How do I get rescue cat to like me?

[Miss03852]

I’ve had my cat for six months, she hides all day behind my sofa, she only comes out for food/toilet. I don’t know what to do :(

She’s fairly old, she’s sweet but she just hides all day.

I have another cat and they just mostly ignore each other. My other cat is very docile so she doesn’t fight her.

I’m really sad as she’s obviously had bad experiences with people to be this scared all the time.

Just don’t know what to do 😬

I dont know about this- if she gets it into her head that bad things will happen if she comes out - she'll never come out, will she? Sometimes cats have to be shown bad things dont happen when their "safe spaces" stop being available

TRy looking up Jackson Galaxy of your tube - lots of advice about settling cats in

I've always had rescue cats. One of mine is still skittish as fuck. He will occasionally sit on my feet in the most uncomfortable manner and pointedly look away from me.

I see that as a very loving win.

Even better when he gives my big toe an occasional lick.

I think just to be a presence in their area is fine.

Food.

Safe place to sleep.

Warm.

Entertainments as and when needed.

Swarming with the other cats when there's a suggestion of food.

That's a win for an ex-stray.

That's a good life.

I have 2 sisters from kittens. Both had the same life experiences but one is confident and friendly the other hides away. So it's not just rescues that can be like that. She will come out to play with and arms length toy like the fishing rod types or a laser pointer, and will eat a few dreamies when in the same room. She's 14 now, and although we keep trying, we've resigned ourselves to the fact that she's just not a people cat. I just hope she knows we still love her and it's just how she is

Please don’t do what a pp has said and block off her escape/hiding routes. That is beyond cruel.

keep on keeping on. The basics are - available food, fresh water and clean litter tray (and, obviously, vet visits if needed).

Is your house very “busy”? If so, might be an idea to put all of the necessities in one room to give the cat some peace.

6 months isn't that long for a traumatised rescue cat. I had one that took years to warm up to me...He's a right little cuddler now, when he's not being a total arse!

Small steps, op, small steps.

Sounds a bit like our cat.

We adopted two cats from a cat rescue. One was very affectionate and sociable from the minute we met him - he loves being the centre of attention. The other cat was very anxious and hid away for the first few days. If we so much as took a step towards her, she would turn and run away. Even when she had adjusted to her surroundings, she wouldn't tolerate being handled or petted. If I tried to lift her onto my lap, she would hiss in my face immediately climb down. It's like she doesn't know what to do with a lap. We don't know much about their history so I don't know if she was mistreated or just didn't socialize with humans much. I decided that my attempts to pet her were probably very stressful for her and resolved to leave her to her own devices. I played with her with some fishing rod toys (she was slower to be drawn in than the other cat) and discovered that she loved chasing after a toy ball - I'd throw the toy ball up the hall for her and she'd chase after it.

We have the cats three years now and she has made some small concessions. So, if I'm sitting on the sofa, she'll hop up on the other end of the sofa and fall asleep. This is massive progress and it makes me so happy that she trusts me enough to fall asleep on the sofa beside me. I never abuse that trust by attempting to pet her, however tempting it might be. Sometimes she will climb up the arm of the sofa beside me and rub her face into mine. She doesn't do this with teen DD but I think it's because it's mostly me who feeds her. Sometimes she'll present herself for a pet i.e. she'll come over, sniff our hand and then arch her back - this means she's receptive to having her back rubbed. She doesn't like having her head touched or rubbed and will shrink away if we try to do this. I still harbour a hope that she'll come sit on my lap one day but we'll see. She often slow blinks me so I know she loves me.