cat doesnt like to be touched

Question
my korat isn't friendly or unfriendly. won't be petted, picked up, held, etc. will follow me everywhere meowing, will rollover, then stretch and extend hind legs one at a time acting like wants to be affectionate. however, when i even look at or make any attempt toward he takes off.

? thanks

Answer
Hi
Not all cats like to be petted and have a very independent streak in them that means that they do not like the feeling or not having control, thats why some cats don't like to be picked up because they feel confined.
However it could also be a lack of self confidence in you and you may be unwillingly giving out threatened signals to your cat when you approach them. Cats use body language much more than we do and will interpret the tiniest thing the wrong way.
Take this process slowly: When your cat is in the room, get down on your hands and knees and try and be as close to the floor as possible, so that you are much smaller. You will appear far less intimidating. Offer your cat some treats from your hand. never look at your cat directly as they see eye contact as a threat. Make little friendly soft chirping sounds. eventually the cat will build up confidence to come to you, but don't try to stroke them on the first few occasions. You must build their confidence first. After a while they will come to you in this position more willingly, this is when you may just want to try and touch them a little, You can try this more and more on each occasion. The bond between you will grow and soon your cat will feel confident enough to approach you in other situations and allow you to touch them. It does sound as if your cat didn't have a lot of socializing time as a small kitten, this is usually where most cats learn that it's ok to be stroked.
Good luck and i will be interested to know how you get on in a few months time.

Kate
Kate and her partner co-write  a site full of further cat care and cat health topics. As well as being a feline friendly community site for happy cat and a happy owner.