I have just adopted a cat. Her name is Florence and she is 2 years old. A shy one, everyone told us. Very timid, takes time to get used to someone. “No problem”, I thought. We are two days in now, and I am utterly confused by her behaviour. She will hide in a corner, hide from you as if you’re going to harm her, but once you get to stroke her she purrs away. Leave her for one minute and she’ll hide from you again. Is this normal? I don’t know, but the strangest things happen when you leave her alone. Suddenly, she makes the house her own, sitting in the middle of the room and enjoying it, taking up the sofa, emptying the bins, that sort of thing. I think someone puts on a show here, don’t you? “Oh look at me, I’m so small and shy and I wouldn’t do anything, you can leave me alone if you want” BAM and she’s sitting on the sofa, leaving her hairs absolutely everywhere and playing princess.
Well, at least that’s one of my theories. What if she is genuinely terrified of humans? What if her previous owners did things to her I don’t even want to know about? Heartbreaking. But she’s a good cat, and you can’t expect one to be completely confident after just two days. Let’s give it some time. And buy a brush because she’s so goddamn hairy.
