do your cats like to be held?

On Fri, 23 Feb 2007 02:50:28 GMT, (JB) yodeled:

Jimmer does not. he'll tolerate it for the briefest of moments, only
until he conceives an escape plan, and only while being held on his
back. he's a big-time lap cat, though.

Buck does not, mostly. she'll get in a mood where she's just purring
and headbutting and rubbing all over me, and if I'm sitting, I can
hold her for a bit. she'll get her front paws on my shoulder, rub my
ear a couple times, and then lick it like crazy. less than a minute
later, she's done with that and must be released. she usually starts
lolling in my lap at that point. otherwise, she gets very squirmy
within a few seconds of my picking her up (unless it's pill time, in
which case I have close to a minute). she's also a lap cat, roughly
on par with Jimmer.

Grizzly doesn't generally care to be picked up, but when she does, she
is to be carried around with her front legs up on my shoulder, looking
behind me. I am to stop at each wall corner and doorway and allow her
to mark it with her face. I take the opportunity to rest my ear on
her side and take in her deep, rumbly purring. this doesn't last too
long, usually around 5 minutes. when Grizzly does not want to be
held, she doesn't get squirmy--she simply moves gently in such a way
that indicates that I must put her down, and she never jumps away
prematurely. she's not usually much on being a lap cat, though.

Jungle Jack inspired this post. even if he's very energetic and
playful, he calms right down in my arms. (I've snatched him up from
play a few times to test that theory but just go along with the
playfulness nowadays.) most of the time, he hops up into my lap, at
which point I have the option to pick him up, and I usually do.
(occasionally when I don't, he forces the issue by climbing up into
"holding" position, which is entirely too sweet.) he starts out, as
the girls, looking back over my shoulder. he rubs his face all over
my ear, sticks his nose in my ear, bites my ear, bites my beard, etc.
after a while, he'll drop down into the crook of my elbow and
practically fall asleep. I leand down and kiss his head, and he
responds with another round of ear-bashing. he'll do this for a good
20 minutes at a time, all the while relaxed beyond belief. I've never
known a cat who liked so much to be held, and even if he and I lived
forever, I'd never get anywhere near enough of it all.

Jeff


Yes. And no.

Stinky is a full-body-contact cat. He likes to be ON me whenever
possible. Draped over my lap. Meatloafing on my chest. For me, he's
not so much a cat, as a (sometimes) detachable appendage. With a
brain of his own, of course. And he likes to be draped over my
shoulder, in a kind of baby-burping position.

When Stinky was a little feller, I had a tiny, Jessie-sized Tuxedo cat
named Mimi, who was Queen of the house. Mimi was infinitesimal, and
it was hard to resist scooping her up, but she hated being held, and
wouldn't stand for it. When she was older, though, she relaxed, and
enjoyed being cradled in my arms, as long as I kept moving around--
kind of like some babies. So I would cradle her, and walk around
singing "Shrimp boats is a-coming" in honor of her tininess, and she
would purr. The night before she went to RB, I think we must have
done that all night.

Because I was used to Mimi's resistance, it hadn't occured to me that
a cat might want to be held. But one day soon after Stinky came, he
walked up to me with insistent Meows. I looked all over to see what
he wanted-- food, check. Water, check. Litter box, check. Pettins,
check. What do you want, little buddy? He showed me. He got up on
his hind legs, and leaned on my legs, and reached his paws up as far
as he could reach. I couldn't believe it-- he seemed to be asking me
to pick him up. So I did, and he cuddled right up, and gave me
kisses. He wanted face-to-face cuddles!

Dante suckered me in with purry cuddliness when he was a kitten, but
he's too round, slippery and squirmy now. He slips right out of my
grip.










Theresa
Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh

Make Levees, Not War

Lily loves to cuddle right after she wakes up from a nap. She will
climb up on my lap and put her paws and head on my shoulder and
purr and purr and purr. After a while she will start to lick and
nibble on my arms (not painfully, just play nibbling), and then
she will purr in my ear and lick my ear. She will also lick my
face while purring loudly. This can last for a good 20 minutes,
and then she will climb down and go on her merry way.

Lily & her mama

--
Irulan
from the stars we come
to the stars we return
from now until the end of time.

"Karen" wrote in message
news:2007022222033716807%kchuplis@alltelnet...
Neither of mine like it.

"Sherry" wrote

| Biskit *loves* to be carried around like baby. I just
| support her butt with the crook of my arm, and she clings to my
| shoulder. That leaves one hand free. She'll hang on until I make her
| get down.

Abelard does the same thing. Billy would, too, but he is too big. I have to
carry him with both arms. All the others merely tolerate being held.

Kreisleriana wrote:

When she was older, though, she relaxed, and
enjoyed being cradled in my arms, as long as I kept moving around--
kind of like some babies. So I would cradle her, and walk around
singing "Shrimp boats is a-coming" in honor of her tininess, and she
would purr. The night before she went to RB, I think we must have
done that all night.

Aww, that is poignantly sweet.

What do you want, little buddy? He showed me. He got up on
his hind legs, and leaned on my legs, and reached his paws up as far
as he could reach. I couldn't believe it-- he seemed to be asking me
to pick him up. So I did, and he cuddled right up, and gave me
kisses. He wanted face-to-face cuddles!

What a lovey boy! That must have been a really pleasant surprise.

Roxy loves this, too, but *only* if I'm sitting. She would never beg to
be lifted up if I were standing.

Joyce

JB wrote:

Jimmer does not. he'll tolerate it for the briefest of moments, only
until he conceives an escape plan, and only while being held on his
back. he's a big-time lap cat, though.

Melisande loves to be picked up. Fortunately so, because
she's my "escape cat", so whenever someone comes to the
door, I must open it cat-in-hand! She's also a lap cat, and
likes to sleep on top of me at night.

Cendrillon, on the other hand, although she is very much a
lap cat and will purr loudly whenever she is stroked, is
very skittish about actually being picked up. When she's on
the bed beside me, asking for petting, any attempt to reach
out and bring her closer to me makes her back away, even
though she clearly wants attention. Sometimes, if I do
succeed in pickng her up, she'll cuddle in my arms and purr
- other times she'll struggle until she manages to escape my
hold.

Shiral wrote:

Sometimes the girls will share my lap happily. Other
times, they'l start to bat each other and growl, and it usually ends
with Nina chasing her poor Mama away. She's a little terror,
sometimes.

My two seem to have worked it out, between them. Usually,
if one is on my lap and the other comes along, she'll jump
up, too. After a more or less brief interval of sharing
there is a ritual of mutual grooming, and one or the other
(usually the one who was there first) will jump off, leaving
my lap to the other. It's all very amicable, no growls or
bats, so I just stay out of it, even if I don't always think
they're being fair in the division of "lap time".

wrote:
Kreisleriana wrote:

When she was older, though, she relaxed, and
enjoyed being cradled in my arms, as long as I kept moving around--
kind of like some babies. So I would cradle her, and walk around
singing "Shrimp boats is a-coming" in honor of her tininess, and she
would purr. The night before she went to RB, I think we must have
done that all night.

Aww, that is poignantly sweet.

What do you want, little buddy? He showed me. He got up on
his hind legs, and leaned on my legs, and reached his paws up as far
as he could reach. I couldn't believe it-- he seemed to be asking me
to pick him up. So I did, and he cuddled right up, and gave me
kisses. He wanted face-to-face cuddles!

What a lovey boy! That must have been a really pleasant surprise.

Roxy loves this, too, but *only* if I'm sitting. She would never beg
to be lifted up if I were standing.

Joyce

Vino is the opposite. He only wants to be picked up when we are
standing but squirms away if we're sitting. I always say that he wants
you to put some effort into it if he's going to grace you with his
presence ;-)
--
Britta
Purring is an automatic safety valve device for dealing with happiness
overflow.
Check out pictures of Vino at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/badwilson

"badwilson" wrote in message
...
wrote:
Kreisleriana wrote:

When she was older, though, she relaxed, and
enjoyed being cradled in my arms, as long as I kept moving around--
kind of like some babies. So I would cradle her, and walk around
singing "Shrimp boats is a-coming" in honor of her tininess, and she
would purr. The night before she went to RB, I think we must have
done that all night.

Aww, that is poignantly sweet.

What do you want, little buddy? He showed me. He got up on
his hind legs, and leaned on my legs, and reached his paws up as far
as he could reach. I couldn't believe it-- he seemed to be asking me
to pick him up. So I did, and he cuddled right up, and gave me
kisses. He wanted face-to-face cuddles!

What a lovey boy! That must have been a really pleasant surprise.

Roxy loves this, too, but *only* if I'm sitting. She would never beg
to be lifted up if I were standing.

Joyce

Vino is the opposite. He only wants to be picked up when we are standing
but squirms away if we're sitting. I always say that he wants you to put
some effort into it if he's going to grace you with his presence ;-)
--
Britta
Purring is an automatic safety valve device for dealing with happiness
overflow.
Check out pictures of Vino at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/badwilson

Vino sounds just like Arky (RB). He'd let you hold him as long as you were
willing to stand, but if you sat down, forget it! He's the only cat I've
had who really liked to be held, although Nanki-Poo sometimes puts up with
it for a few minutes. He's a very good snuggler, though, as long as he
knows he's free to leave at any time.

Joy

On Fri, 23 Feb 2007 02:50:28 GMT, (JB) wrote:


Sheba lerves to be picked up and will often go limp except for her
arms. If I am not petting her with my free hand, she will grab my hand
with teeth and claws and bring it to her face. She loves her face
rubbed. She loves a lap, too; but must have her face rubbed while she
sits there kneading and drooling and purring.

If I bend over to pet Robin, or pet him on the perch, he takes that as
an invitation. He reaches his claws to my shoulder and pulls his
weight up against my shoulder, where I have to hold him. Then he
nuzzles under my chin with both arms half around my neck. He would
love to stay there just like that for hours. But no lap!

Djoser is a love, cuddling against me, sitting in my lap, getting
petted wherever he is. But he does not like to be picked up. But
sometimes I just have to. Then he tries to get down. No claws or teeth
or outrage. He just oozes down!

--
CATherine

Kreisleriana wrote:
snip
Because I was used to Mimi's resistance, it hadn't occured to me that
a cat might want to be held. But one day soon after Stinky came, he
walked up to me with insistent Meows. I looked all over to see what
he wanted-- food, check. Water, check. Litter box, check. Pettins,
check. What do you want, little buddy? He showed me. He got up on
his hind legs, and leaned on my legs, and reached his paws up as far
as he could reach. I couldn't believe it-- he seemed to be asking me
to pick him up. So I did, and he cuddled right up, and gave me
kisses. He wanted face-to-face cuddles!
snip
Theresa
Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh

Make Levees, Not War

How adorable! I'm jealous.
Best wishes,
Polonca and Soncek