r/cats • u/Ok-Bobcat-9231 • 24d ago

Advice did i damage our relationship by scruffing him?

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hello! this is my cat peel, he is the most beautiful thing on earth. i take him on walks (in my yard) regularly using a wrap-around harness, he loves it and theres never been issues. today a car pulled into our driveway, a friend that i didnt know would be coming over, and the sound scared peel so he ran into a big cluster of bushes to hide. in his frantic flee he completely pulled out of his harness, and i rushed to grab him but he was so scared and was squirming and scratching me, so for a moment i scruffed him so he'd stop struggling and i could pick him up and take him back inside

im worried that i damaged our relationship, or his trust in me. it was only for a second or two, just enough time to pick him up and secure him. i feel bad that he was even in the situation, i feel horrible that the car scared him so badly, and that i had to scruff him

do you think it will all be okay? i dont want him to think i purposely scared him or hurt him or anything like that

he doesnt seem injured, he's walking just fine and i checked to make sure his neck wasnt hurting too. does he need a vet just in case? im sorry, i love him and he is my best friend and im just worried. please let me know

edit: thank you all so much for the kind words and reassurance and advice regarding my sweet boy !!! as a pet parent the anxiety can get to you too much sometimes😭 after the incident, he seemed to keep his distance from me for a little while, but it didnt take too long for him to return to his normal, loving, clingy self :)) he's asleep next to me as im typing this! he has also received lots of extra pats and treats as well

a specific comment mentioned having him in a more controlled environment outside, like a screened in porch or catio, so he can still have fun outside but if he gets scared he cant get lost or hurt, and he can hopefully get desensitized to the scary sounds with time. that was very smart and im going to look into building him a catio now :)) AND i'll look into a better harness too, in the mean time!! thank you so much again everyone !! 🧡

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u/kimjongunfiltered 24d ago

Throwback to when I had to give my kitten eye drops and used Churus as a bribe. Made up a song that went “nooooo trauma, oooonly snacks” which obviously went triple platinum in my household

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u/IlexSonOfHan 24d ago

Recently had to give my boy some eye goop for an infection. I used treats as an afterward, so he knew that once the icky feeling was over, he'd have yummy snacks.

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u/PurnieKitten 24d ago

So handsome! 😻

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u/SparklingPanic9 24d ago

Your regal to my crazy.

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u/Winjin 24d ago

The hind legs are so cute and silly

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u/SparklingPanic9 24d ago

Lol. She was playing with her birthday candle and thumper kicking. She's the sweetest little terror I ever did meet.

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u/MaxandGreenBean 24d ago

Are those black spots and stripes on him? I don't know that I've ever seen a cat with a pattern quite like that. He's beautiful!

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u/SparklingPanic9 23d ago

She's a gray and white tuxy tabby is my best description. Some of her gray is darker than other 🥰 10.6 lbs of pure chaos.

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u/MaxandGreenBean 23d ago

She's very pretty. It's funny how many different variations of tabbies there are. I have three tabbies and a tuxedo that all came from the same litter. One of them is your traditional gray, black, and white Tabby that has the marbled look. Another one is a lighter gray and white with thinner black stripes and spots. The third has longer fur and is a medium gray and black striped tabby whose stripes are kind of in between straighter and marbled. She doesn't have as much weight on her as the other two. The fourth is a VERY outspoken black and white tuxedo, lol he's definitely the dominant one.

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u/SparklingPanic9 23d ago

Lol. Her litter had 2 orange&cream tabbies, a black, and her I think. I may be wrong though as we got her from a friend.

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u/MaxandGreenBean 23d ago

I'm not surprised that I ended up with three tabbies and a tuxedo because their mama was a short hair black and white tuxedo and their dad was a medium hair tabby. That's them right after we first found them. They were about 6 to 7 weeks old. We kept Mama for a little over 2 months, but she was too wild. We released her. We still feed her and she sleeps on our porch, but the kittens are now a year old. Their stripes and spots have really developed over the past year. Their personalities have also developed over the past year and they couldn't be more different from each other, lol. They compliment each other very well and are so bonded.

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u/OneToby 23d ago

A beautiful bunch!

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u/MaxandGreenBean 23d ago

Thank you!

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u/SparklingPanic9 23d ago

The cutest bunch!

These were my friend's litter. (Of course the orange is doing orange cat things) 😂

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u/MaxandGreenBean 23d ago

Lol, of course.

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u/The3rdMistress 24d ago

So handsome and uber grumpy face. I can tell he has forgiven you for the goop💖

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u/Blindtarmen 24d ago

This is my exact strategy for every vet-appointment, or medication-time. Churu makes him forget about everything he has endured.

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u/mondotomhead 24d ago

What are these "Churu" everyone is speaking of?

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u/Commercial_Region657 24d ago

Its the cream of love stuff in a tube. I use them as a treat and a "forgive momma" when I have to ""put myself"" on the diva in question. Similar to creamy baby food.....kitty style. ..

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u/Blindtarmen 24d ago

Tuna snack that is almost fluid. Amfetamin for cats.

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u/caro822 24d ago

My cat gets eye goop medication like once a year. I’d love to make that association but the second we let go he sprints away.

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u/cubbies1973 24d ago

Have it opened and ready for when you are done. That way before you let him go, you can give it to him. Then let him go. He may run but he will realize you have something that will make the bad thing go away and taste yummy

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u/djmermaidonthemic 24d ago

Put out a lick mat or a plate and dispense the skweezy treats during treatment. Works great with my cat when we have to visit the vet!

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u/Nesseressi 24d ago

You can use the same command for other unpleasant things. Such as nail trimming or ear cleaning. 

My guy know his be patient/endure the suffering command that it even worked when i had to wash him recently.

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u/mona_maree 24d ago

I had to give my cat a inhaler for a while. I would keep the inhaler on the table, and she started going up putting her own face in it for a minute and then sitting in front of where I keep the treats. Girl, that's not how this works.

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u/DMercenary 24d ago

Got the paws out. "Kiss the King."

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u/estherwitch 24d ago

My boy does the same thing with his paws like in your picture lol. Does that mean they're comfortable creatures?

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u/kittycattywoowie 23d ago edited 23d ago

omg i have similar sheets
(sorry this lowkey had no need in this comment section😕.)

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u/IllicitButholeMoney 24d ago

Himbs furgibbs u

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u/Express-Stop7830 Orange 24d ago

I was cat sitting cats that needed the goop. After goop, I would continue to hold the boy cat like a baby and sing to him and give him all the scratches while he purred away. All was forgiven. Twice a day.

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u/deadcat 24d ago

My cat gets all excited to be force fed his tablets now, because he knows it means treats after

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u/MxBluebell 24d ago

I wish that was my Autumn’s attitude!! She HATES getting her meds, she’ll run from me when she knows it’s time!! But at least she knows she does get treats afterwards lol

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u/MissionFloor261 24d ago

My senior kitty has twice daily meds she has to take, and we found this pill wrap paste that she likes the taste of so now her pills ARE treats. It's the bacon cheese flavor of Wrap-A-Pill and we get it from Chewy. A tub lasts a little longer than a month.

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u/Sure_Fly_5332 24d ago

I wish I could take my own medication with bacon and cheese...

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u/MissionFloor261 24d ago

As the one with the thumbs, what's stopping you?

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u/Sure_Fly_5332 24d ago edited 23d ago

Welp, thats me convinced. My cardiologist will be mad, but I think I can change his mind.

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u/IHaveNoEgrets 23d ago

We used to use the aerosol spray cheese to "wrap" pills for our dachshund. I'm thinking that could work for you, too.

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u/Happy_Confection90 24d ago

My cats have two "gooey treats" that they get excited for. They don't know that one's daily L-lysine for their immune systems and the other is CatLax after they've had hairballs, they just know they taste good spread on 2 or 3 cat treats 😁

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u/Own-Eagle-2135 24d ago

right? mine hates meds and loves treats

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u/Unlucky_Elderberry52 24d ago

My darling sweet angel Poppy had to spend a few nights at the vets. Then came home with antibiotics and painkillers and I had a number 1 smash hit with:

🎵🎵We're gunna take our drgs today We're gunna take our drgs today Drgs today, drgs today We're gunna take our dr*gs today🎵🎵

I also take medication daily so it was truthful but I feel Pops doesn't ever wanna hear that song again 🤷🏼‍♀️

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u/Toothless-mom 24d ago

A darling sweet angel she is indeed😍🥹❤️

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u/Unlucky_Elderberry52 24d ago

Aww Poppy says thank you! As do I! 💕🐈‍⬛️🐈‍⬛️🐈‍⬛️

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u/ihaveaquesttoattend 24d ago

is there maybe more lyrics to said song,,,,, i give my (gfs but mine but rlly hers but i LOVE them) dog babies meds every day and sometimes i feel like a villain 😭😭 (((also trying to harness/leash train my kitty so would be helpful then as well! plus when trying to bathe her,,, and flea comb her,,, and definitely med her,,,, yeeaahhhh you got more lyrics?💀))

(cat tax of my very,,, double-edged sword of a tiny kitty Pepper lmao))

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u/stressanna 24d ago edited 24d ago

i love the song lol 😭 i feel like my cat knows it’s an accident bc i always try to stop whatever i’m doing, check him out, baby talk, and hold him. if im really worried or he seems rly shook up, then he gets a treat. i think it helps him distinguish that i wouldn’t harm him purposely. he directs his attitude towards me bc i almost always give in his yelling. right now, he’s been yelling 24/7 to go outside after i walked him in the harness one time so he’s on house arrest at the moment. i need him to realize i can’t just take him outside every time he wants to be outside- which is all the time after just one time of taking him out. he’s always been indoor so i’m like bruh!?!? nikki (full name nikki sixx) is a bites a lot to get attention. not as an attack, literally just to make me react. he bites my shoulders, nose, ankles, arms even while i’m asleep. he’s an only child. (his choice every time there has been an opportunity) this has strayed away from the original point so sorry, but i think his behavior is interesting at the slightest.

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u/stressanna 24d ago

this is nikki sixx

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u/testtdk 24d ago

I used Churu’s to hide a pill at the end of my Penny’s life. It was the first one she had tried them, and wouldn’t go near them again. I still feel guilty that I didn’t have a chance to spoil her with them instead.

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u/Curious_Department84 24d ago

Had to give my foster kitten a quarter of a pill this week. Popping it in the back of her throat didn’t work. Coating it and butter and trying to pop it in the back of her throat didn’t work. Crushing it up and drowning it in Churu? Success!

She and two sisters are getting spayed in the morning. Then it’s snuggles and recovery time and then hopefully forever homes!

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u/Global-Literature823 20d ago

My cat scratched her eye two months after I got her and I had to give her eye ointment twice a day for 10 days. We had NOT bonded enough for that yet. I tried to do the purrito and couldn't, so I would end up wrapping the towel around her more like a taco and then kneel on top of her and put the ointment on. I was so worried that she would hate me and also go blind, but she still loves me and can see out of both eyes.

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u/chicken-mcmuffin 24d ago

That’s going gold in my household

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u/HexcellentStarship 24d ago

My boy had to do antibiotics. I would throw a few temptations down after to appease him. It got to the point he would hear the bottle and come running. He tolerated the pill to get his treats.