followthebluebell:followthebluebell:I’ve gone back and forth so many times on whether or not to post
followthebluebell:followthebluebell:I’ve gone back and forth so many times on whether or not to post about Snowflake here. Snowflake is a year old persian mix with extreme socialization issues. Basically, she’s terrified of humans. She’s an excellent study in cat body language, especially with a focus on self-soothing behaviors. When I took this picture, she was purring, making eye contact, rubbing against things, and rolling around on her cat tree. In most cats, these would be signs of contentment and happiness. In her case, she was extremely anxious and trying to communicate that to me. It’s basically the cat form of laughing anxiously to diffuse tense situations. It’s really hard to distinguish these from actual happy behaviors. The best way I can describe it is that the energy levels are different. A happy cat usually has very even and smooth movements, even when trying to play. Snowflake was dashing all over the place, her movements almost frantic and desperate. I’d love to get a video of her to further explain, but I haven’t been given permission to film inside my workplace just yet. Whenever I work with her, I remember the various asks and messages I get from people saying “this cat was purring at me, but when I tried to pet her, she just scratched me and hissed!! Why are cats so weird???”All behavior is communication. It’s important to recognize just WHAT is being communicated though. You can prevent misunderstandings by letting the CAT decide if they want to approach you or not. Extend your hand and just wait. If the cat wanders off, don’t pursue. You don’t have the right to pet every cat. I’m very happy to say her socialization is coming along well. In cases of poorly socialized kittens, it’s important to find a drive. Most cats are pretty food-driven, but Snowflake is largely toy-driven. She’s frightened of wand toys, but loves soft toys. Right now, my socialization plan for her is centered around me tossing a toy towards her and her batting at it. The goal is to make my presence (or the presence of any human being) a happy event, something she looks forward to. It seems to be working. She headbumped my hand yesterday. SHE’S DOING SO WELL!!!she likes to nap in laps, but is easily startled. she loves feathery toys and soft toys with bells, but is scared of wand toys. she also really likes to talk and will chatter at me if i walk by her room without petting her. -- source link