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My wife and I recently adopted a cat from a local shelter. She's about a year old, and was understandably pretty shy at first, but has warmed to us over the past few weeks and become very affectionate and friendly. Perhaps a little bit too friendly, in fact. I find lately that when I walk around the house, she'll often try to come and nuzzle at my ankles while I'm walking, which presents a tripping hazard for me and a kick/stomp hazard for her. No one's gotten hurt yet, but I could easily see it happening.

Is there any way to teach her "stay away from the feet while the humans are using them"?

Mason Wheeler
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I can think of two things:

  1. Level of affection: you showed her a lot of affection, and now she is returning it to you in the only way she knows. Try to reduce that now - it is not needed any more. Do not go to the extreme to "reject" the cat, but just teach her / let her be more independent.
  2. Age. She is still quite young. With age, the behavior will most likely go away by itself.
  3. Cats tend to be quite social. If you spend most of your day away (e.g., at work), then they will overwhelm you in the little time you are available to them. In this case, the cat needs a companion. You need to find your own way for accomplishing this. While some cats can be very good friends with birds or dogs, other cats will consider the parakeet a special dessert, or the cat will become a snack to a more aggressive dog.
virolino
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I have 3 cats at home, and sometimes my kitten Delilah will come into my room at 1 in the morning and just walk all over me WHILE I'M SLEEPING. I understand the frustration too, of a cat that's just a little too friendly. My cats don't do the same thing as yours does, but I've found some ways to stop Delilah from bothering me when I'm trying to get some shuteye. Here's one that I like to use:

Train your cat to react to a certain sound, like a clicker or a snap or vocal cue. I like to tell her, (if my brain somehow isn't too mushy from being half asleep) just the word "off," "down," or "out." She's still learning to understand what it means, but she's getting better at it.

I hope this helps you :)

But sorry if it's not detailed enough lol