Step 4: Be honest and communicate clearly with your cat
I want to address something very important. I’ve been made aware by some of you dear readers that you still struggle a bit with your personal relation to your cat.
I’m very sorry to hear this, but take comfort in the fact that you are far from alone. As I’ve mentioned previously, many people sadly struggle with the feeling of their cat not appreciating or returning their love. After all, it’s tough always being scratched when you’re only trying to hug.
Therefore, I want to give you some tools to work through this and deal with your emotions in the best way possible.
You should know that within any well-functioning relationship, clear and honest communication is key.
You might be filled with feelings of anger and spite (e.g. “Why do I need to fix this, when CLEARLY it’s the cat who’s got an issue??”)
But if you want to mend your bond with your cat, you might need to be the bigger person. Extend a hand and create a space for growth and maturity.
What I recommend doing, is make yourself a nice cup of tea to calm down the nerves and then sit down for an honest conversation with your cat.
Try telling it how much it has hurt your feelings. Here are some phrases that might be helpful:
- How do you think it makes me feel, when you throw up hairballs on my favourite chair and pee in my bed?
- It hurts my feelings when I try to save you from a tree, and you just look at me with disgust when I fall down.
- I feel that this has become a very one-sided relationship, and I can’t help but wonder whether you’re only staying because I feed you.
This will no doubt spark some thoughts within the cat. Soon, it’s bound to realise that it’s been behaving badly and apologise.
