, I work remotely, so he's my little supurrvisor. We do everything together and as difficult as it can be sometimes to not get any privacy, I wouldn't have it any other way. But I can also see 100% how it's definitely not for everybody. He would be miserable if I didn't allow him to be touching me 24/7, or if I left him alone all day (and he doesn't like other cats so getting him a friend is not an option).
My daughter and I just returned from a long weekend as well and our cats just want to be in the same room as us but glare angrily. If I try to pet them I get skippity paps or chompered.
I have one cat that lays near or with me daily, but isn't terribly cuddly, and another one I sometimes don't see for a whole day or two at a time. Clingy would be a welcome shift lol.
I’m cat obsessed but super clingy is just so overwhelming to me. I’ve taken care of people’s cats who were so clingy I couldn’t even microwave my food without them sitting in it so I had to eat cold tofu in the bathroom while they screamed outside. Love a cuddle cat, can’t deal with the above
To be fair, it can get a little annoying at times. I can't even make lunch without my girl following me around meowing and trying to climb up my leg. Definitely wouldn't trade her for the world though
Eh, I love my cats, but if I were a cat myself, I would definitely be the "cuddle for 30 minutes, then don't touch me for the rest of the day" sort of cat. Not everyone wants a velcro cat.
I’ve heard some people keep their house a little cold so their cats will be more cuddly. I haven’t tested it out though. But I fully support having ten cats, If I had the space for it I would!
As soon as I sit down in any chair at my friend's house, all four of their cats try to sit on me. I can't even get my blanket in place fast enough. Love those little gremlins.
I have some cats that are too clingy, they are my babies and can do no wrong.
Buttons, my former feral stomps around screaming for me to give him kisses. He actually needs to be kissed or he gets mad. I was preparing him for a family with kids so had to get him used to tugs, rustles, kisses, awkward holding, and this little freak like it. We kept him after he started to nurse on the buttons of shirt. Here he is convincing mom to let us keep him.
His grandpa Theo needs to physically be on me or no one is allowed to sleep. Hes 20lbs, feels like a rock, drools like a broken pipe and is aggressive if i dont rub his ears. He was a former stray but he kept breaking until we gave up.
Bitch Ass Berry is like Theo, but she is racist and hates black cats. She loves me, my mom and her mom. If two of the three are not present, all hell breaks loose. I have to pack her emotional support mom to the vet with her. If mom is not around, i have a race war in my bed between Bitch ass and my voids.
He needs to be stretched out and dangled like a toy. He was the most feral cat i had ever tried to socialize and i broke him. Hes still on high alert and needs to be held to know hes safe. He is closer to being a spoiled rabbit than he is to being a cat.
I'll never understand why pets would be rehomed for being affectionate. That's literally the whole reason to get a pet. Make sure you give Tuan extra scritches!
That changes the optics quite a bit. Goes from looking like an owner that thought the cat wanting attention was annoying to one that doesn't want the cat to be alone.
Im in the exact same boat as her ex-owner. For all of my cats' lives I've worked from home, then I had to return to office earlier this year. I'm glad that they had each other for company during the day, but they are definitely more clingy when I'm home.
I don’t think it’s for being affectionate. Our cat has gotten too clingy to where it’s a major problem. When I have to take a work call, I have to put him in another room because he gets on the camera and he freaks out. He tries to open the door. He does it at night when we sleep too but if I try to let him in my room, he won’t let me sleep. I can’t take a shower without him freaking out. When my son isn’t home, he goes to the closets and tries to open the doors thinking he might be in there. It’s a big problem we’re trying to get him help. I’m seriously thinking of taking him to some sort of cat therapist. I’m hesitant to medicate him, but I’m having a very difficult time. I’ve thought about rehoming him to somewhere with another cat and with a child who doesn’t go back and forth between two houses… It’s sad. I’m sure this former owner didn’t want to rehome, but sometimes it’s the best of bad options.
My cat is like this, medication works great for him. We were worried we’d have to rehome him, but it’s all okay now!! And he’s still completely himself, just without the anxiety :)
He’s been very clingy since we got him a few years ago as a baby from the humane society, but he’s ramped it up substantially after we had to put the dog down early this year. I know it’s MUCH worse because of that. And I feel bad because in his mind, the dog had been around his whole life and then suddenly disappeared.
lol I housesat a kitty named Mufasa who was very feisty and I woke up to him doing the same thing. I think it spooked him that I saw him being affectionate, so naturally he swatted my face, ran off, and pooped in the tub because he was overstimulated. Hilarious kitty.
Edit: I think I replied on the wrong comment, so sorry! Mufasa was caught sleeping on my head like he was hatching me.
one story I heard (that I am certain is completely unrelated to this kitty) involved laying on someone's face while they're trying to sleep. i can kinda see that being a serious issue.
My late, great house panther was always on the bed with me, then as he got older, would sit on my head at night, like he was hatching an egg. This cat weighed 20 lbs.
i wrestle with this. in my experience, it can be akin to learning the hard lesson that you are not meant to be a parent to something. and honestly not everyone is able. i could read "clingy" as someones nervous system had no capacity for that cat and thankfully it was able to find a better home. its probably going to live a way better life.
While my cat isn’t too clingy, she does have her moments. And my only problem with it is that she drools once you pet her. I love her but I don’t wanna be covered in drool first thing in the morning
I had a clingy baby and she was the most special cat I’ve ever had. She passed away last year and I miss her daily. No one loved me more than that sweet 7lb ball of fluff. 😭
Ugh sounds just like my baby. I am so scared for when that day comes. I know I’ll never find another like her. So sorry for your loss but so glad you two had each other 💛
OP had said in another comment that the original owner used to work from home and now has to go in the office. So it was best for the cat to be with someone who was around more. Kinda a misleading title.
Velcro cats can actually be a problem, and at least the previous owner actually rehomed her and not thrown her out.
Plus, OP made a very misleading title. The previous owner used to work from home, but had to rehome the cat once they started working again because they didn't want the cat to be lonely and they couldn't spend enough time with her. Way to throw the previous owner under the bus.
My cat is clung to me 24/7 so there are times I can feel this, but I also remind myself that Im lucky to have a best friend like that, as annoying as it may be sometimes. I think I spoil her a bit too much lol.
I am disabled and have a clingy cat. Legitimately it’s often kinda dangerous for me (and her) because she is very much in my way ALL the time. I’m never letting her go but I can definitely see a situation where someone decided rehoming was necessary.
I had a cat that was so clingy we referred to him as "aggressively affectionate" which was quite accurate! Here is a pic of him refusing to get out of my hub's lap when he was trying to work! 😆 I loved him to pieces, but he could be hella annoying at times!
I have a velcro cat. I wish she were more the cuddly type. She just wants to be involved in whatever I’m doing. Cooking? Sticks her nose in food, touches hot stove, puts dirty paws on cutting board. Meeting? Yowls, swats at phone, sits on computer and erases work. Bathroom? Watches me on toilet, drinks out of sink, jumps in tub. TV? Blocks view, scratches furniture, runs around.
She is very annoying. Needs constant attention. But she is very cute.
Unfortunately, the misconceptions that cats are "indepedant and low maintenance" leads to some people adopting them with the idea of having live plushies around that they can ignore most of the time.
I love my Velcro cat, he spends plenty of time doing his own thing, but when he naps, I’m his favorite pillow(as I’m typing this, he’s napping on my chest like he pays rent)
Too clingy? That would be great. My two cats treat me like I’m a mere inconvenience. It’s like they begrudgingly put up with be because I top up their food and clean their shite up for them. I pet them in their terms only.
Maybe once per day they will grace me with the great honour of the most painful biscuits in the world. It’s fantastic. But a bit more clingy like this purring machine you have would be cool too.
This handsome dumb dumb had originally been returned for being too vocal! He does not do well as an only cat but also talks a lot! I love our full conversations! So I’m glad he got returned so I could take him home 💜
I agree with other people. If the owner saw being clingy as a negative then rehoming might actually be better for the kitty. So they can get the love they deserve! The og owner was really like “my cat loves me too much and we have a bond, EW.” 😏🤭
Or maybe they work during the day and feel bad that the cat is distressed when they're gone. Life is rarely black and white, whatever circumstances led to this we can be happy that kitty found a good match in OP.
We recently got a cat from a guy because the cat was "too clingy". He can be a little annoying but he's a good guy, he's got other cats around too now and he's gotten more into just wanting to be in the same room and less inside you clingy.
I adopted a cat that was given up at 5 years old for being "too needy". I had her for 10 years and she was the best cat I've ever had. I miss her all the time 🥹
My little old lady cat is clingy. She will follow me around the apartment. Wake me up playing with her toys on top of me. She is the sweetest and I wouldn't change her for all the world. You enjoy your clingy cat. She just wants to feel loved and safe.
Aww. She is so sweet! And I love her ears. I have a rescue that was thrown out of a vehicle on my street one day. He decided to make my home his home and we’ve been thick as thieves since. That was 15 years ago, and he’s 18 now. I strongly suspect he was abandoned for being too clingy as well. But I love my clingy baby.
Too clingy?!?! Who could possibly say no to a love bug like that?! I have a couple of clingy babies who fight for my affection and I could never imagine getting rid of them.
I will never understand how people can reject cats that want to nap in your lap. That is like the best feature to get from a cat. Lowers stress and gives you a warm lap.
Sheesh, my Sox is a velcro boy. When I move he moves. He is laying on dresser rite now watching me. Type. Soon he will come over and bump phone out of my hand.
My cat is obsessed with me and my husband and I love it. Legitimately, sometimes she doesn't come to her recall, but it's hilarious because when we stop calling and we snuggle each other (but, actually snuggle, not doing anything else 😂) she is like "nope! Not without me!" Then immediately climbs into our laps or our tummies.
It's incredible. She's so perfect, I can't imagine not wanting to play with my cat just so they don't get stir crazy.
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