my cat (kitten?) is 8 months and increasingly getting so scared of everything, it's quite sad to me. She was such a confident baby, climbing all over everyone and purring away at the vets but as she's got older it's like everything is a threat! she now hides from visitors (she comes out eventually but only if we completely ignore her and are quiet) and when we go in the garden she SHOOTS inside at the slightest noise - even just neighbours talking next door!
I feel like it's our fault she's become so scaredy because over lockdown her life was very small and quiet, as it was for all of us - but now I'm completely at a loss how to grow her confidence back. Nothing bad has happened to her and nothing has ever caused her trauma. I sit outside with her and it seems to make no difference. We try having guests regularly to expose her but that doesn't seem to help because it's always at the weekend and we can't help that sometimes we need to be out elsewhere or whatever.
Any tips? She's still super friendly and social in terms of playing, getting picked up, etc but only with us. Anyone else involved or anything outside of exactly what she is used to and bam, she's under the bed. Will she grow out of it?? I'm a first time cat owner!